Pokemon: The Final Journey
by PaulXion
Summary: Ash and his friends embark on the final journey to win the Valmarian All Out League. But along the way, he will meet up with old friends and new enemies alike. With the world hanging in the balance, what can one boy possibly do to save it? AshHarem
1. The Reunion

Note: I do not own Pokemon (whatever that should mean) I just read the other authors stories and damn you all, they were all beautiful (sob)

Me: Ok everyone this will be my first Pokemon fanfic but I hope you'll understand

Ash: Yeah right who's gonna believe you wrote this story?

Me: Be quiet Ash, I know I haven't known you for too long but I'm just gonna write what I feel like writing UNDERSTAND?!! I'm not paying you to stand there and insult me!"

Ash: Okay okay I get it sheesh! You don't have to be so grumpy about it.

Me: Just get to your position already!! (sigh) Well let's get this show on the road

Ash Ketchum: 14

Misty Waterflower: 14 ½

Daisy, Lily and Violet Water flower: Late teens

Brock: 21

Delia Ketchum (Ash's mom): 30+

Gary Oak: 14

Samuel Oak (professor Oak): early 50s

Officer Jenny/s: 20+

Nurse Joys: 20+ (I guess)

Tracey: 18

Team Rocket (Jessie and James): mid 20s

Richie: 14Duplica: 14 ½

Team Rocket (Butch and Cassidy) mid 20s

**Chapter 1: The Reunion**

Our story begins back at Pallet town where Ash and his friend are taking a short break from training in becoming a Pokemon Master. He had already beaten the Elite 4 in Kanto, Johto and Hoenn and is about to claim the title which he has been dying to get, but there was still one more obstacle in the way, the 'Valmarian All Out League' It was the grand stage where all great trainers from all around the world come to compete but there was only one problem. The league wasn't like any other league. There were no pokemon gym in any of the surrounding towns and so there was no badge. Instead, a trainer can only enter this league if he/she has a town/village/city to represent him or her. The mayor and all the people of Pallet town were already on their way to represent both Ash and Gary and things are still quite shaking up.

"Alright!!!" Ash yelled out

"Ouch, would you mind lowering the volume Ash?" Brock stated and he picked his with his pinky, "I'm trying to watch the last episode of my favorite soap opera" Ash ran to the kitchen where his mom was cooking breakfast "Mom, look at this! It's the official note from the mayor of Pallet town!" Ash said holding the letter in his hand. "That's wonderful dear! My Ashy is finally going to Valmarian! Oh what am I standing here for? I have to pack your bag and your underwear needs to be washed oh but whose going to cook breakfast?" Delia worried so much that she'd wish she could split in three.

"Ehhhh….Don't worry mom, the competition is still three months away" Ash said with a sweat drop

"I'll help Mrs. Ketchum, my soap opera is just about to end anyway so I'll come by in a minute" Brock said as his head poked through the door while his eyes were constantly staring at the television.

"Thank you dear, but I believe three months would be plenty of time to prepare Ash's clothes" she giggled.

"Mom!!" Ash shouted and blushed.

Ring ring… ring ring… ring ring. The sound of the phone came by as soon as Brock got back to the living room to watch his soap opera. Brock tried to reach for the phone but with the climax scene coming about on to his show he couldn't take his squinty eyes off the monitor. Ash picked up the phone and heard a very familiar voice. "Hello?" Ash asked

"Oh good morning Ash, you're up quite early today" said the voice on the phone.

"Professor Oak! It's great to hear you again!" Ash shouted out as the video screen turned on the show a mildly retired looking man "It's good to hear from you too Ash. It's been awhile hasn't it? Two years if I'm not wrong." Said the professor with a bright sunny smile on his face. "Almost professor, just a few more months probably. Where are you now?" said Ash "Well believe it or not," said the professor with an even bigger smile, "I'm actually near Pallet town!" Ash mouth widened at what the professor mentioned

"Isn't this great!? I just finished my research in Goldenrod city on that new Pokemon they discovered, it wasn't exactly a new type but just a very rare breed that's all. By the way I heard that Pallet town was representing you and my grand son Gary on the Valmarian pokemon league." "That's right professor, I just got invitation this morning! I'll soon be known as the Pokemon Master!" The professor smiled at Ash with tears in his eyes, "That's great Ash, I'm very proud of you and I some how know that you'll make it big… (horn sounded) Oh there's my bus, bye Ash, I'll be seeing you in just a few hours and give my regards to your mother for me." The professor hung up and Ash was grateful that the professor was finally coming back home.

A few minutes later, Ash heard another ring coming from the door "Ash would you mind seeing who that could be?" Delia said as she kept cooking with Mr. Mime. Ash answered the door and saw a stunning looking girl with blond-reddish hair knit nicely with a pin to form a ponytail on the side wearing light yellow shirt with short sleeves and shorts of the same color.

"Hey you're up pretty early Mr. Coconut head" said the girl "Misty?" Ash gasped as she approached with Togepi on her chest. "What are you doing here?" Ash was puzzled, "Hello, I came to my payment for my bike!" She yelled in return. "Gwahh! I haven't got the money to buy it yet can you wait just a little longer?" "Yeah, that's what you've been telling me for the past THREE YEARS!" That's what Misty has also been saying for the past three years as well, but in truth she didn't really care about the bike at all, to be truthful, she had almost completely forgotten about it. It was because of Ash's silly face that she able to remember. During her adventure with Ash for 2 ½ years, she seemed to have grown a certain feeling for him, but she thought it was just temporary.

"Oh why hello there Misty, how long has it been?" said Delia said as she was setting up the table. "Hi Mrs. Ketchum, three weeks seems about right though." Misty walked in with a bright smile on her face, "Come on in! Don't be shy we have plenty to go around. Brock do you mind helping me with the tables?" Brock didn't reply, he was crying in front of the television as the credits of the show rolled through the screen. "That was… the most beautiful thing… I have ever seen in my life (sniff)" Ash and Misty both sweat dropped and helped Delia set the tables.

A few minutes later everyone was chewing on Delia's special breakfast that she usually makes for Ash. There wasn't a lot to pick from but it was still difficult on which to bite first! The pancakes with honey syrup and butter on top, buttered toast strawberry jam toast or both, freshly made fruit drink made entirely out of nature's gift and to top all that a wonderful and delicious fruit salad mixed with small slices of ham. Pikachu still had his old favorite ketchup which everyone still wonders why, and Togepi with poke chow.

"Pika pika, pikapi?" (So how's Misty doing Togepi?) asked Pikachu

"To chic preee! To chic!" (Great, she was very sad back at home though) sighed Togepi

"Pika?" (Huh, why?")

"Chu tic to chic!" (I don't know, but she was very happy to see Daddy again)

"Pikachupi?" (Daddy? Who's daddy?)

"Chi chi chi chit" (Why Ash silly)

"Pika!!!" (WHAT!!) "Pika pika, pichu, pika kachu" (Hold on there must be some mistake!)

"Hey Pikachu is something wrong?" asked Ash, Pikachu turned around and shook his head nervously.

"Hey Ash, it's almost time…" said Brock with a sigh

"Yeah I guess so…" Ash sighed in return

"Time? Time for what?" Misty questioned them, but they just grinned and walk out of the door with a food basket. This made Misty very worried and quickly followed them outside. "What's the matter guys? What time is it?"

"You'll see…" Brock answered "5…4…3…2…1…" he then clicked his stop watch and then came another very familiar voice.

"Prepare for trouble"

"And make it double"

"To protect the world from devastation"

"To unite all people within our nation"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love"

"To extend our reach to the starts above"

"Jesse"

"James"

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light"

"Surrender now or prepare to fight fight fight"

"Meowwtth that's right"

"I believe we all know what comes after that" said Ash with a smile on his face. Team Rocket was confused on how he could've figured out that they were approaching. "Here something for your troubles…" Brock handed them a basket full of Delia's left over breakfast "Oh why thank you" said James. "Pikachu Thundershock now!" with a blink of an eye, the small cute electrical mouse generated a huge amount of electricity and blast Team Rocket "I can't believe those twerps managed to figure out our all out attack plan!" said Jesse "Maybe we became very predictable now?" said the human talking Meowth, "But it was nice of them to give us some food before they blasted us" said James as all of them were still flying through the air. Jesse seemed so pissed off by James silly attitude "We're not beggars you idiot!" as they were still flying into the distance they said their usual exit phrase "Looks like team rocket is blasting off again!!!!!" and they disappeared into the sky.

"So that was the thing you guys were talking about" said Misty "Yeah…" sighed Brock, "But to tell you the truth, I feel like we kinda need to thank them. If it weren't for those guys, Ash would never have gotten those few extra practices." Ash blushed in astonishment in realizing that what Brock said was true. "Yeah, now that you mentioned it they were nice to fight against once every once in awhile." The Trio laughed as morning finally turned in and lunch was just about ready.

Later in the afternoon, Ash and his Pokemons went to the yard where professor Oak usually treats his Pokemon patients. There was nothing but the wind splashing on hi face in the air, earth to lay his body on and a never ending fire of determination to win the Valmarian League Cup. Ash didn't care for the trophy or the fans he got himself, he just wanted to go out there and become the best Pokemon Master the world has ever seen. Just as he lay on his back to the soft green grass, a dark female figure came by and blocked the sun light on his face.

"Get up sleepy head" said Misty with an annoying tone

Before Ash could react to the face of his 'best friend' his heart skipped a few beats and that he just realized how beautiful Misty was when the sun reflected her entire face. "Ahhh!!! Misty!!!" Ash screamed out. "What's the matter Ash? You look like you just saw a ghost" Misty was confused by his late reaction. It took him at least 30 seconds to finally move after her greetings. "No you just… I just never saw you that way… before" Ash said with his blush growing even redder, Misty reacted the same as well. Things were silent for a few moments and just before they were about to speak, Brock yelled from Ash's house, "Hey you two! It's lunch time!!!" Ash and Misty snapped back to reality and head back towards his house. Ash stayed back for a little while trying to sort out his feelings _"What was that just now?"_ He thought, _"Its not I haven't seen Misty in awhile… it's just… I didn't realize how beautif… ahh what am I thinking?" _Ash then rub his head and had a dumb childish looking face on, _"She's my best friend that's all, yeah that's it"_ relieved with his own thoughts he began walking back towards his house.

Back at Ash's house, Misty walked in sad and confused, back at home in Cerulean city Ash was the only thing she would talk about. She liked Ash only as friend (or so she thought) and now she can't even remember how it all began in the first place. As she walked onto the table, Togepi pulled her leg slightly trying to grab her attention. "Oh sorry Togepi, I didn't see you there" Misty then lifted Togepi up onto her lap and played with her. "Come and get it!" Delia said as she brought in her famous roast turkey that was truly fit for a king. Ash smelled it all the way to his nose and quickly grabbed a seat when he entered the house. Brock stood on the other side while Ash and Misty stayed on one side of the table. Just when they were about to eat, two figures came into the house, one was with a bright smile and another with a smirk on his face. "Sorry, do you have room for two more?" said the old man rubbing the back of his head. "Professor your back!" yelled Ash, Brock and Misty. "Oh… and you're here too…" Ash muttered to himself. The kid behind the professor looked about Ash's age and had an Umbreon gazing at Ash from below. "Be nice now Gary," said the professor "Yeah whatever…" he replied. "Oh my professor I didn't know you were coming back so quickly from your research" said Delia, "Yes, and by the time I got here I could recognize the smell of your delicious meal anywhere. And on my way I met my grand son training at the back yard"

"Well why don't you come on in and join us for lunch?" Delia invited them over and soon the table was completely full. Ash and Gary gave each other evil glares cuz they knew that in the next three months, they would soon meet each other on the Valmarian stadium as enemies.

"I know what you're thinking Ash so you can stop dreaming" Gary said while chewing on his food. "There can only be one Pokemon Master in three years, and that ONE is going to be me"

"Dream on Gary" Ash replied "I can beat you and all your Pokemons and in three months you're gonna be left behind to eat my dust!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, poor Ash still living in dreamvill" Gary giggled at Ash's insults

In just mere moments, the table became a battle ground for those two trainers and they were just about to choke each other's throats until the door bell rang. Ash answered the door, and was surprised to see who it was. A tall dark haired kid wearing a light green T-Shirt and beach shorts carrying a sketch book and a backpack "Hey Ash, how are you?" said the kid "Tracey? Is that you?!" Ash said in surprise. Moments later, Tracey explained that he was doing research for the professor and was told to meet him here. He then join in at the dining table and scooped up a small plate for himself.

"Hey Ash, I heard you got invited to the Valmarian League!" said Tracey, "That's right, and I got the letter right here" Ash showed his invitation and everyone smiled with congratulation… well except Gary of course. "Hey that's nothing to be proud of, I got one too you know!" Gary said trying to get some attention as well, but it seemed like Ash was getting all the praise, even from his grand father. Gary looked away as all the attention went to his rival.

At that night, after everyone had left, Tracey slept at professor Oak's place while Brock and Misty slept at Ash's house. Pikachu Togepi, and everyone was snoozing happily well… all but Ash. He was gazing into the night sky, thinking about the tournament that was about to happen that would make him finally earn his life long dream. After this last tournament he'll become the youngest Pokemon master in the course of history. But one thing bothered him, _"What am I gonna do next?"_ he thought "After I become a Pokemon master, I'll… I'll be… nothing." The thoughts raced around his mind tightening the oxygen supply to his brain. As he kept thinking of the aftermath, he noticed Misty coming out of the back door of the house with a little frown. "What is she doing this late at night?" Ash whispered to himself. Without thinking about the situation, he followed Misty towards a nearby pond where professor Oak treats all the young water Pokemons to learn how to swim. Misty sat at the edge of the pond gazing on the moon's reflection, she felt a little confused at the moment and thought of things that took place a couple of weeks ago in Cerulean city gym.

**(Flashback)** just in case some of you might not noticed

Misty was still packing her bags, the bus that would take her to the city checkpoint would be arriving in just a few short more hours. It was still 8:00 AM and the bus would be arriving somewhere between 12:00-1:00PM. When she finished packing up her clothes and supplies, she let out a huge sign of relief. Until her sisters came up… she knew that was a bad sign.

"Oh like hey Misty watsup?" said Daisy as she combed her hair.

"I'm heading to Pallet town today" she replied

"Oh are you visiting that Ash kid again?" Violet taunted her with a grin "I'd tell ya Misty if I didn't know better I think you got a crush on that kid"

Misty's cheek turned strangely red "I do not!!" her sisters giggled at her expression "He's just my best friend who so happens to owe me a bike and who so happens to be competing in the Valmarian Tournament!!!!"

"Really…? So why do you have this picture of you holding his hands?" said Lily

"For your information Ash just happens to be in my favorite picture with Tegepi!" Misty quickly grabs the picture and puts it back on the table

"Oh yeah sure like whatev… wait… did you say the Valmarian tournament or the league?" asked Daisy with a quick surprise.

"Oh I think it's a league not a tournament" Misty explained

Her three sisters quickly jump and screamed with delight like they just hit the lottery or something and perhaps they have

"Girl like don't you know the prize of first place in that competition?" Misty bent her head sideway in confusion, "You are so like… not smart" said Daisy, "That is so true" Lily added. Misty was already boiling up as her sisters continued to giggle. "The winner of that league will be like… the second richest guy… or gal on the planet girl!!!" "Oh with that kind of money, you'll be set for like… forever!!" squealed Daisy. "I'd tell you Misty, if you ever become his boy friend, don't forget to send us some cash ok?"

"He's not my BOYFRIEND!!!!!" Misty yelled out for the final time until she took her bag and did a final check up. Her sisters then began talking among themselves and for once it wasn't about boys, but about money and power.

"Don't you think that men actually become spoiled jerks after they're rich?" said Violet as she scratch her head

"Hey now that you mentioned it, I heard all the winners in that league all became losers in the retirement home." said Lily

"Maybe Misty should like… think over on dating this guy" scream Daisy

Misty couldn't help but notice that her sisters were glaring at her "What is it this time?" her face became annoyed but by the looks of her sisters, she quickly changed her tone.

"Misty we changed our minds. Don't go for that loser Ash if he wins ok?" "Yeah he'll be like a total jerk when he wins" Misty seemed confused, first they wanted me to think that Ash was her boyfriend and now they're trying to persuade her not to "Are you trying to use reverse psychology on me?"

"No silly, we're like… worried that, that Ash kid might turn into those losers.

"You mean like the other trainers who won the Valmarian league?" the young sister tried to set an example. She then reach out for another pair of pants and stuff them into her bag.

"That's right sis, if he wins… dump him right away k?" Lily extended her hand to her little sister's shoulder

"You guys worry too much. Ash aren't like those grumpy old men in the retirement center" Misty protested to their unusualy act which was really freaking her out

Violet: "You'll never know sis, even money can turn good guys into… not good guys" Violet with her usual 'like' at the end

"Trust me Daisy, Ash isn't going to be like uncle scrooge next door. (Alarm clock rings) Oh no the bus!! Gotta go sis, later!!!" Misty ran off towards the bus stop on the other side of the city, trying to forget what her sisters said

Violet stood there confused and sobbed "……… I'm not Daisy…. I'm Violet"

**(End Flashback)**

Misty tried to imagine Ash, becoming a rich jerk just like what her sisters told her. She imagined him with all those money and wealth and… well… wealthy. "I wonder if my sisters are right" she said to herself. Misty was so deep in thought that she didn't even hear Ash's footsteps. "Misty?" Ash put his hand on her shoulder making her leap into the pond! "Ah!!... Ash!!!!!" she yelled at him. Ash didn't know how to react either laughing or apologizing to Misty but he just giggled.

A few minutes later they both returned back to Ash's house. Misty was dripping all the way from her hair to her shorts. Her PJs was snowy white and when it gets wet, it becomes a little transparent. Ash blushed and turned his head around as he handed her a towel that was hanging outside. When Ash turned the door knob,

"Uh oh…" Ash said with a fake smile on his face

"Don't tell me… the door's locked" Misty said as her head slowly hovers over Ash. There a moment of silence… then "How could you possibly lock yourself outside of your own house you stupid, idiotic, unreliable, nincompoop!!" Misty started banging the door and calling anyone inside to open up. But it was no use, Delia, Pikachu and Togepi were on the second floor and Brock is impossible to wake up until he gets his daily 7 hours rest. It was 1:00 AM and the two of them were clearly stuck outside for the night. Since no one was around, they had to make the best of it. Just as they shared a small bench in Ash's garden, the clouds suddenly moved away revealing about half a moon and more than a million twinkling stars. Misty was awed by the beautiful sky as it reminded her of the endless sea back at her home. "Don't they look wonderful…?" Misty said "Yeah, I've never seen so many starts in my life!" Ash glared endlessly as he too was awed by the night stars.

"Oh, by the way, what were you doing there anyway?" Ash tried to start a conversation as they sat there

"Oh I was just… wondering… about stuff" she wasn't technically lying I guess

"What kind of stuff?" the boy asked as he put his hand behind his head in a comfortable position

"Nothing, I was just thinking" she then quickly change the subject "What about you? Why are you still up?"

"I was… thinking too" Misty gave a 'why?' face

Ash then explained everything to Misty, how he feared to win and how he also feared to lose. He wanted to continue his Pokemon journey forever and keep on going until the end of time at least. Misty never knew that Ash could've been so afraid about his future. Ash tried to hide the small drops of tears that fell from his face but it was no use, his eyes were about to burst out. Suddenly, a soothing hand touched his own making the tears dry up.

"Don't worry" said Misty "Stop thinking about the future and stay focus on what's happening now, isn't that what you always say?" Misty reminded Ash of the motto he got from one of the gym leaders. The words eased his aching mind and his body finally stopped shaking.

"That's right!!" he stated, "Who cares about what happens then? I'm gonna win that league and prove to everyone that anyone can be a Pokemon master!" his determination returned to him and before he knew it, he was already thinking on how to gloat on Gary's face when he wins.

Misty was happy to see Ash's overconfident attitude, it somehow manages to lift your spirit up even on a fowl day. As he continued gloating, Misty fell right into dream world without even telling. Ash smiled back and whispered to her "Thanks Misty…" Just as he lay on the soft green grass of his mom's garden, Ash starred at Misty for quite a long time, he raised his hand trying to block the moon's ray on him.

Misty's face shine beautifully by the moon's light, her slight smile could crack a stone heart and she seemed to have matured over the past few years traveling around the world. Ash mentally slapped himself back to reality, _"What am I thinking?!!!"_ he thought _"She's my best friend and here I am thinking of how beautiful she is!"_ As shook he as he thought it would shake away the thought. "I wonder what she was thinking a…bout…" Before he knew it, Jigglypuff was behind him singing her usual song.


	2. The Journey

**Chapter 2: The Journey**

On the very next morning, Ash raised his hand over his head trying to block the sun's ray from his face. "Oh… does it have to be morning already?" he moaned while scuffling around the grass. Mr. Mime unlocked the door and was surprised to see both Ash and Misty outside so early. It was barely 6:30 AM and Ash was already up and ready. Mr. Mime yelled at him waving both his hand up and down. "Huh what's wrong Mr. Mime?" the clown like Pokemon then took the mirror in the living room and showed Ash his morning glories. His face was smudged with dark colored marker, "This could only be the work of one Pokemon… Jigglypuff" Mr. Mime giggled when he heard a yawn coming from the bench. Misty had just woken up but unlike Ash, she only had sand in her eyes. In but a few moments here eyes focused and saw the strangely tattooed man was Ash! She let out a long and loud laugh since she didn't expect to see something so funny so early in the morning.

Ash washed his face and cleaned himself and finally got out of his pajamas. They all did the same routine like yesterday, Delia cooks, Ash trains, Misty and Brock helped around the house and professor Oak came by for a visit. Just as it seemed like it was gonna be another usual day, Ash came onto the table and announced his plan.

"Everyone listen up!!" the table was silent and no one dare say a word "I'm planning to leave for Valmarian city today!!" Everyone gasped in shock,

"But Ash, the tournament isn't until three months, that's still a long time away!" Brock complained,

"Brock's right, you just came back from battling the Elite 4 and I don't think you want to go so early" the professor agreed with Brock, but Ash wasn't gonna back down on his plan.

"The more I stay here, the more I'll lose my focus! If we go now, I'm sure I'll meet lots of trainers just waiting to surprise me when I get to the stadium. I have to go now and prepare for the worst and hope for the best!!" With that statement on the table no one could deny his or even to think of stopping the kids overwhelming determination.

"I expected as much…" Delia said suddenly. She expected that Ash would be leaving the moment she saw the letter. She had already packed his clothes, money, and food supplies for him and handed his backpack. "I expected that you would be going early but I didn't expect this early" she added.

"Well if you're ready to go the so am I! Who cares if the girls here at Pallet town are beautiful and gorgeous, the dreams of my friends will always come before my needs!" Brock quickly gobbled down his food and head straight up to pack his bag.

"Are you sure you wanna leave so early?" Misty hoped that he would change his mind, but when Ash sets his mind on something, he follows it and plows through everything that bars his path

"Of course I do! The early bird gets the biggest worm!"

After the gang has said their good byes to Ash's mom and professor Oak, they immediately head off for an adventure that would be full of excitement, surprises and perhaps a change in their destiny!

**(A few hours later)**

When I mentioned an adventure of excitement, surprises and all that, I didn't really mean it

The gang found themselves back to a familiar route which takes Ash and Misty to a stream of memories on how they first met.

"Remember this place Ash?" asked Misty, "This is where we first met" Ash remembered alright, he and his Pikachu were badly injured by Sparrows and then being pulled by a fishing rod, then before you know it, he was electrocuted more than a thousand times during his three years journey. Just when he was about to say something to Misty, Ash's stomach growled loudly like a Snorelax snore.

"Ahehehehehe… I forgot that I didn't have much to eat this morning… hehehehe" Brock and Misty fell anime style but this seemed to be commonly happening around Ash lately.

The group decided to camp at the river near Varidian City, since they couldn't afford to rent a hotel room. Misty set up the sleeping bags, Brock prepared what he was going to cook and Ash prepared the fire place… well at least almost. He placed rocks around the fire place and tried rubbing two sticks together to start a fire. It took him about 20 minutes to finally get a spark until Brock suddenly noticed that the wood Ash was using was wet.

"Nice going genius, you brought us a spark" said Misty "But I think the cave men already developed FIRE!"

"Well its not my fault that the fire wood was wet" Ash trying to think of a good come back, "besides, I can barely see in the forest at this dark."

"Did you use your eyes to look or was it your stomach?" Misty kept barraging Ash with all her insults until it finally grew into an all out fight. They kept yelling at each other that most of the words were intelligible.

"Alright ENOUGH!!!!" Brock shouted, the two of them stopped to gaze at Brock, "Instead of standing here arguing, why don't you two go look for some dry fire wood this time?" Ash and Misty faced off in different directions ignoring each other. "It would be much safer if you two go together!" but they just ignored Brock's warning and continued.

"She can go all by herself for all I care!" Ash replied

"Why can't these two ever get along for once?" Brock said to himself and Pikachu nodded in reply.

**(Back at Pallet Town)**

"WHATTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!" Gary was infuriated the moment he heard the news. "You mean they left?!!" Tracey was still recovering from Gary's sudden yell "That's what I've heard from professor Oak, he said that Ash left to train along the way" "And you knew all this and you didn't tell me!!? Arrrgggggg, no wonder this place felt a little quiet today." Gary was then in deep thought. If Ash had already left, then that mean he would be first to sign up for the competition! "Tracey, tell my uncle that I left for Valmarian ok!" "Huh?! Wait Gary, its raining out there!!" Tracey yelled out

Gary had packed up all his belongings from his room and immediately left the house with burning passion in his eyes _"Ash…"_ he said in his mind _"I'm not gonna let you beat me ever again!!!"_ With a raging determination to reach Valmarian city before his rival Ash, Gary took another route to another city.

**(Back at the forest)**

"She didn't have to say all those things to me you know" Ash grumbled as he continued to pick several small parts of branches "I know I could be slow at times, but did she really have to say all those things to me?" "What am I thinking?" he slapped himself "We've been fighting like that for more than 2 years now, what makes this so different?!" even now his brain goes back into thinking mode, he ignored all the pieces of wood he dropped by and gone even deeper into the forest like he locked himself away from the rest of the world. "I know now!" he got an idea, "Maybe I just haven't been fighting with her for awhile and I completely forgot on how it felt like! Yeah that must be it!" Ash forced himself to agree on the idea and head straight back to camp… that is if he remembered the way.

On the other side of the forest, Misty was also grumbling about the recent fight. "Maybe I went to far that time" she thought to herself "I know Ash can sometimes be a little hard headed… but I guess I do owe him an apology" she had a larger pile of fire wood on her than Ash, but after thinking on what she said that time made her feel a little guilty. She grabbed her head and yelled deep in thought "Ohhhh why am thinking about this?!!! We've been fighting ever since Ash began this stupid journey and he still hasn't paid me back for my bike yet either!"

Misty tried to grab hold of herself until Togepi saw a cute little Butterfree and decided to chase after it "Huh? Oh wait Togepi! Don't go that way I still need to return these wood back to the camp site! Togepi!!" Before long, Togepi was already too far to hear anything but its own voice.

Misty dropped her large pile of fire wood chased after her beloved Pokemon. She followed the sweet sound of Togepi and yelled out its name. "Togepi! Togepi where are you?" she looked left and right for her Pokemon but to no avail until a Butterfree flew in the distance. She followed it until she heard the sweet voice of her Pokemon again, but something was wrong, the sweet kind voice of her Togepi was replaced by a sound of fear followed by an unusual roar. Misty panicked and searched high and low for her little Pokemon. The roar grew louder and Togepi's cries grew more loudly as well. Misty followed the sound without the care of thorns ripping through her skin. After a few minute of running, she came upon a small clearing where a medium sized Pokemon with unusually large teeth was chasing her Togepi.

Just before the monster could grab Togepi, Misty got to her first, she then tried to summon one of her Pokemons "Come out Star… huh?" she remembered that she left all of her Pokeballs back at the camp site. Without warning, the dark wolf-like Pokemon attacked her with its sharp claws, but she dodged it just barely. She was bleeding badly when she noticed that the creature had three fangs on top of its mouth and blood shot eyes. Its claws were as sharp as knives and its roar was frightfull. She used the Pokedex to find out what it was "This creature is not listed in the archive of any Pokemon center, please inform to the nearest Pokemon facility so that we may conduct…" Misty closed her Pokedex before it could finish.

Just when the beast was preparing to attack again, Misty tried to back away but it appears that her ankle was slightly aching from the sprint she had done to get here. Just as the monster leaps in to sink its teeth on her, Misty covered her Togepi tightly not letting her see the action that was going about to happen…………….

The sound of the creature's bite was terrifying, but as Misty slowly opens her eyes, she realized that she was not the one being bitten but a tall boy whose figure was easy to identify. It was Ash! He covered Misty with his right hand and took the creature's mouth to sink its teeth on his arm. Blood flowed throughout Ash's hand as the creature kept hanging on to Ash's arm not giving any chance to let go. In a little while, Ash summons up a bit of his strength and used his left hand to smack the beast right in the face. The creature growled in pain but it was far from finish.

"Misty, take Togepi and get behind those bushes, hurry!" Misty complied and hid well behind a bushel of Winter Roses. She took a peek in by the bushels and saw Ash using one of the fire woods as a club. Ash smacked the creature about four or five times until it finally gave up and ran back to the darkness on which it came.

Just as he finished the battle, Ash told Misty to come out from her hiding place. Blood was rushing down his arm and Misty didn't know anything about first-aid. It was then that Brock came with the cavalry. Pikachu, Cyndaquil, Squirtle, Bulbasaur all came to the rescue, but too late as presumed. Ash fell to the ground as the blood continued to flow from his right arm.

"Brock hurry, do something?!" Misty yelled out in panic

"I'll do what I can Misty, but I'm no doctor"

Brock worked hard and fast with all of Ash's Pokemon's help. Bulbasaur wrap the wound around with his vines while Squirtle and Charizard made a bucket of warm water. Pikachu stayed by his master's side giving him morale support. By nightfall, Brock had finished wrapping Ash's right arm with a large bundle of leaves but without proper tools and equipments, the bleeding wouldn't stop.

Brock carried Ash to Varidian city where they tried to find a hospital quickly. The roads of the city were so different at night and there was no one around to give them directions. While they searched everywhere for anyone, Misty decided to bring Ash to the Pokemon center. It sounded crazy but Brock understood that she was very worried about him.

Brock barged in and head to the receptionist Nurse Joy. "We need a doctor, hurry!" Misty yelled out "Ash is hurt and he really needs help!" nurse Joy recognized Ash's face immediately but was shock to see that they would bring a wounded human to a Pokemon center. "Alright, follow me this way!" Nurse Joy took out flat bed for Pokemons and put Ash on it. There weren't any doctors in the facility so Brock gladly took the spot. They went in to an emergency room and close the door behind them. The emergency sign lighted up and not letting anyone inside the room. Misty held Togepi tightly on her arm with worried written all over her face. Pikachu let out a tiny "Pika pi…" to let Misty know that she wasn't the only one that was worried about Ash. Misty cuddled both Pikachu and Togepi while the other of Ash's Pokemons rested on the waiting chairs worryingly.

It felt like forever since Ash and Brock went into the emergency room. Misty felt all alone outside; awake while all the other Pokemons worried themselves to sleep. "How could this have happened?" Misty said to herself. She was feeling guilty on being a part of the recent incident tonight. She tried everything to ease her mind, but none of them seemed to be working very well. Just as she gave Pikachu a little rub behind the ear, the emergency light turned off. Brock walked out of the room smiling.

"Looks like we were worried for nothing" Brock said, "The wound of Ash's hand wasn't as serious as it looked and I think that he just fainted on what just happened" Misty let out a huge sigh of relief. She was terrified on what may have happened to Ash, if anything had gone wrong she would blame herself endlessly. "Nurse Joy says that he can leave the Pokemon center tomorrow, so why don't we get a room and stay here for tonight?" Misty nodded "That's great Brock but… why don't you take the room and I'll stay with Ash tonight…" she then headed into the emergency room leaving Brock alone will all of Ash's Pokemon.

On that night, Ash was having sweet dream, he dreamt that he was already fighting at the Valmarian League! He was already fighting against the other opponent for the championship and the score was on Ash's favor: 5 to 0. He only needed one more win against his opponents Pokemon and the game would be all his. Pikachu was on the field and his opponent threw out a Pokemon that he has seen only for a very few times… a Mew!!? Ash stuttered back wondered where he could get such a rare Pokemon. Pikachu and Mew battle long and hard but none of them seemed to be holding back any strength.

"Pikachu use agility then thunderbolt now!" in but a few moments, Pikachu dodged all of Mew's psychic beams and jumped into mid-air to unleash a large jolt onto Mew and soon Mew fell to the ground with swirling eyes. Victory was his… or so he thought… when he looked closer on his opponents face, he realized that it was a face he'd recognized anywhere… it was Ash himself!! Confused on what was happening, the stadium began swirling in a sea of bright golden light and a strong gushing wind blew him away from his dream.

'Tick…tock…tick…tock…tick…tock' the annoying sound of a nearby alarm clock woke Ash up from his dream. Everything seemed blurry around him. He could hear the noise coming from the streets outside the window: cars honking, people shouting at each other and the never ending sound of foot steps. It took awhile for his eyes to come to a complete focus.

He noticed Pikachu and Togepi sleeping on his stomach. On the left side of his bed was a sleeping Misty. She must've been with him the whole night. Ash took a look on his right arm, but felt like his body was restraining him. His arm was wrapped with a good number of bandages but enough to keep the blood circulating. Brock then came in with a tray of food made by Nurse Joy. He didn't think any of them would be awake but and to his surprise… Ash already was.

"Oh you're up!? How are you feeling Ash?" the squinty eyed boy came up to the side of his friend's bed

"Like I just had one of Misty's mallet slammed on my head" the boy gestured with his head

"Well that's a relief, but seriously… anything unusual? Any strains, pain or something?"

"Well (stomach growl) I do feel kinda hungry" Brock simply let out a soft laugh to his common stomach

"Well neither of us had anything to eat yesterday, ever since you got bitten by that monster back at the forest"

"Monster? What kind of a Pokemon was it?" the future Pokemon breeder tried to calm his friend from moving anywhere

"Dunno, all I saw was you chasing away the creature and your arm was bleeding, then you fainted." Brock tried to describe the situation as he remembered it "Well anyway, I'll go and get us something to eat you just relax for a bit.

Ash got out of his bed and did his usual stretches along with Pikachu before going back out. Misty still slept quietly on the bed. Her hair was now down and she still had a worried expression on her face. Ash looked at her with amazement. His heart beat faster, and his cheeks grew more reddish every second that past by.

A few minutes later Misty finally woke up from her slumber and gave out a cute yawn off her mouth… her eyes widened suddenly she was surprised to see Ash awake and alright.

"Good morning sleepy head…" Ash tried to create his own morning greetings to her

"Ash?... you're alright?!" (she tried holding back her emotion)

"Yeah, and see? I can get up early too" he flexed out his muscles but as you all know, he doesn't have any... yet

In a fraction of a second, Misty hugged Ash where he stood, her eyes nearly burst into tears as her guilt builds up in her "Oh Ash, I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry" Ash was surprised and didn't know how to react… her soft warm touch felt like it could just take him to paradise, but her tears felt like an obstacle in the way. Ash first hesitated to hug her back so he took up the courage and run his fingers through her hair gliding his hand over her head as she weeps on his shoulder. Misty's blonde-red hair was amazingly soft, the hint smell of her perfume was streaming around her and her sweet voice echoed gently around the room.

"Sorry about what?..." Ash said in confusion. A quick moment of silence past by and the wind blew open the curtains letting a moment of sunshine into the room, "Misty… I uh…" before Ash could say anything, a loud knock disturbed their concentration. "Hey Ash, would you mind opening the door? I got us some burgers from the store next door" Misty and Ash both separated instantly. They came to realize on what they doing and pretended that nothing had happen.

Right after a quick meal, Ash and the gang quickly thanked Nurse Joy for her helped and headed off towards Cerulean city via bus from Pewter city where they could catch a boat to Goldenrod city in the Johto region (wow so many cities)

Brock had a little reunion time with his family at Pewter city, but as all good times come they must go at some point.

A whole week had past by until they finally reached Celadon City. It was a bustling town filled with lots of excitement just like Varidian city. Ash didn't want to waste time on useless endeavors so he took the next good weather out of the city as fast as possible.


	3. The 2nd Journey

**Chapter 3: The 2nd Journey**

Just as our heroes traveled through the Cerulean Plain, Ash spotted a group of trainers over by the bus stop who all seemed to be overconfident after winning a badge at the last gym they visited.

Ash: "Hey are you guys Pokemon trainers?"

"You bet we are! We're the greatest trainers this world has ever seen!" said the eldest of the three

The younger brother stepped in and continued "That's right and with the Pokemon my uncle gave me, I'm unstoppable!"

Brock let out a chuckle"Hehehehe… Be careful you guys, just because you won a few badges doesn't mean you can go ahead and thinking you're the best there is"

The three of them glared confusingly at him as Misty continued, "Yeah or you'll end up like one of those guys who just can't seem to get themselves straight." Ash gave Misty a 'are you talking about me?' look

The eldest brother got annoyed with their rambling since he was still young and inexperienced "Oh be quiet old lady, our Pokemons are way stronger than all of you combined!"

"O… old lady!!!!" fummed out of her ears like a mad Tauros

Brock tried to calm to girl down but he would need more than words to calm a Gyrados girl down "Now Misty let's be calm, let kids be kids" but Misty looks almost like she was about to pop.

"Really?" said Ash calmly "It must be really strong then…" The three trainers looked at him with great determination in their eyes. "You betcha! I'll even prove it right here and now!" Ash and the young trainer who seemed to be the eldest and strongest of the three decide to have a little battle. Brock refereed the challenge on an empty plot of land.

Ash smiled with happiness a he looked at the kid… he reminded him of himself or at least his overconfident side. Ash's opponent called in a wild but tamed Rapadash, a horse like Pokemon with burning fire all over its body. Even though it looked tough and strong, Ash chose his Pikachu to do battle. Since it was fire versus electricity, there was no elemental advantage or disadvantage. The trainer called out a charge in attack, and Ash was ready. Just when he was about to give out an attack command, his dream suddenly came into sight and he saw himself as his opponent.

**Author's Note: At some point I might have two Ashes in the story line so here's just in case if you get confused………. Ash True Ash DA Evil Ash (AKA… Dream Ash)**

"Wha… what's going?" said Ash, "Is something the matter?" said DA with an evil grin on his face "Why the long face? You look like you just saw a ghost" The other Ash looked like Ash, sounded like Ash but wasn't Ash. "Who… who are you?!" said Ash "Who do you think it is?" replied DA "I'm you of course!" The field around them suddenly darkened, it consumed everything until there was only the two of them and then… nothing. Ash was being swallowed up by a strange darkness and the air suddenly vanishes as well. He cough and choked and thought that this was it… when out of the blues a familiar voice shouted out **"ASH MOVE IT!"** the words echoed through the emptiness. A stream of light pierced through the wall of darkness and cracked open a tiny beam of light. The crack on the dark wall suddenly widened and soon Ash was back in reality where Rapadash was just about to attack Pikachu.

Ash quickly came to his senses and analyzed the situation in an instant "Pikachu jump to the side and tackle attack Rapadash!" Pikachu leaped sideways dodging Rapadash powerful charge and smashed its face on where the fire shield of Rapadash was not covering. The Rapadash fell onto a small puddle of water which weakened it greatly, "Now Pikachu use thunderbolt on the water!" With a little sparkle, the electrical mouse unleashed a powerful jolt of electricity to where Rapadash stood and made it fall unconscious. "Rapadash is no longer able to battle" stated Brock "The victory and the extra burger goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet town!" The three trainers stood in shock… they weren't surprised that they were beaten, but to find out that their opponent was actually Ash Ketchum their long time idol!

The mid-sister of the group was the first to speak out with a stutter, "A... a... a... Ash Ketchum?... THE Ash Ketchum of Pallet town. The one who defeated the Elite 4 and soon to be fighting at the Valmarian League!!!!!"

The youngest brother came next "(SCREAMM!!!!!!) Oh my god, Mr. Ketchum, sir! I am like your biggest fan in the entire Cerulean city! Please sign my Pokeball!!!

"Uhh… sure (scribble scribble) Gee I didn't know I was that famous"

The eldest brother who challenged Ash quickly put his Rapadash in his Pokeball and greet the living legend "Wow… sorry about earlier, who would've thought that the legendary Ash Ketchum would be my opponent?"

Ash pat himself at the back "Don't worry about it, one day you might be as good me"

Brock and Misty were surprised to hear that Ash was becoming… soft?

"Well… you 'might'"

Brock and Misty fell down anime style. "Hey Mr. Ketchum, would you mind having a picture with us and your friends?" said the youngest trainer. Ash nodded his head and everyone came by to join in on the picture. After a couple of shots and a few good laughs and tips from Ash, a giant honk sounded just by the main road.

The young brother shouted to his siblings "The bus is here everyone!"

Brock checked out where they were going "Bus? Where are guys headed too?"

"We're going back home to Cerulean city, our parent wants us to attend some party of theirs" the mid-sister replied

"So that bus goes directly to Cerulean City?" they nodded to Ash's question

"That's right!"

"Come one guys, we got ourselves a quick ride to Cerulean City!" the young Pokemon trainer quickly dashed towards the bus along with the trio

Misty sighed "(sigh) I can't believe I'm going to see my sister again… and so soon too (bigger sigh) Hey Ash, wouldn't it be better if we just walked to the city?"

"I agree with Misty, besides we might need the exerc… (sees dozen of pretty girls on the bus) (drool) Ahehehehe… on second thought, my leg feels a little weak so why not!? (rushes into the bus) Hello ladies!!!" before they knew it, Brock was already on board

"Thanks for being on my side Brock…." Misty huffed

"Come on Misty, it's not everyday you get to ride on an air conditioned bus (Ash grabs Misty by the hand and enters the bus along with the other trainers)"

The bus they were taking was a double deck. The first floor was full of ladies who were coming in for the Cerulean city beach resort special offer while the second floor was left completely empty. Ash, Misty, Pikachu, Togepi took the last seat at the back where it was spacious and cozy. In but a few short minutes of cooling down the engine, the bus began moving once again.

The bus trip was long but not boring. There wasn't any television but just some nice peaceful songs that were pretty popular in Cerulean city. Ash, Pikachu and Togepi glared at the seemingly endless wheat field and Ash tried to name some of the Pokemons he manages to spot. As the hours past on, the sun was already setting over the mountains, Pikachu and Togepi played tag together while Ash noticed something very odd. Misty hasn't said a word ever since they got on to the bus… in fact, she even tried to distance herself from Ash by sitting on the opposite corner starring at trees that just seems to have no care in the world.

"Misty?" said Ash "What's wrong, right now I'd figure you'd be excited to see home again" she was actually, but something else was on her mind. Every time she looks at Ash right arm she began to think that she was just a nuisance to him. Maybe staying near him would only bring him more pain… as so she thought. Having him save her life from that mysterious Pokemon made her give him a different look. Usually she would give him a 'What do you want?' gaze during these kinds of trips but now her eyes aren't as they once were. The tears she let out a back at Varidian city must have done some part to it.

Misty didn't reply to Ash, instead she just shook her head and smiled as if she had something in her mouth. "I'll… go see what Brock is doing" she said finally, but Ash held arm so suddenly that Misty's heart skipped a few beats. "Hey what's wrong, was it something I said?" Ash asked. His face was confused and afraid, why doesn't she say anything? What did he do this time to make her want to stay away from him? **Was it something he did? Or was it something he said? Was it the smell of his shirt? Or was it the hat on his head?**

"Misty if something's bothering you, you can always tell me. What did I do wrong?"

"Its not you Ash……. (It's me)" she said softly

"Hey, if you're worrying about my arm don't think about it! (Ash removes the bandages) See… not a scratch or bite mark in sight!"

"Ash… I…"

And he was right even though he was unsure… the bite marks were completely gone just as he had said. A wound so painful would leave its mark for at least 2 or 5 weeks, but in Ash's case it took only 8 days or so. Was it some sort of miracle or perhaps something more? While Ash showed off his unharmed arm by doing stretches and posing, he managed to get Misty to giggle. Her sweet laughter was all he needed for the day.

Just before either of them could say anything, the bus accidentally speeds up on a bumper creating a little ruckus. The bus stopped right in front of the entrance to Cerulean. "Umm… sorry for the inconveniences everyone" announced the driver "it appears that the bus has suffered some technical difficulties and won't be operating awhile" The ladies below on the first floor sigh annoyingly, "But the good news is that the hotel resort is just a few minutes walk from here"

"Come on guys lets blow this taco stand!" the mid-sister grabbed her napsack and dashed off

"Hey, do you kids know where you're going?" said Brock. He knows that kids aren't supposed to run around at night, especially in a city

The eldest brother simply smiled "Of course we do, we live here!" Ash and Misty walk down from the second floor of the bus

"Hey Brock, is everything ok?"

"Oh hey Misty, where were you guys?"

Ash answered his question "The first floor was crowded so we took the second floor"

"So you two… were alone… all these hours?"

"Yeah, why?" they said in unison

"(looms over Ash and Misty) You two wouldn't happen to be doing anything… unusual now would you?"

Ash as usual was completely dumbfounded to what he was saying "Unusual? Like what?" just before Brock could continue, the three young trainers approached Ash

The mid-sister suddenly came by with a slight blush on her face "Umm… Mr. Ketchum sir, would you mind walking us back to our house?"

"Huh? Oh but we're kinda in a little hurry…"

"Ketchum?... THE Ash Ketchum?!" The girls at the first floor all looked at Ash's face and identified him immediately "(SCREAM!!!) Oh my god, it's really him!!" All the girls run up to him, but since they all moved at the same time they cramp each other.

Ash quickly changed his mind and run off the house "Then again, we'll be glad to help out!!"

The gang left the bus and ran as fast as they could towards the main road of the city where they blend in with the crowd easily. The three young trainers were glad to have a celebrity tagging along with them. "Well at least this is better than being with my sisters" Misty thought. She said that she won't be coming back for a month or so, but in just a few days she's already home. After a brief walk through the park and a little stop by a hot dog stand, the gang stopped by a small manor just on the edge of the city's residential area.

"Well here we are… again" the eldest brother spoke out

"It feels like forever since we came back" said the younger brother

"We've only been gone for a week. Usually a Pokemon journey would be at least a month long." said the mid-sister The three of them sighed and then they knocked on the door.

Opening the door was a delighted mother who was more than happy to see her children home, but to her surprise, she knew a celebrity when she sees one. "Oh my you're Ash Katchum!" she said loudly. Ash scratched his head after knowing that he was so famous around town. After a few greetings and story telling, the father of the three trainers approached Ash just before he left.

"Umm pardon me Mr. Ketchum, but I would like to ask you a good favor" Ash stopped on his track and listened to him,

"Yeah sure, what is it?" the man gladly smile with joy to see a young teenager who was bound to help. "Well you see… I am part of a corporation that is funding a construction on a new Pokemon center in a nearby city, and right now we are having a charity donation party at a particular place tomorrow night and if a famous trainer like yourself should attend our marvelous party, it would boost our company's interest rate greatly" the man's eyes were showing uncertainty and hope.

Ash's reply could spell either disaster or fortune to him and his company. "Well I don't think I have anything better to do tomorrow, I guess I'll come" Ash replied with his usual smile, but the words itself was more than what the man could've hoped for. After they had said their farewells, the gang approaches a building Misty tries to avoid at any chance she could get. The Pokemon Gym.

Ash knocked on the door three times… and then suddenly 'CRASHED' the sound of kitchen equipments and other hard object dropping to the ground could be heard inside. Brock rammed the door down and did the cop phrase "Freeze nobody move!!!" Daisy, Lily and Violet we're all on top of each other, it looks like they were busy building some sort of stage for a festival of some sort.

"Aieeee…… like… what happened?" Daisy moaned,

"Get off me Daisy, you're heavy!" said Lily. As the three sisters gather themselves up, they noticed Misty and her friends starring at them in a funny way.

"Oh like… hi there sis!" Daisy responded, "Aren't you like… a bit early home?" Misty forced out a fake smile after seeing her sisters acting all strange, "Well you could say we're off to an early start hehehe" Misty said to her sisters, "Anyway, what are you three doing with all these? Disco ball, light settings, and posters?"

The three sisters smiled and explained everything in detail, "Some guy in a company wanted to use our gym to hold some party of his" said Lily "Yeah he paid us good money for us to set up this place and be the host of the party. Even now everybody who is 'anybody' are coming to our gym tomorrow night!" The three of them squirmed with each other as they talk about the actors and singers that will soon be coming to their gym.

"But sadly everything is like… not going our way girl" Daisy scratched her head as she removed several wood splinters from her hair "We tried to get the things ready for the party, but no luck!"

Suddenly, Brock looked around the room and thought of an idea, "Well for starters" he began "We should put that disco ball over the swimming pool, and we can get someone to freeze the water, making it into a skating ground, and since this is a party we could have a little fund raising theme!" Everyone looked very surprise, but it seems that Brock's ideas were quite interesting.

"Wow Brock, you really know how to set a party" said Ash in amazement. "I've done these kinds of things back in my days, so I know what to do and what not to do." The three sisters huddled in together, and thought of a plan, "Hey Brock, since you like… know how to set up a party, would you mind helping us?" Brock agreed since the gang will be staying for a while he might as well make the best out of it, "And in return we'll be your dates to the party!" Ash and Misty fell anime style but Brock grew in happy tears after achieving his life long dream "I can't believe it, not only am I going out with one girl but three lovely girls! This can't be a dream but if it is, please don't wake me up!"

Brock called out all his Pokemons to help with the party set up while Violet and Daisy use their Pokemons to freeze the pool. Two hours later, the pool was hardened and solid and the entire gym was refurnished into one big giant disco room! Spot lights that were used for shows were now used as hangers for decorations and the disco ball hanged over the center of the center of the pool… and to think that it only took two hours.

"This looks great everyone, I can hardly believe that this was a Pokemon gym" said Ash as he placed his fingures in a square form like one of those movie directors

Violet had to agree with him too "Yeah I can't believe we managed to finish it… and on time too (phone ring) I'll get it"

Misty was also checking out the new set up too "Well I guess all those hard work gave something in return huh…?

Lily agreed with her along with Daisy "That's right sis, and don't forget that we are Cerulean Sisters… the fairest of them all oh hohohohoho" she laughed hysterically

"For some reason I was expecting she'd say something like that sooner or later"

Brock gave out a heroic pose and see if anything was misplaced, "Anyway, the main thing is that we managed to make this place a room fit for a king… and now I have three dates for the party!"

Just when they were about to give out a yell of victory, they were immediately cut off with Violet's yell "What?!! What do you mean you can't? (phone gibber) Oh ok… I see… I understand… bye"

"What's wrong sis?" Lily asked

"Our food service just cancelled on us, they can's move their van through the forest until the road clears up from yesterday's rain" they all gave out an 'Oh no' sound

"Then what are like… gonna do now? We can't have a party without food"

Brock immediately stepped in with a spatula on hadn, "I think I can be of assistance there too milady!"

"Can you a meal for 70 people?" Violet said sarcastically

Brock simply shrugged like it was nothing "Palease…I can cook for an army in just one day and this is no obstacle for someone with my skills!"

"If he could make Ash full, then 70 people won't be a problem" Misty added

"That'll be like… so helpful Brock! The kitchen is right at the back we'll get you whatever you need from the grocery store" Daisy then gives Brock a little smooch on the cheek

The future Pokemon breeder grinned till his lips touched both of his ears, "(momentarily in trance) Come on you two, you can help me with the dishes!" They entered the kitchen… which was practically… run down.

Ash: "This is the kitchen?"

Misty: "My sisters and I always eat out because of our high budget, so we never really used the kitchen that often." Brock didn't care, in one sweep he cleaned the whole place and arranged the plates and equipments accordingly. "Well I guess we'll be having Brock's unnamed meals tomorrow" Ash and Misty giggled at each other, it seemed a happy moment, but these moments never really last forever.

The two friends walked up into Misty's room. Ash has never seen Misty's room before and it was nearly about everything could imagine. Water Pokemon pictures hanging on the sidewall, a nice comfy bed with a Goldeen bed sheet, a drawer where she keeps all her clothes and a table and chair where she does her paper works. Along the corner of the table, a picture stood out from all the rest of her picture frames. It was a photo Todd took when Ash defeated the last of the Elite 4 in Kanto about two monthn ago. Pikachu was clinging on Ash's shoulder and Misty was holding Togepi with one hand while the other was holding Ash's hand. They both looked very happy and Ash could never have been more proud about himself and his Pokemons. Ash took the picture and moved it closer to his face, getting a better look on the picture, but when Misty noticed what Ash's was doing she quickly grabs the picture away from his hand.

"Don't you be getting any funny ideas!" she said angrily "You just happened to be in my favorite picture with Togepi that's all!" Ash smiled and giggled, "Hey do you mind if I get a copy of that picture? I really like it" Misty blushed and looked away.

CRASH!!! A familiar sound that they heard a few hours ago resurfaced once again to sweep them off their feet. Ash went to check it out. It seems like Brock's Pokemon, Onix accidentally trip one of the spot light and the lens was now in pieces. Brock hung his and sighed "The spot light is ok, but the lens will need replacement (Onix apologize) Don't worry buddy this things happens most of the time its ok. Hey Ash, would you mind doing me a favor? There's a repair shop just by the road where we left those trainers, maybe you can get a good lens to replace this one"

Ash was a person who doesn't usually say 'no' to a friend asking for help and this was no exception. By following Brock's 'not very detailed directions' Ash headed towards the downtown to see if he can find another store that sells glass lenses.

The city was still lively even during at night. Pikachu was sitting on Ash's shoulder gazing at all the lights he sees around him. Ash looked both left and right but none of the shops appear to be a repair shop or even a garage. "This is crazy… it's like looking for a Pokeball in a Vultorb's nest" Ash said to himself and Pikachu agreed.

As he traveled through the shopping district, he noticed a sports shop that was sponsoring a sale on bikes "Hmm… that reminds me, I still need to buy Misty that bike that I owe her… I wonder if she'd like a mountain bike instead of her old one" Suddenly Ash caught sight of a furniture shop and thought "Hey they must have mirrors in there, maybe I can use one of those instead of one of those lenses" He rush through the almost crowded street of the city and made it to the **"Ye Old Chair"** A furniture store that sell small trinkets and big home accessories.

Ash explained the situation to the store clerk and he seemed to have the right idea, in a small box were small cut pieces of glass that he was about to throw out next week. Ash browse through the selection and took a few for free. Just before he left the store, he couldn't help but notice a cute little locket at the end of the sales corner. It had the shape of a Togepi and was made with pure gold. "Hmm, I wonder why this thing is on the sales corner" Ash wondered "Oh well… I guess I should buy it. What do you think Pikachu? Do you think Misty would like it?" Pikachu nodded with a cute smile on its face. Ash suddenly thought "I guess I do need to apologize to her. Who knows maybe she'll forget about the bike and forgive me" Ash took it to the clerk and see how much it cost… amazingly it was quite cheap for something made out of gold. The clerk said that it was the last one in store so he decided to give him a discount. "An excellent choice good sir… that would be…" Just before the clerk could finish his sentence the room suddenly darkened, turning into nothingness.

"Huh? What's happening?" said Ash "What's going on now?!" In front of Ash were a table and a chair. He hesitated at first since he couldn't quite make out on what was happening. He walked in cautiously and waited. The candle in front of him suddenly lit, but this flame was different from the others. It resonated in a blue color and felt as cold as snow. As Ash was captivated by the strange fire another Ash suddenly appeared out of nowhere and grinned. "Who… who are you?!" Ash demanded an answer while still in shock

"You're asking the same questions again and again Ash" said DA "I told you once and I'll tell you again… I'm you."

Ash T, scared and confused stood up from his chair and took a step back "But that can't be!" he said "You can't be me because… I'm me!" DA shook his head with disappointment

"Tsk tsk tsk, poor poor Ash… you don't know anything do you?" he then took his cap off revealing his true face. It definitely was Ash! If you could put the two of them in a single room, you wouldn't see the difference even if it hits you right in the face. "It's going to be a long journey Ash Ketchum… you don't have time to buy these gifts or even stay here. You need to move NOW! These losers you hang around with are impossible, you're much better left alone on the road (Ash looked puzzled) You still don't get it do you?"

Ash took up his courage and stand his ground "Why should I? You're not the boss of me!!" again DA shook his head in disappointment and sighed,

"Your not making this easy Ash Ketchum, but… its still early, I have time for a few more rounds" DA disappeared into the darkness beyond and then suddenly a sweet little sound could be heard "ka…" the sound echoed through Ash's head "Pika!!!"

Pikachu brought Ash back to reality. He didn't quite know it, but he was standing there for almost 2 minutes. "Is that all sir?" said the clerk.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'll take it" Ash replied quickly, "Gee I guess I should get some more sleep" Ash still denied the little vision and still thought of it as a dream and nothing more. He rubbed his eyes, wiping the sands away until he noticed something on his right arm. It was a smudge of dark colors, and it was irremovable with just plain water. "I must've gotten this stain when I was cleaning up the kitchen with Brock" Pikachu gave out a little sign of worry "chu…" said the little lightning mouse. "What's wrong Pikachu?" Ash asked confused

"I believe your Pikachu was worried about you" the clerk explained "You dozed off for a full 2 minutes there young man."

Ash scratched his head in confusion, "Really? I guess I haven't had much sleep in awhile. Come on Pikachu let's go back to the others"

The two companions march back to the Cerulean city gym where Brock, Daisy, Lily and Violet were setting up the last touches for the grand party tomorrow. Ash gave Brock the replacement lens which fits perfectly on the spot light. The Pokemons were giving the pool one final blast of icy breath just to make sure it stays that way… they wouldn't want their guest drowning in the pool now do they? Just as make one last check up and Brock picks up one what to cook, Ash went upstairs and knocked on Misty's room. He knocked about three times and hoped that she would answer, but all he heard was silence. Ash thought that she might have already gone to sleep… it was already past 10:00 after all. He let out a sigh and decided to help out with the decorations.

"Oh hey Ash, I just got word from our sponsor that you're attending our little party today" said Violet

"Sponsor? Who?"

Brock then explained to him "I was shock at first myself but it seems that the guy we met at the residential district was the one who was funding this party" Brock browses through the recipe book. "Ooooo this looks tasty!"

Lily squeeled, "But seriously, if you attended our party, its gonna bring a whole new crowd into the lime light!"

"Well I did promise that I would come to his party, but I never thought I was already in it" he giggled sweetly.

"Anyway, do you have like… any formal clothes with you?" asked Daisy

"Why? Can't I just wear this same thing?" The three sisters laughed at his so called joke.

"Very funny Ash, you actually sounded serious. (Ash stared with a blank expression on his face) You're kidding… (the three sisters sweatdrop and loomed over Ash) You think we're gonna let you come to the biggest party in the entire Cerulean city dressed like a cave man!! Well you got another thing coming! (snaps her finger) Girls! I don't usually say this to guys, but for you I'll make an exception! It's make over time!" The three sisters approached Ash with scissors, measuring tapes and evil grins to top it all off.

"Wait a minute, I like my shirt! (grabs Pikachu) Pikachu do something!" But Pikachu was too afraid of the three Cerulean sisters that he was paralyzed and wasn't able to do anything. Brock was still too busy reading the cooking recipe to notice Ash being hazzled.

With all the commotion hanging about… Pikachu decided to ignore pleas for help and drink a bottle of ketchup. "Oh my god this will look so nice on you Ash!" said Lily,

"I bet Misty would also be impressed don't you think so Daisy?!" said Violet,

"Like… I totally agree sis! But this design might take all night sis, do you think we have like… the time?" Daisy was really concerned of her time schedule, "A girl needs her beauty sleep too you know"

But Violet pulled out a fist in front of her and stated, "Come on Daisy! Don't forget that we are the Cerulean Sisters, and there's nothing on this planet that can stop us no matter what we do!" They all cheered and got to work in making Ash's new suit immediately. Ash, finally getting out of that little mess, finds the nearest bench and slept there the whole night.


	4. The Burden

**Chapter 4: The Burden**

Later that night, Misty got out of the showers and check out what the others were doing. Her sisters were gone to do some sort of project in their rooms, and Brock slept in the guest room dreaming about tomorrow's date. Misty couldn't help but notice Ash sleeping on the bench right next to the frozen pool. His Pikachu was sleeping on top of him giving out a tiny "chu" every time in snores.

Ash had a blank expression on his face, but he was unbearably cute and sweet looking while he slept in that position. Misty s shook her head trying to take away the thought, it was a good thing no one was around to see her because her face was growing completely red with embarrassment. Tired of just standing around the gym for so long, she sat on the edge of bench where Ash was sleeping and went into deep thought.

His arm seems fine now, but she still couldn't shake the guilt of having him hurt. She could've just blamed Togepi for all this, but then again… it would only be casting her fault to someone else. Togepi was her responsibility as a Pokemon trainer, it wouldn't be right to blame her rather than herself. With all these thoughts in mind, she grew tired and fell asleep, placing her head on Ash's chest… and it felt great.

**(Meanwhile… Somewhere along the road)**

"You…? You want to challenge me?" said Gary, "You heard me! I was accepted to compete in the Valmarian League and I'm training to be better than all of them" said the traveling trainer "I see, so you're one of the competitors huh?" Gary wipes the smile off his face and called out his Umbreon to do battle. His opponent was using a Eevee, "Just because you got the evolution of Eevee, doesn't mean you're stronger than me!" In mere moments, the two wandering trainers battled it out at the forest, but after a few minutes… Eevee was knocked unconscious.

**(Back in Cerulean City… the next morning)**

Back at Cerulean city, our heroes wake up for their morning activities………. umm… well at least one of them was awake. Misty's sisters were all sleeping after they had completed Ash's suit, Brock didn't want to wake up from his sleep as well he was having a good dream, Pikachu, and Togepi were both sleeping peacefully on Ash's stomach making feel uncomfortable.

The young boy wakes up from nice peaceful nap. His sight was blurred from the morning glory but he could feel both Pikachu and Togepi on him. As he reached out for his friend, he felt something else lying on his stomach. It was Misty! His eyes widened in surprise to see her. She seemed to be sleeping so peacefully and her hair was undone… like she just came out of the showers. Ash blushed as he thought that if he moved just a little it would cause her to wake up.

The kid pinched himself just to make sure he wasn't sleeping, he felt relieved that no one was looking cuz no matter how you look at it, anyone would believe at first sight that we would be a couple. Ash shivered to the thought but still… he felt wonderful. The soft face of Misty was amazingly smooth and silky. She felt very relaxed and comfy sleeping there even though Ash's shirt was a little scrumpy. Since he couldn't move and stand up, Ash tried to make the best out of it and glided his hand through Misty's hair. It was still smooth from the shampoo she had last night and the aroma was a fruit kind. Feeling unusually comfortable, Misty wakes up from her long slumber.

Ash closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep, cuz he might scare Misty and it would probably have. _"Was I sleeping on him this whole time?"_ Misty thought _"I hope I didn't give him nightmares"_ Ash opened his eyes just a little, seeing Misty's beautiful face already made him blush.

He then pretended to just have woken up and sat on the bench. Pikachu and Togepi fell on their stomach on Ash's lap… it's amazing how they could still sleep after that condition.

"Good morning sleepy head" Misty said giggling

"Good morning…" Ash yawned, which worked in his favor cuz it made him look like he just did wake up, "What time is it?" Ash looked at his Pokedex timer and it was exactly 11:00 AM almost afternoon.

"Why don't you go wake up Brock, I'll go wake my sisters" Misty took Togepi up to her arms "Wake up Togepi, its morning…" Togepi yawned out and let out a little "preee" causing Pikachu to wake up as well. "Hey there buddy did you sleep well?" the little mouse nodded its head and scratch its ear and said "Pi-ka-chu"

An hour past by until everyone finally got up from their naps. Ash did his usual stretches with Pikachu and his other Pokemons (Totodile, Cyndoquil and Bulbasaur) they run two laps around the gym and jump up and down to get a good morning feel. Just as he finished Brock, Misty and her sisters decided to have brunch in a nearby restaurant. It was a place called Ellie's Diner. When the gang walked in the restaurant, it was surprisingly empty. The very few people that were there looked as if they never existed, but the atmosphere was welcoming and the temperature was just perfect.

"Hi girls" said the waitress, "What can I get for you today?" Daisy, Lily, and Violet all said hi in sequence like they've done this kind of routine a hundred times or so.

"Hey Eillie how's business doing?" Violet asked,

"Just as it always have, quiet as usual. Oh is that Misty?" Eillie jumped up to her, "Oh my goodness, I can't believe I'm finally looking at the complete sisters of the Cerulean gym!" Misty gave out a confused smile because she didn't know if she was to take it as a compliment or an insult. "Anyway, do you girls want to have the usual?" said Eillie,

"Sure thing!" the three sisters said again in sequence. "How about you three?"

"Oh, I'll just have beacon and egg (Pika) and a bottle of ketchup please" Ash nodded, but then was pushed away by Brock

"I would like your phone number, beeper number and your e-mail address please" Misty pulled Brock's ear, leading him away from Eillie "We'll just have beacon and egg thank you!" said Misty

The six of them sat on corner overlooking the sea, Ash Brock and Misty sat on one side in that order and the three sisters sat on the other corner. Ash knew that Misty would to loved to look at the sea… she even wished she could stare at it forever. The food came in fast, since there weren't any other customers it was pretty quiet and peaceful. The food tasted great and the homemade drinks were to die for.

"I wonder why this place is so empty" said Ash as he chewed his food.

Daisy smiled and said "Well, since this place is like… isolated, nobody even know this place even exists." Pikachu smoddled up on his ketchup bottle, "It's a great place for us celebrities to come and eat without the fans and cameras buggin us all the time" said Violet "Oh by the way Ash, do you have a girlfriend yet?" Ash turned apple red, but he knew what to say, he just didn't know if they would believe him,

"Of course he doesn't have a girlfriend!" Misty slammed her hand on the table with a slight blush on her face, "He's much too busy training for the Valmarian league to start any relationship and besides… I don't think he's too chicken to even have a girlfriend" Ash, annoyed by Misty's inexcusable way of insulting him decided to fight back,

"Oh yeah, I bet all the guys run away from you because of your gross attitude!" The little bickering broke out into an all out war between the two, but luckily for them Brock manages to settle them down.

"Alright you too calm down, we're supposed to be having a good time here right?"

"She started it!"

Misty protested "I was only saying the truth!"

"How would you know the truth, you don't even know me!"

"Oh really? You're a slob who eats a lot, complains a lot, and who thinks only about his Pokemon! Do I need to add more?"

"Here's your desert." said Eillie who completely ignored the two of them. Brock avoided their barage of intelligable words and took the plate from her hand.

"Thank you kindly" Brock finally got tired of two fighting and decided to ignore them.

"Do they always fight like this?" Lily asked the boy as he looked strangely calm to be a in the middle of a fight

Brock simply shrugged and smiled "After traveling with these two for 2 ½ years, you kinda get used to it (much munch munch)

"This is the thanks I get for saving you from that monster?!"

"Well excuse me! I don't remember asking for your help! I was doing just fine on my own thank you very much!"

"Well why don't you just stay here and stay put!" Ash huffed and turned the other way not wanting to look at her

"No way! You still owe me that bike you destroyed and I'm still waiting for it!"

Since their fight was now attracting the attention of the few customers in the restaurant, Brock decided that he had enough, "Alright Enough!! For once can we have a normal peaceful meal like everyone else?"

The two teen sat back on their seats and ignored each other, poor Brock was dab right in between them and he sighed. Some how he knew that the peace wasn't gonna last forever. The meal took about thirty minutes, but after looking at the clock, the gang remembered that the grand party was going to start in only a few more hours!

Brock decided to split the task to each one of them: Ash will prepare the drinks and sodas, Misty and Daisy will go to the grocery store and buy all the necessary ingredients, Lily and Violet will help Brock in the kitchen. The gang split up and rush out at Brock's command, even though everyone else had no problems in getting the things Brock put on their list, Ash had the hard part. Most of the drinks in the list Brock gave him were practically unknown to him. The soft drinks and water were easy to find, but what the heck is a Jumundo Elcentar? At first Ash thought of it to be a whiskey or wine drink or something, but after going from store to store, nothing came close to it.

"We've been going around in circles Pikachu" Ash complained, "What could a Jumunto Elcentar be? I know I've never heard of it. Just as he walk through the last wine shop in the district, he caught sight of a poster add that was being on display at the side of the bus. **"Jumundo Elcentar, Lovers Readers Choice!"** Ash hung his head with a sweatdrop as he mentally smacked himself, "It's… a book…" Ash quickly headed to the nearest magazine stand and there it was, quick as a nickel earned. As Ash headed back to the gym to give his delivery, a familiar sound stopped him in his track. He couldn't see where the sound was coming from, but he could recognize those voices anywhere

"Well well well, if it isn't the twerp himself" said Jesse,

"And his Pikachu as well" said James,

"And look, there's no one with him, which means this will be a good time to swipe it!" said the talking Meowth but just before Team Rocket could get anywhere near Ash, a young woman in police uniform riding a scooter approach him with a bat on hand.

"Officer Jenny?" said Ash,

"Oh hi Ash, fancy meeting you here, I heard from my sisters that you're going to the Valamarian League, congratulations" replied Off. Jenny,

"Thank you, but my Pokemons deserve most of the credit" Pikachu nodded in agreement,

"Oh by the way, I also heard that you're attending the charity party tonight right? (Ash nodded) Well I'm going to be security there with my sister from Celadon city so don't you be breaking any laws now you hear?" Officer Jenny patted her police bat on her hand to give Ash a thought of what might he happen if he does break a law,

"Ahehehehe... don't worry officer Jenny, Pikachu and I will be just fine hehehe" After a quick goodbye, officer Jenny drove off keeping peace around the neighborhood.

"Did you hear that?!" James said, "You bet I did! The Charity party of the city! Everybody who is anybody are gonna be there!" said Meowth while scratching his whiskers,

"Well if that's the case then I guess we wouldn't want to disappoint the audience now would we?" Team Rocket laughed evilly as they concoct a plan to ruin the perfectly made party that was made to fund for the Pokemon center, what could their plot be?

Back at the Cerulean gym, the waiters and valets that Lily hired arrived on schedule to help with the catering and other tasks. Brock had already finished cooking all of his special meals, so went up and took a quick shower before the guests arrived. He wanted to give all the ladies the first good impression on him.

Misty was already dressed up in her lovely… well dress. It was a long aqua colored gown that reaches just above her feet, a black sash that ties around her waist and ends at her right hip and to top it all off a hand held fan to keep it cool when the crowd gets hot. She held Togepi on one arm and her hair was untied down almost reaching her shoulders. Daisy, Lily and Violet all looked at her with pride, "Oh my god like Misty, you like… totally look like one of us now!" Violet said shaking Misty's hand with excitement,

"Hehehehe… uh… thanks?" Misty said. As the guests start arriving, valets greet them with their polite manners, the crowd outside took pictures and the news was broadcasting a live feed to every TV in the city.

The ground reporter was giving her usual take out on the camera. "I'm here at the Cerulean city gym, where famous stars from around the country are gathering for the biggest party this night has ever seen and… now walking by through the red carpet is (the crowd yells out and screams) and her husband… (the crowd screams again) Even though a lot of names will be coming through later. However, we have also recently heard that the famous Ash Ketchum of Pallet town is actually attending the party?! Many young Pokemon fans and not to mention Ash fans are here to see the legendary trainer that had beaten the Elite 4 at the age of 14. This is… (crowd screams again) signing off"

Since there were so many people out at the front door, Ash decided to take the backdoor. Now he knows why nobody ever uses the backdoor of the gym… it was covered with vines barely visible to the naked eye, the area was dark and smelly with all the garbage the pedestrian would throw around the sidewalk. The doorknob was rusty and slimy, and it looks like it has never been used ever since this place was built.

Ash quickly rushed in and to his luck, Brock was standing right next to the exit sign. Ash pulled Brock in and handed him the drinks, "Ash! Where have you been, I was worried that you wouldn't show up… (sniff) Oh man what's that smell? Did you fall into the dump or something?"

Ash and Pikachu looked annoyed but were too tired to say anything. While Brock handed the drinks to the waiter at the food corner, Ash took the opportunity to sneak into the comfort room and took a nice refreshing shower. When all the dirty, icky and disgusting slime were off, he went into the guest room and changed. From there he found a nicely folded suit and a note on top of it.

**The Note:**

_"Dear Ash, sorry it took so long but please wear this to the party ok? You will so like… wake up the crowd! Oh and don't forget to wet your hair before you put it on! HEY DON'T FORGET TO WEAR A BELT. I THINK I MADE THE PANTS A LITTLE TOO BIG FOR YOU."_

Ash smiled at the note, it was nice of those sisters to make something for him. It was really something they wouldn't do all the time, but Ash didn't want to disappoint them by wearing his usual clothes.

**(At the Party)**

Misty was sitting with her Togepi around the corner eating some ham and cheese sandwich. She had already rejected several dance offers from famous actors and singers already, she felt like a guy magnet, but somehow she also felt like she was the opposite attraction to the magnet. She glared all the famous young couples that were already skating by the frozen pool… she envied them and sigh.

Brock was having a great time talking to Nurse Joy, but somehow he manages to find time to speak with the Jennies that were standing on guard. Just as the party went on with the songs shifted through the old selection of music, everything suddenly stopped with a screech sound. Daisy stood on stage dress neatly and exactly like Lily and Violet, she announced the arrival of a one special boy.

Ash was at the party hall, but he wasn't listening to Daisy's little speech. In fact he was having a hard time getting the bowtie the way he wanted, it was a little persistent and would some how it either turn crooked or another way around. As he finally got it right, Violet finished her little speech, "And now give it up for… (drum role) Ash Ketchum!" The spotlights all focused on Ash who was finished with his suit just in time.

Misty gazed upon her friend she traveled with and has never seen him in a handsome suit before in her life. It was a suit like any other but with several difference. The base color and secondary color were Blue and black, it had long sleeves and a comfortable collar that doesn't choke you around like the other suit does. The audience applause while Ash scratches his head in embarrassment, but luckily Pikachu was there to give him courage. The boy walks down the stairs as the spot lights return to their original positions. Some of Ash's fans congratulated him as he sees many wondrous Pokemon joining the fun, "Hey why should they all have the fun? Let's get everyone to play Piikachu!" Ash released all of his Pokemon and decided to let them have a good bit of fun. Misty thought of it to be a good idea and so she did the same. The party was perfect, and everything went according to exactly how Brock had planned, and he had more girls then he could handle himself.

While everyone was having their share of the excitement, Misty was still sitting on the corner with Togepi. She couldn't wait to get back on the road to Valmarian city even though she was the one who longed for a vacation from all that training. Ash suddenly noticed her grouching on a little chair and asked what was wrong,

"Hey Misty" said Ash, "aren't you gonna join in? There's lots of neat food on the table" Misty took a quick glance at him, her eyes widened and her words stuttered. "Or maybe you're just tired, I'll grab you something to drink" Ash quickly ran to the desert table as he browse through the selection of sodas that he bought from the stores.

Misty finally reacted on her actions, why did she stutter? Her heart pounded 3 times faster and was about to burst, her sweat gland was acting up and giving here an uneasy feeling. Before she could even explain to herself on what was happening, Ash came back with two glasses of sodas. To Misty's surprise, it was her favorite drink! It wasn't like any of those complicated sodas or wines but just plain orange juice.

Even though Ash was too busy looking at all his Pokemon having fun dancing around to notice the girl next to him… Misty was giving him a few short glances. She felt nervous being around Ash, but didn't know why. Though she was nervous she also felt right. She felt safe and secure, her sweat gland ceased to work and her heart beat returned to normal… yet she wasn't sure what could've caused her to react like that.

Pikachu then came by and danced with Togepi to the beat of the music, it was a popular hip hop song sang by one of the singers here at the party. Just before the next song played, Ash took the courage and asked Misty for a dance. She blushed and couldn't say a word to express herself,

"Well…" Ash said, "If you don't want to dance that's fine with me" Misty watch as her opportunity slowly walks away from her. Her mind threw in random ideas and thoughts it felt like it was gonna blow. Just before Ash could leave for the dance floor, Misty grabbed his hand and agreed… but in the end, that beautiful scene was interrupted by a good yell at a microphone on stage.

The long red head stepped onto the stage (Jessie duh!) "Sorry to interrupt you everyone! (everyone stop on what they were doing and lights dimmed)

James, the blue headed partner continued, "We heard that a charity party was going on so we just came in drop by to see if anyone would like to leave a donation for us"

"Team Rocket? Who'd want to donate anything to you?" Brock stepped out of the crowd and prepared to bring out his Pokemons for a battle. These three really had to show up at the worst possible time!

Jessie laughed at his pathetic hero attempt, "Oh and don't worry, we're not asking you to give us anything, we're taking it! Ohhohohohohohohoh! Prepare for trouble celebrities of all!"

"And make it double this is your curtain call"

"To protect the world from devas…"

"Umm like… excuse me! But this is a charity party, so can we ask you to like… not rob us?" Daisy suddenly appeared out of nowhere and asked them politely in a very unusual manner. I mean come on! Who asked people not to rob you?

Everyone falls down anime style!

"Excuse me! We're trying to say our motto here!" Jessie steamed out a tantrum. That little interuption ruined her entire motto

"Oh that old motto? Haven't you three been like… saying it for years now? Don't you get bored of it? I know I would"

"Grrr!! Anyway!! To protect the world from devas… Oh forget it just hand over all your money and your Pokemons!!"

In an instant a battalion of Team Rocket grunts burst in with their some sort of weapon. It wasn't anything lethal, but it could sure pack a punch! Ash thought of fighting back but Misty reminded him that there were people around and they could be caught in the cross fire. Just while everyone was being rob of money, jewelry and other valuables, everything stopped… literally. The sound disappeared, the clock stopped on its track, lights held its position as it flickered, all motions even water stopped as it splashed on the ground. Ash felt strangely confused until he noticed that everyone but him was frozen still. He could talk, walk and move around, but nothing made sense to him now!

On stage a familiar figure appeared near Jesse, James and Meowth, it was DA. He took up the microphone up to his mouth face still with that evil grin but he was also wearing the same thing Ash was. "See what I mean Ash?" said DA, "You can't waste your time on these losers, you have better things to do rather than fighting wimps who can't even tie their own shoe laces. There are plenty of Pokemon trainers along the road and if we leave now, we… I mean you… will become the strongest trainer ever to live! Isn't that what this trip was all about?" DA's proposal was very tempting, but Ash was too hard headed to listen,

"I can't leave now, my friends need me and I need to help them!" But when Ash looked around, he figured if he fought back he would be beaten, even he can't fight against a group this large and Team Rocket's Pokemon appeared to be much fiercer than before. "Grrrrr… I can't beat all of them, but I'll try, come on Pikachu!" but then Ash realized that even the Pokemons were frozen and Pikachu was no exceptions,

"You've got to be joking… you're actually gonna try and beat all these men with just a Pikachu, a Cyndoquil, a Totodile, and a Bulbasaur? Hahahaha… pathetic. And your skills in handling them are weak" Ash became annoyed with DA taunts and decided to give him a piece of his mind, "Well let me tell you that I'm a Pokemon trainer and I can handle any Pokemon you can throw at me! I bet you don't even know how to do a Pokemon battle!" Just before Ash could move, the room began to shake and the roof of the gym was about to crumble, "Looks like my time is up" said DA, "but if I leave you here, then our dreams won't come true now would it?" In an instant DA's eyes glowed and changed colors and with a single glance at Ash… everything changed.

When time resumed to the world, Misty noticed that Ash had a blank expression on his face which was quite unusual. His eyes were dark and his pupils were completely gone, "Ash? Ash?!" Misty shook him but there was no response, it was like he was put into a trance or something.

As team rocket looted the celebrities and the food table of all its delicacies, a giant balloon with Meow's face crashed through the ceiling making a whole on the roof top,

"Oh no they're ruining our gym!" said Lily

"Oh well… I always did want a sky liner…" said Daisy. Team Rocket grunts walked around the crowd gathering anything of valuable, they took from the biggest most expensive ring to the tiniest and cheapest necklaces.

Just when Brock couldn't stand doing nothing he saw one of the Team Rocket flirting with one of the Jennies his eyes turned to fire as he rushed in and punch the living daylights out of the guy! The aura around him clearly stated out **"I'M GONNA HURT YOU IN SO MANY WAYS, YOU'D WISH THAT MY ONIX WOULD STRANGLE YOU INSTEAD IF YOU COME WITHIN TEN FEET NEAR JENNY!!!!" **Brock was then tackled down by a dozen more of those thugs and since he's only human he didn't stand a chance.

"Hurry up you buffoons! (the grunts pack the last of the goods into the balloon) Well I must thank you all for your wonderful generosity and now we must bid you 'Ad diu' bye bye!" the balloon began to rise up from the stage

"And see ya" said James

"Wouldn't wanna be ya!... seriously" said Meowth

Just as Team Rocket glide out of the ceiling sky liner (that they made) a familiar voice came out from a single figure that stood out from the crowd.

"Hold it right there Team Rocket!" the trio turned to see who dared to stop them, and NOT to their surprise, it was none other than Ash himself.

"Hey isn't that the twerp?" they said in unison

"Well what daya know, he's actually in the party this time!" said James

Jessie smacked her partner with her mallet and scowled "No you idiot! Why is his Pikachu still there!? I told you to grab every Pokemon too!"

The entire group of fifty men and women of Team Rocket touched the ground and prepare to capture Ash's Pikachu. Usually at this time Ash would've commanded an attack, but he hesitated… it was unlike him to be thinking during battle!

**(Somewhere along the streets of Goldenrod City)**

Gary was walking down the streets with his Umbreon, he was trying to find more trainers along the way before he heads off to Valmarian city. He fed Umbreon with 'Pokechow' a famous snack for all types of Pokemon. But as he passes by a hardware store which was displaying some brand new TV flat screen, he noticed that the news channel was on at Cerulean city.

"… reporting live from Cerulean city gym where a bandit group known as Team Rocket has taken over a charity party earlier this evening. Police force are currently powerless as the bandit group are holding many famous actors and artists who are currently part of the funding this grand party hostages. (Explosion) Oh my goodness… there has just been an explosion on the out side of the gym and it seems… who is that? Get us a closer look! Switch back to the ground camera hurry!!! "

A boy ran through the broken wall with four Pokemons behind him and a whole company of Team Rocket goons and grunts. Gary was shocked to see the boy was actually his rival Ash! Gary glared at the TV closely as he listened to every word of the news. He couldn't hear what Ash was saying but he could lip read of some of the words. _"Ash? What is that loser doing there?"_ Gary thought

**(Back at Cerulean Gym)**

Ash stood his ground at the front of Cerulean gym, he looked different now… almost everything about him has changed. The tone of his voice, the words he used, and even the actions he did… it was like looking at another Ash. Even though no one could really tell the difference, Misty knew something was wrong… this wasn't the Ash Ketchum she knew. "Well well well, Team Rocket… again you've come to bar my path" said Ash, "Haven't you already shame yourselves to the lowest of the low? Well anyway… I will give you only one fair warning… run now and I promise I won't hurt you… too much"

This was definitely not the Ash that they knew. He was covered with an aura of unending power and even his Pokemons felt it to, but they were loyal and would never abandon their master. The thugs and grunts summoned all their Pokemons to do battle and even Jesse and James sent Arbok and Weezing to join them.

Ash grinned, "I must thank you, I really hoped that you would decline my offer… now my Pokemons! Its time to show them that there is only one king on this planet!" With a wave of his arm, Ash's Pokemons engaged Team Rocket but for some reason, the aura round Ash gave them overwhelming power! "Cyndoquil use flame thrower and tackle, Bulbasaur use vine whip and razor leaf then dodge, Totodile use crush bite and water gun everyone one of them, Pikachu use your agility and aim your thunderbolt at the water gun! Now GO!"

With a single chain of command the other Pokemons where either stunned wounded or just plain unconscious. Everyone was amazed by the astounding maneuver of Ash and gave him a wonderful applause.

"Since when did that twerp get so strong?!" said James,

"Well at least we still got the goods so let's get out of here meowth!" With the Team Rocket balloon flying over the sea of the Cerulean beach, Ash chanted a few words that were unknown and mysterious to him. In a fraction of a second, a huge Gyrados jumped from the sea bed and bit the balloon which nearly escaped. Everyone thought that all the valuables were swallowed by Gyrados, but in just a brief moment, the giant sea dragon crawled through the sands of the beach even though Gyrados hated the earth.

The giant Pokemon opened its mouth to Ash revealing the sacks of stolen goods that Team Rocket stole. Again Ash was greeted with a full round of applause by the people's amazement, the Gyrados swam back into the ocean avoiding the people whenever it possibly could. The police force arrested the remaining members of Team Rocket that were left behind. With all the commotion hanging about, the dark aura lifted from Ash body and disappeared by the light. Ash dozed back in and was nearly confused on what all the commotion was about.

**(Back at Goldenrod City)**

After that brief incident that he saw, Gary smack at the window display as he was practically shaking in his boots! He never saw Ash so powerful before… after a brief demonstration on what he saw on TV he felt like Ash was already way ahead of him and he was 'as Ash said' eating his dust. Was this Ash's true ability? Gary felt so low than an ant would look down at him. After seeing such awesome might displayed by Ash's Pokemon, he could barely look at his Umbreon. Gary smacked the display window one more time before he left. His eyes were still burning with determination, and there was no one… absolutely no one who could stop him.


	5. Forget But Not Forgotten

**Chapter 5: Forget but not Forgotten**

Beep beep… beep beep… beep beep. The annoying sound of the alarm clock was truly a nuisance. Ash tried to reach for it but couldn't see where. When his eyes focused, he saw the clock on the other side of the room still beeping. Brock must've put it there so he would get up and press the darn thing. The beeping rang on for a few minutes until Ash finally got so annoyed and smack the top of it.

He walked towards the dining table and saw Brock badly wounded with bandages surrounded by Misty's sisters, Misty on the other hand was feeding her Togepi a nice warm buttered toast. "Good morning Ash" said Misty with her warm smile, "Do you want something for breakfast?" Ash yawned as he scratches his hair like a Rattatat, everyone was used to his morning howls and rude manners that they didn't really noticed it anymore

"I'll just have toast please" he said with a defining yawn. Toast?! Breakfast? Misty had never asked Ash something like that before but the boy was still too sleepy to notice.

Just as soon everyone was having breakfast, a phone rang. Brock was still 'talking' to the girls and Misty was busy making those toasts. Ash sighed, it's been a bad morning already without all the commotion and he still had to answer the phone which was probably meant for someone else, but strangely enough he was wrong. It was actually Nurse Joy of Cerulean city, "Oh good morning Ash! I'm sorry to call you so early today" the video screen pop up showing Nurse Joy's face, "I just came to tell you that all your Pokemons are fully healed from last night's battle, just come and pick them up whenever you're ready"

Ash suddenly got confused, "Yeah thanks Nurse… whoa wait! Did you say my Pokemons are in the Pokemon Center?"

"That's right. Bulbasaur, Cyndoquil, Totodile and Pikachu. You brought them here for check up after yesterday's battle with Team Rocket, is there something wrong?"

"Wait, there wasn't any battle, I was at a party in Cerulean Gym last night!"

That's right and that's where you fought Team Rocket. Are you feeling alright Ash? You don't look like yourself today"

"I don't feel like myself today either, I'll come and pick them up in an hour, please tell them that"

"I will Ash… good bye"

"(Ash hangs the phone down) Is something wrong Ash?" Misty asked her confused friend

"I'm not sure myself…… hey Misty can you tell me what happened last night?" the boy scratched the back of his head as he could feel a strange limping pain on his scalp

"Don't you remember Ash? You of all people should know"

"Ahehehehe… can you uhh… freshen up my memory?" Misty turns on the TV and sees the broad cast that happened last night "You saved everyone back there, though it was kinda scary"

Ash gazed onto the TV as he saw himself on the screen screaming out attack commands kicking Team Rocket's butt, yet his mind rejected all of it. "Savior of the City" was the title of the story. The images were real, but Ash couldn't remember any of it. He couldn't remember how he beat those thugs to kingdom calm, nor the Gyrados that fetched the loot that Jesse and James were running away with. He would definitely remember this kind of victory, but his mind was still blank just like the expression his face.

Misty expected Ash to start bragging any moment, _"He was always a show off type"_ she thought but as time past, Ash remained quiet as if he was trying to remember something… something important… something that had happened before the fight.

There was a blurry picture in his mind, a dark figure that looked so much like him… could he have forgotten everything that had happen in just one night? "When did all of this happen" said Ash

"Yesterday of course, you did all those shouting remember?" Misty tried to make him remember by pointing at several well known spots on the field and pointing them out. She even mentioned the hole he made on the wall, "Well does that ring a bell?"

"Yeah I think I remember some of it" but he lied, he couldn't remember a thing that happened that night, His latest memory on that party was asking Misty for a dance but he never got a reply, _"I guess that must be when Team Rocket attacked us"_

Just when he finished up his toast, Ash looked up to the clock and said, "Oh no I'm supposed to pick up Pikachu and the others from the Pokemon Center!" Ash quickly heads up to the guests room and change into his normal going out attire. "Wait Ash, I'll come with you!" Misty hastily took off her apron and washed her hands and followed Ash through the front door of the gym.

The morning could never have been more perfect. The sun was shining just enough light to see, but not enough to make you squint, the birds chirp and barely a car traveling on the streets. Ash had walked with Misty for a full 15 minutes without saying a word, I was nice and peaceful, but still something bothered Ash's mind: The Valamarian League is still far away and he has barely been training with his Pokemons, and now he's having amnesia from yesterday.

Misty wanted to ask Ash something ever since last night, but she hesitated. She didn't know if Ash would remember. He said he does remember but Misty knows him too well. Ash was a terrible liar, he wouldn't be able to tell a lie even if his life depended on it.

"What's wrong Ash?" Misty mustered up all her courage to finally start a conversation, "You've been quiet ever since we came out from the gym?" but the young boy just smiled and shook his head, he didn't want to worry about him and so he just pretended to be just fine.

**(Back at the Cerulean gym)**

As Brock finally got out of the dining table satisfied and his wounds were miraculously healed in an instant (anything can happen in a cartoon) Just as he wiped all the kiss marks all over his face, the phone suddenly rang right on time. Just like a nosey kid who can't help but snooping around. "Hello?" he answered, "This is the Cerulean gym"

"Brock? Is that you?" the video screen switched on and it seemed like the professor was on,

"Oh professor Oak, it's great to hear from you again!"

"It's great to hear from you too Brock but I need to speak with Ash, can you put him on?"

Brock looked left and right and sighed, "Sorry professor, I think he went for a walk this morning with Misty and I think he'll be back by lunch or dinner" suddenly another voice came in and soon the professor was replaced by a beautiful lady,

"Oh hello Brock, this is Delia, Ash's mom you remember right?"

Brock nodded, "Oh by the way, how did you know Ash was here?" Delia pulled out the news paper and with a giant headline saying "Ash, Hero of Cerulean!"

"When I saw the news paper I was bursting with excitement can I speak with my little boy?" Brock sighed again,

"Sorry Mrs. Ketchum, but Ash isn't here right now, I think he for a walk with Misty"

Delia jumped with even more excitement "Oh that's wonderful! Well if you see Ash, please tell him that your mother is very proud of you! And I've got a collection of all these lovely pictures and I even recorded the news on a video tape and I just can't get enough of it!"

Brock pulled out a slight grin and sweatdropped big time, "Well anyway Brock" the professor said, finally getting the phone back from Delia, "You just tell Ash that if he needs any of his Pokemon switched, I'll be happy to help him anyway I can! Oh and please tell him I put some extra money in his account for emergency purpose only. Oh and (Brock sighed) by the way, please be on the look out for Gary. He seemed to have left Pallet town a few days ago and I haven't heard from him since so I thought he may wander up to you guys"

Brock took note of what the professor said into his mind. He knew Ash wouldn't like it if he realizes that his arch rival is also traveling through to Valmarian and it would definitely mess up the nice relaxing vacation they were on.

**(At the streets near the Pokemon Center)**

Meanwhile, Ash and Misty were coming out of the Pokemon Center with Pikachu up and energized and was ready to take on a new adventure! Ash giggled as his little yellow friend jumps up and down and gives out a few air jabs. Togepi cheered Pikachu and gave out a sweet "Chic preeee!" No one could tell what it was saying but from Pikachu's reaction it must've been something encouraging. Ash didn't have much planned on that day so he just took a stroll around the city. Pikachu rode on Ash's head making him look taller than everyone around him.

Just as they were passing through a small café on their way back to the gym, Ash's stomach growled out. He then remembered that he didn't have much of a breakfast this morning, in fact… he hasn't eaten anything since yesterday morning when everyone went out for brunch. He wanted to get back to training with Pikachu and his other Pokemons but then his stomach got the best of him.

Misty didn't know if she wanted to sigh or giggle. It was nice having the old Ash back, because the past few days they've been having are anything but normal. First Ash wanted to go to Valmarian 3 months early, then the party and Ash all dark side coming out of nowhere, then the bite…… Misty stopped on her track as she thought back on that very day. She should've forgotten about it a long time ago, but some how the images of that faithful would always return to her. She thought of it to be a reminder of her careless actions… but what was she to do?

Her Togepi was in danger and her ankle was twisted… she couldn't just stare and see that monster chew on her Togepi! Many thoughts ran through her mind racing against each other like a marathon, yet she knew that the event that took place before that was the fault. She had a big fight with Ash before the monster incident, she had gone to far that time and that was the reason they split up in the first place. A little action can go a long way…

Suddenly, she was brought back to reality by Ash as he waved his hand to her, "Hey Misty, are we gonna eat or what?!"

Misty quickly shook her feelings off and focused on the present. After a ordering a few cheap but tasty looking meals, Pikachu grabbed the nearest bottle of Ketchup and started gulping like it was a routine of his. While they were waiting for their food to get ready, Ash glared out into the open street as the sun's rays slowly stretches across the city. He then noticed that the sport shop that was displaying the bike on sale was just opening.

"_Oh no, she's gonna start yelling 'Ash, when are you gonna buy me my bike?!' I just know it"_ he thought this as he took quick glances at her, but to his surprise she stayed quiet as if she was in deep thought or something.

"HELLOO!!!!!" Ash yelled out! Misty returned to her conscious self and realized that she felt like an idiot. She was gone for about 10 minutes after her food order. Misty then felt the oh-so familiar feeling in her cheeks made another appearance as Ash's smiling eyes gazed onto hers. She glanced away shyly but she could still feel his eyes on her. Ash didn't really know if he was to take her ignoring attitude as an insult or just plain idiocy. Misty was always a strong minded girl who would never let anyone take advantage of her, if there was a person who would use her as a pawn, I'd really hate to be him.

There was a long silent moment when Misty returned to her senses. Her cheeks were still glowing red and couldn't help but smile at her face, "Hey Misty, you kinda look cute with those blushes"

Did he just say 'cute'? Misty was now even more embarrassed than before. She opened her mouth to speak but closed it again when the waitress arrived with their food.

Later that day when the two and Pikachu finished up their lunch, Ash suggested going to the beach to see some of the water Pokemon that might be wandering around. While they walked around town looking at the beautiful landmarks that the city had to offer, Officer Jenny came by on her scooter. She wasn't on her police uniform anymore and that's a rare sight to see, in fact she was wearing a nice looking skirt, and a sleeveless shirt that exposed her belly and a nice pair of high heels. Many young teens and male adults gave out unimaginable gazes and would usually be unable to look at where they were going.

This wasn't like the Officer Jenny Ash and Misty used to know… was she even the Jenny from this city or Varidian city?

"Officer Jenny… you uh look… great!" Ash smirked as he was still surprised to see Jenny in that kind of outfit.

"Why thank you Ash!" Officer Jenny parked her scooter right next to them, "You're all probably wondering why I'm dressed like this aren't you? (they both nodded) Well believe it or not, I'm going out with Brock this evening!" there was a short moment of silence and Misty along with Ash both yelled out with amazement "WHAT!!!!!" they both yelled out in unison,

"I know it maybe weird for you guys, but after he saved me from that Team Rocket member, he was like a knight in shining armor that came out just to save me" Jenny gave out her sparkly eyes

Ash and Misty sighed heavily as they whispered to each other. "Do you think she's serious?" Ash said,

"I don't know, but this Jenny sure is different from the other Jennies I've met" Misty whispered back. They weren't really sure if the Brock she was mentioning was the same Brock they were with. Just as they wave their good byes, the two teens walked back towards the gym. The sight of the Cerulean gym was a pleasant sight for the both of them. Ash would only get these kinds of feelings when he returned home to Pallet town, but now it seemed he had made a home in Cerulean City.

Officer Jenny wasn't kidding when she said she was going out with Brock. The twenty one year old boy was now dating a woman a little older than him… but still it looked pretty… 'normal' for a guy who's blind (no offense) Since Brock was out on a date and Misty's sisters were practically going on a shopping spree to redecorate their gym after the recent attack Team Rocket did to their house. There were only the two of them: Ash and Misty and of course the Pokemons. Ash went on to practice with Pikachu and the rest for the big league that was fast approaching. Misty held Togepi in her and just watched as Ash concentrated on all of his Pokemons. Pikachu was doing team work tactics with Totodile, and Bulbasaur tried to strengthen its weakness by fighting against Cyndoquil's flame thrower. After a good rough hour of training with his Pokemons, Ash decided to take a 5 minute break.

Misty took this time to finally asked Ash about last night, "Hey Ash…" Misty broke the silence between them and gave Ash a towel to wipe off his sweat.

"Yeah Misty?"

"Why do you want to go Valmarian so fast?"

"Hmm… well I guess I just want to be there early I guess. Besides, I get to meet lots of Pokemon trainers along the way too. The more I travel the more I feel focused and besides what's there better to do?"

"Well we could go over to the mountain side and watch the view"

"Nah, I have a lot of rock-type Pokemons already and beside we still have a lot of traveling ahead of us. We need to reach Goldenrod city in three days"

"Three days? Why so fast Ash? We still have plenty of time before the league starts"

"I just want to be the first trainer there to see the stadium of the city… where only once in three years, a league is held to bring a new Pokemon Master into the world!"

While Misty was annoyed by Ash's constant bragging, she also finds it to be very comforting. While the determined trainer continued on training with his Pokemon, Misty couldn't keep her eyes off Ash. His passion about becoming the Pokemon Master, his love for his Pokemon and the stances he would always do before going into a serious Pokemon battle.

She just sat there, admiring him from afar as Pikachu trained over by the pool. Whenever the battle gets intense, Ash would flip hit hat backwards and give a serious look on his eyes which always seems to intimidate his opponent to lose focus. It was like a magic move that weakens his enemy, and every time he does the "Hat Flip" (a name he gave to the move) he would always win… and I mean always. Some of his fans tried mimicking his move, but some how their hats would often go flying off or it would only go halfway back.

Night came by quicker than our heroes had imagined. Misty went on to order pizza for dinner, she knew what Brock and her sister would like to have in their share, but not Ash. She began to think back what kind of pizzas that Ash ate during their three year journey. She then remembered that Ash had never ordered pizzas before. It would either be her or Brock who either makes them or order them without Ash's consultant.

"I guess I don't really know that much about him" she thought, "Um… just add another pizza, but uh…" Misty was having a hard time deciding for what kind of pizza to get for Ash. Brock and her sisters were having totally different kinds of pizza and she had her own choice, "Um… just give me a random pizza thank you" she hung up and quickly made her way toward the bathroom to clean herself up. Right after Ash finished his routine with his Pokemon he knew that they were much stronger than were before. He returned all of his Pokemons to their Pokeballs for some rest but left one yellow mouse out. Pikachu never liked being in a Pokeball, he liked the open air much better than being stuffed inside a toy looking ball. Pikachu jumped on to Ash's shoulders, they were both sweating heavily as it could be seen by their wet appearance.

Misty was in the kitchen cleaning the dishes. She was humming her favorite song which was proof that she was so dang bored and had nothing left to do. Also… by some fluke, it was Mrs. Ketchum favorite song as well… the one she used to hum at the end of each day. There was a pause as Ash walked in. Misty didn't hear him coming in, she was too busy cleaning the dishes and humming that 'ridiculous' song or so Ash thought.

His mom would always sing a few words from the song and usually just hums and whistle the rest of the music. The song would annoy him when he was still a kid, but when he heard Misty singing the last few tones… it felt he was back at home in Pallet town. Togepi yelled out "Preeee! Chu ki chu ki" as she pointed at Ash. Misty gave out a soft scream and nearly drops a plate when she finally noticed Ash in the room.

"What? Wha… where, who?!" Ash yelled out as he looked left and right but he then realized that he was the only one there.

"For crying out Ash don't you sneak up on me like that again!" Misty cried out without knowing she was actually blushing, "You nearly scared me to death!" Ash scratched his head with a sweatdrop, his Pikachu cowered below his ankles as Misty's face turned from an embarrassed look to a ferocious gaze.

"Ahehehehe… sorry about that"

After a brief pause Misty couldn't hold her emotions any longer and got really annoyed as the boy just stood there smiling, she then pushed Ash through the door and shut it with a defining 'click' sound to make sure he stayed out "Why don't you two just go to the rest room already?! You're giving me a headache with that smell!" The slam of the door made a strong gush of wind that flipped Ash's cap of his head and onto his hand. He looked back seeing the shadow of Misty's head slowly disappearing to the distance of the kitchen,

"_What wrong with her?"_ thought Ash, _"She was happy just a minute ago and now she's angry…_ (sigh) _must be a girl thing"_ he quickly took a nice warm shower at the 2nd floor bathroom, but to his unknown astonishment he can't stop thinking about what happened a moment ago. Ash was still at the bathtub waiting for his shampoo to take effect on his hair, he tried shaking the thought of Misty by forcing other thoughts to take over "Only a few more months til the Valmarian League" he muttered to himself, "I wonder what my opponents will be like when I get there?"

The night came by almost unknowingly. Ash was too busy thinking to notice how long he has staying in that same position with the shampoo still foaming around his head. The showers still kept pouring warm water with a relaxing feeling on his face. The rhythm of the flow of water that drips down from the bathtub was soothing, but like all relaxing breeze that passes through the air… it never lasts.

"Ash? Are you still in there?" a voice broke the silence with annoying sound. Ash could already tell who was on the other side of the door. His posture and voice were so familiar that he wanted to ignore it and go back to thinking,

"Yeah Brock, I'm here" finally realizing his fingers were getting wrinkles, he quickly rub off the shampoo and took a towel to cover above his waist.

"Come on Ash, the ferry will be leaving in a few hours!" Brock complained as he knocked at the bathroom,

"Ferry? What ferry Brock?" Ash picked up his dirty clothes that he left on the floor and folded them neatly as he was still confused on what Brock was talking,

"What else do you think I'm talking about? The ferry in the pier that's what! We're heading to Goldenrod city, remember?!" Ash thought for awhile but none of the words matched his mind, "Hurry up and get out of there I need to use the toilet!!!"

After Brock was finish with his 'business' the gang quickly packs up and ran towards the ferry docks. Misty's sisters wave their grand farewell and promised to meet them at Valmarian city. For once in a life time the three girls actually looked… 'normal' Misty thought as she looked at the food they made for them. There were five good sized sandwiches, all with different coatings.

It was a good meal to keep the three of them through the night road. While the group entered the bus almost precisely before the door when 'swoosh' closed, they exhaled and pant heavily when they were relieved to make it just right on time. The night shift ferry was never crowded in fact it was usually almost empty or even completely empty. Brock knew this and decided to take the midnight but to Goldenrod city where they would take a boat to Valmarian city. It was a well planned tripped, but nothing could prepare him of the out burst that was about to happen.

Ash and Misty had gotten into a fight again. This time they were fighting on who gets the last sandwich. "These guys just fight about everything don't they?" Brock thought as the two continued to argue. Brock was very glad that the last passenger that was with them had already left on the last pier stop or he would've been very embarrassed to have his two friends bickering over something so trivial.

Pikachu would've zap them when it would get ugly, but instead of electrocuting them with 5000 volts of electricity, the small mouse took the sandwich from Ash's hand and swallowed it down with one bite. The two bickering teen hovered over the little electrical mouse as it realized that he had probably made the biggest mistake in his entire life. A few minutes later he was pounded, beaten and knocked over by Misty. Ash would've liked to pound the little fuzzy creature, but he made a promise never to hurt his friends. Pikachu sat next to Togepi as Brock grinned.

"Take it from me Pikachu, you don't want to get between those two in a fight" Pikachu nodded in agreement to Brock's advice.

A few minutes after the recent incident, things started to settle down. Ash and Misty stopped fighting since there was nothing to over about. Ash looked out through the window while Misty sat right next to him quietly flipping her fingers against each other. The ferry got so quiet that only the sound of the engine could be heard.

"It's quiet…" Brock muttered suddenly, "Too quiet…" Pikachu and Togepi went back to their original masters. They began to think that Brock was acting a wee bit crazy, but in reality he was just imitating a spy movie he saw back at Pallet town. Ash was staring at the night sky over the Rock Tunnel Mountains. The sea waves didn't bother him at all like the other sea journeys. Just as he stretched his arms in front of him, he noticed the stain on his right arm was still there.

"_It's still there?"_ Ash thought.

Just as he tried rubbing the stain off with his bare hands, a sudden pain came out of nowhere and it felt like his head was being stabbed by a rusty dagger or something. Misty and Pikachu quickly noticed his sudden face turning away. "Ash is something wro…"

The pain on Ash's head went on for a few brief moments until it finally came to a stop. He came back to his senses and sat back on the bench. He nodded to Misty and Brock but when he gazed at them… they were frozen solid. Ash then noticed that they weren't the only ones who were frozen. The ferry captain and the ferry itself were froze to a halt. Even Pikachu was frozen even though he was still up on mid-air.

"Well then shall we get started?" said the figure that appeared out of nowhere in front of Ash. "YOU!" Ash yelled giving him a slight frown. He couldn't remember who the guy was but he felt that he needed to hate him for some reason.

"Well are you ready to go now Ash?" DA grinned in front of Ash as he sat on the seat in the back row of the ferry.

"Who are you?" Ash demanded an answer from his look-alike, but all he did was grin.

"It doesn't matter anymore Ash, come on… lose this crowd and come with me already!"

"To where?"

"Where else? The Valmarian city stadium! The longer we stay with these two, the longer it will be for us to reach the Valmarian League!"

"But we're heading there already…"

"Do you actually think these guys well just go to the league at such a short time and let you have all the fun? Palease! (giggle evilly) They are holding you back Ash! Haven't you noticed it yet?"

Before Ash could speak, the room changed into the Valmarian League stadium.

"Isn't this what this whole trip was all supposed to be about?! The crowd, the glory the, the TROPHY, and not to mention your dream of becoming the Pokemon Master!"

The scene around Ash was all he could only dream off. The crowd shouting his name, his Pokemon fighting for their master for the victory of the competition, his opponent cowering in fear against his might. This was everything to him. His heart was filled with unimaginable feelings that mixed with other emotions. It became a feeling he never wanted to end. A hint of pleasure and warm touch was all he could make out of this feeling he had inside, but unfortunately for him DA had to cut it short.

"Well did you like it?" he smiled upon our hero as he sat on the bench. Ash glared at him but some how tries to tell himself that this was all a dream. The battle between his heart and mind was fierce with no sides backing down on their strength.

"I…" he opened his mouth but hesitated on speak the words in his mind. He was about to agree to his look alike until a sweet voice broke through the silence,

"Ash? Ash!? Wake up!" said the voice. DA became furious about that voice, "Arrrrhhhhhh!!!!! Not now!!!! Of all times why now!!!!" the darkness quickly broke as light returned to his mind, "Tgh… Well I got time. See you again Ash… and I hope we get to fulfill our dream… heh heh heh"

In a blink of an eye the stadium that Ash stood on slowly began disappears into atoms, and soon he found himself in the company of his companions and friends… he was back on the ferry. A ferry that was annoyingly carrying him to Goldenrod city at a speed of 20 kph.

"Ash? Hello, Earth to Ash are you there?!" Misty waves her hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention. The pupils on Ash's eyes quickly took place. He looked around him to see if his look alike was still around,

"Huh what happened?" he said in confusion,

"What's wrong Ash? You've been dozing off like that ever since we came to Caerulean city, is something bothering you?"

"Huh? Oh no it's nothing, I'm just tired that's all" he lied he wasn't a wee bit tired at all. He was well rested before they even left the gym.

"You're a bad liar you know that?!" Misty quickly noticed his obvious lying voice and stare at him as she held Togepi in her arms. Ash's smile turned into a frown, he knew he couldn't lie to Misty even if he wanted to, she's knows that much about him. "Come on Ash, you're not acting like yourself today"

"Actually I don't feel like myself either" Ash kept repeating that sentence as if it was his motto. "Don't worry Misty. Maybe when I get some rest I'll feel a lot better" Misty finally gave up on her idea to pry out information from Ash so she just accepted his lie and took a nice long nap on the bench.

As time flew by, the stop hasn't made a single stop during the night. The captain took a sip of his own instant coffee and continued driving until he reached the end of his journey. "I wonder why we didn't take the ferry back then" Ash muttered to himself as he scratches Pikachu's ear. The little mouse was already asleep on his lap and Togepi, Brock and Misty were not far off to dreamland. It would take another few hours before they reach Goldenrod city, and perhaps from there they can finally take a cruise to their destination.

Ash yawned a few times before his eyes started to blur, he looked at the clock on his Pokedex and didn't realize it was this… 'early' 3:00 AM as a matter of fact. Ash couldn't fall asleep… he didn't want to fall asleep as he feared that his look-alike or whatever or whoever that person was would return. He wasn't afraid of him, but felt confused around him. Was he speaking truth or just random gibberish, was it real or not? With so many thoughts racing through Ash's mind he barely noticed himself yawning and right before he could follow his friends to dreamvile, a sudden weight came upon his shoulders.

Misty couldn't find a relaxing spot to place her head. She moved around endlessly finding the right spot to fall asleep, but she just couldn't. She placed it on the seats, the window heck she even just let it stand, but neither of them was very comfortable. Ash looked at Misty's sleepy face as a smile slowly grows back on her. She looked so peaceful and… beautiful. Ash mentally kicked himself in the rear and shook his head. He wanted to shrug Misty off but he hesitated. He felt a warm feeling flowing through his body, it wasn't as good as the one DA gave him, but it was still nice. They stayed like that… for the rest of the trip.

**(Meanwhile in a village not far from Valmarian City)**

Gary took off his shoes as he made his way to a small room in a hotel he found in a village. His Umbreon and his other Pokemons were exhausted from the training session they were doing this morning to evening and were now in the Pokemon Center. He turned on the TV and scroll through the channels, but none of them were interesting. Gary took out a left over sandwich from his bag and began chomping non stop. He then thought of the scene he saw two nights ago. The very mention of Ash's name seemed to trigger a chain reaction around his mind. The images of Ash and his Pokemon cooperating so well against a group a hundred times their size puts him in a swirling adventure into his mind.

He tried to command three to four Pokemons at once like Ash did on TV, but every time he tried it would either result in confusion or panic among the little creatures. He tried having Umbreon cooperate with Alakazam's psychic attacks, but instead of combining their attack power Alakazam ended up hurting Umbreon. _"How did he do it?"_ Gary thought as he switched off the TV for now. The images of how Pikachu obeyed perfectly on Ash's command and following Totodile's water gun and Bulbasaur's razor leaf combined with Cyndoquil's flamethrower was truly a sight he couldn't let go.

Ash's balanced everything out just perfectly. Bulbasaur's razor leaf would circle around Cyndoquil's flame thrower but a good enough distance not to get burnt. The heat would slowly catch on and with a gush of wind the leaves would keep flying as it burned onto their targets. Pikachu's electrical attack with Totodile's Water gun wasn't a rare sight. Ash would do that all the time whenever he had the chance, but this time it was different. Pikachu used a small amount of electricity and jolts Totodile as it uses its Water gun to spray on the enemy. The effects on Ash's new tactics that allowed him to overcome all of Team Rocket's goons had trainers from all around the world shaking in their boots.

Gary then remembered of the trainers he saw this morning. Some were newbies and some were pros. They were all trying to mimic Ash's tactics by combining their Pokemons attack together, but none of them succeeded. Gary couldn't stand the thought of Ash… the Ash that he rivaled for so long was now BETTER than him. He grabbed a pillow and screamed at it. It felt relieving but also unsatisfying. He screamed at it over and over again… until he finally went to sleep. "I'll fight you Ash" he said to himself, "I'll fight you… and I'll win for sure!"


	6. The Detour

**Chapter 6: The Detour**

Dawn was breaking over the mountains as the sun slowly showed its awesome ray towards the traveling ferry. Ash squint his closed eyes as the light dabbed right in front of him. He closed the curtains and tried to get back to sleep, but his mind refuses to go back. Brock slept like a log on the front row muttering about Officer Jenny. Togepi slept in Misty's bag to keep herself warm throughout the night. Pikachu was half awake until the captain suddenly spoke through the speaker.

"Good morning passengers we are now entering Goldenrod city. Please make sure you all your belongings with you because the crew members will not be responsible if anything should be missing or misplaced thank you and have a good time here in Goldenrod city" Misty woke up with a defining yawn. She felt a little stiff all over her body, but she felt warm and happy for some reason. She then noticed that she was sleeping on Ash's shoulders the whole trip. She laid there for awhile… she didn't want the feeling to go… she wanted to make it last just a little bit longer.

A few minutes later the ferry pulled into the docks. The captain took his hat off and slept right where he sat for the whole 8 hours during the trip. The gang finally woke up without any mishaps and immediately head out to the pier. Brock looked around nervously as he was looking for someone… or something.

"Hey Brock what ya looking for?" Ash said as he stretched his arms and legs from the stiffness,

"I'm waiting for out contact" Brock replied, "He was supposed to meet us here" Just then, a voice came in from the snack bar.

"Hey Ash, over here!" a boy just about Ash's age waved his hand with a Pikachu on top of his head.

"Richie? Hey it is you!" the gang rushed to the boy's side and made their greetings to each other. "Wow Richie I never thought I'd see you here!" Ash shook his distant friend's hand as their Pikachu's did the same.

"Brock called me a few days ago. He said you guys needed a ride to Valmarian city"

"Brock called you?" Misty interrupted.

"Yeah, you see my dad owns a ship that does a lot of traveling in these parts of the sea and he's gonna take us there right away!" the gang smiled as they realized they were about to reach their destination, "Come on, we can catch up on old times over breakfast. I know a café that have the best pancakes in the city!"

After traveling a few blocks down town the gang with a new member (Richie) sat in a small café called… uh… 'Coffee and Cream?' What a strange name for a café. The gang sat on corner after they had ordered their meals to the waitress. Brock however was ordering more than he could eat though and had a smack right on his face. Richie, Ash and Misty sighed and laughed at Brock's 100th rejection of his life time but who's counting.

"I guess he hasn't changed a bit" Richie said,

"Yeah but I guess that's the Brock we all know and love" the three giggled at Ash's little comment, but who could possibly ignore Brock's ability to be drawn by pretty women? While they talked about good old times, Ash's Pikachu tried to let Richie's Pikachu have a taste for ketchup. When Ash saw both their Pikachus he sweatdrop "Oh no this doesn't look good"

"What's wrong Ash?" Richie asked in confusion "It's only ketchup" Just when Richie's Pikachu had a little sip of that warm sauce in his mouth, he grabbed the nearest bottle of ketchup he could find and gulp all the way,

"I guess our Pikachus have another thing in common now" Ash sighed as he knew something like this would happen sooner or later if his Pikachu offered ketchup to one of his friends.

As they laughed and giggled about old times, a sudden silence came to them as their meal arrived… after that all the sound they made were 'chomps' and 'bites' and 'gulp' "So Ash I heard from Brock that you're competing in the Valmarian League in three months am I right?" Richie was the one who broke the silence.

Since Ash had food stuffed all over his mouth, all he could do was smile and nod. "That's great, I hope we get to battle each other like last time" Ash nearly choked at those words, he coughed up and breathed nervously before he could finally speak again.

"What? Don't tell me you're in the league too!" Ritchie smiled and held an invitation letter from the governor of Goldenrod City,

"That's right, and that's why I'm helping you get to the other side of the ocean. My dad owns a small ferry that travels between these two places and if we're lucky we'll be able to reach the city tonight!"

Misty gasped at the astonishing looked on Richie's face, "Wow that boat must travel really fast to get through the ocean so quickly like that"

Richie blushed at her comment, "Well my dad always loved to make his boat go faster and faster. He was called a slowpoke when he sailed with Jennifer back in his days" When they finally finished their little breakfast and Broke finally getting over his rejection the gang head towards the docks where they were about to see a magnificent sight.

The great wide ocean of Goldenrod city opened up to them with a great white light. It was a sight Misty never thought she would never see in a crowded city, but it was real and she was looking right at it. "Wow! I can't believe you can actually get a great view of the ocean from a city!" she glared out into the pier and let the ocean water splashed onto her face. It was a little cold in the morning but she didn't mind in fact it was just like how she wanted it. The smooth wave of the sea eased the mind and relaxes the body, like a paradise for the old and seniors.

While Misty was still on her fantasy rides an old growling voice creep up behind her. "What in the world are you doing young lady!" said the old man in a green coat. The man had a pipe on his lips and a news paper boy hat on his head. His fashion fits his age perfectly like those clothes were meant for him alone.

"Hey dad!" Richie shouted out,

"Oh hey Richie you're up early!" the two gave a hug and a smile, "So are these your friends that you wanted to bring along?"

Richie nodded with a smirk on his face, "These are my friends Misty, Brock and Ash the person I battled with in my first Pokemon league"

"Well it's mighty nice to see some of Richie's friends for a change. Why don't you come on in and I'll show you Jennifer" They all entered the small cruise boat that seemed to be well maintained and was still going under some constant upgrades, "Boys I like you to meet Jennifer" Brock immediately looked around for the lady, the name Jennifer already gave away her gender, but to Brock's demise there was no one there…

"Uh… where is she?" Ash asked in confusion,

"Why you're standing on her son!" said the old sea dog, "Welcome to the S.S Jennifer, the finest girl that ever sailed the seas!"

Brock head hung low below his shoulders like he was heart broken… again, but at least he wasn't rejected this time.

"So dad when can we set sail?" Richie said with excitement,

"Sorry boy but I won't be able to move this girl until the next clam truck gets here"

"Clam truck?" Ash didn't really know if that was a joke or not, but it did sound kinda funny.

"Yup, I move clams from place to place and since you guys are heading there too I might as well shoot two birds with one stone now right?" the old sea dog smiled as he let out a small smoke from his mouth.

"So when will it get here? Will it take long?" Misty said in almost in unison with Ash, but the sea dog just smiled again and said,

"I'm not even sure myself, but if we're lucky the truck might get here tonight and we can leave tomorrow early in the morning" the entire gang fell down anime style, I guess luck wasn't with them today.

"Sorry guys but I guess you'll have to stay in town for awhile" Richie sighed at his friends with great disappointment,

"That's alright Richie" Misty tried to comfort him, "We wanted to do some shopping before we left anyway" the word 'shopping' quickly rushed through Misty's mind as she just remembered that she needed new clothes for the trip. Without another word she quickly ran off to a shopping spree around the biggest mall in the city with her friends not far behind.

"Come on you guys we're not even half way through the mall and I need new shoes for… oh that looks cute!" Misty was immediately distracted by several new fashions that were on display at the fashion store.

Ash, Brock and Richie giggled at her child like expression. Misty may look like she bought the entire block but in truth she hasn't really bought anything. All she got was food supplies, a new set of shirts and shorts (pants included) and a cute little hat for her Togepi. The little Pokemon seems to like its new found fashion.

When Ash noticed how much shopping Misty was doing he thought "Why should she be the only one having all the fun?" he then turned to his Pikachu and said "Come on Pikachu lets go find us a new pair of sneakers!" Ash and his Pikachu dashed to the nearest sports shop.

Richie smiled for a little while until he agreed, "Heh… why not!? Come on Sparky let's go!" Richie followed his friend to the sports center leaving behind a very lonely Brock. "(sigh) I feel so ignored…" he felt like an outcast, a loser, an ant not even worth stepping on. Suddenly out of a coffee shop, a group of girls stood up as they walked around laughing at each other. Brock immediately took this as a sign of hope and took no second thoughts before asking each of those girls out.

**(Back in Pallet town)**

While the rest of the gang was around having fun in Goldenrod city, a worried mother seems to have nothing better to do but to do what she does best, cleaning. Delia was cleaning the dishes to relieve herself of her stress even though the plates were cleaned almost 4 times now. While she was too busy worrying about Ash and his friends she couldn't hear the knock on the door. Tracey walked in with professor Oak. They were still discussing about several theories of Pokemon evolution but still couldn't come up with a good answer.

"Oh professor I didn't hear you coming in!" Delia nearly jumping out of her cleaning routine came by with a coffee mug on hand. When the professor looked at her, it was obvious that she hasn't been sleeping much.

"You should really rest Delia, Ash wouldn't like it if he sees his mother in that condition" Delia knew that he was speaking the truth. Ash would immediately come home if he sees her like that. With or without a tournament, his mother would always come first no matter what.

"Yeah I guess you're right" she said with a tired tone, "Just let me finished the last of the dishes and I'll go straight to bed" the professor smiled back at her and decided to help her out.

Tracey gathered up the notes and was still thinking on a good thesis. While the professor and Delia were handling out the last of the plates, Delia smiled "Thank you professor, you're a great help today" the old Oak blushed at her praise. He didn't really get a direct contact from her and now he doesn't even know what to say.

As Mr. Mime placed all the mugs and cups into the holder and unimaginable moment accrued. Delia, having all her attention focused on the professor, accidentally taps the glass holder making it fall to the ground. Though most of the mugs and cups were intact one mug was all in pieces… it was Ash's favorite mug…

**(Back at the Goldenrod city mall)**

While Ash was looking for new shoes to try on, he found an unusual shop that sells clothes for Pokemons. The curious kid immediately went to check it out and was astonished by the sight of so many fashion designs. There were water proof shoes, fire proof tail covers (used especially for Charmanders) heck they even have a long oversized coats for giant Pokemons like Gyrados or Onix to keep them warm inside.

Pikachu tried on several cute mittens and shoes that suited to his liking and Sparky wore the same as well. As they finally got something for their Pokemons it was now time to get something for themselves. But as Ash walked by another clothing store, a particular set of fashion caught his eyes. He looked at the new caps and jacket that were on display on marionettes doing stylish poses. After a brief moment of staring at the human sized doll the store clerk (female) looked from the other side and gasped deeply, "OH MY GOSH!!!!!!!!!!" the voice echoed through the mall like a parrot saying the word over and over again.

A few hours later the voice that echoed through the mall was all but forgotten. Misty looked at the clock that was nailed on the wall for everyone to see what time it was. "Oh it's almost 3:00 come on Togepi let's go find Ash (walks out of the store) I wonder where those two could be at this time?"

Brock came back carrying an ice pack on his face after coming from his whoopin back at the café. He was rejected by 12 girls and 7 clerks this morning til afternoon. His face was covered with red hand marks and some were hitting the same spot over and over again. Misty couldn't help but burst out a good laugh after looking at Brock's swollen face. Poor guy never did get a chance to get a date after he went out with Officer Jenny and the Cerulean sisters (not including Misty).

Right when they were about to go looking for Ash and Richie, they felt a sudden rumbling coming from the other side of the mall, "An earthquake?" Brock muttered. The rumbling grew louder and louder, and in moments the two figures approaching them, "Gang way! Move out! Coming through!" a familiar voice echoed through Misty's ear as the rumbling grew louder.

Just then Ash and Richie came by, but when they saw Brock and Misty, they grabbed them both and drag them all the way to the front gate.

"Ash what's going on put me down!" Misty yelled out as she was being carried bride style,

"Sorry but this isn't really the time to talk!" the orange haired girl took a peek behind Ash and saw a large mob of fans trying to catch up him at an amazing pace.

"Wha!!!!! What ever you do Ash, don't put me down!" she recollected her mind and held tightly on Ash's neck. Brock was being dragged by Richie but it seems like the love sick idiot just couldn't help but noticed so many girls that were chasing them. He couldn't believe it! It was his life long dream to be chased by obsessed women but now he's running away from them! The man couldn't believe his luck.

A few minutes later, the gang made a good distance between themselves and the crowd. "What happened back there?" Brock demanded an answer.

"What else do you expect?" Misty cut in his line, "Ash probably broke something and now he's being chased for it!" that was a complete and total lie from her. She knew why all those girls were after Ash, but she just wanted to make up a story to play a joke.

Ash was annoyed by her understatement, "Hey that's not what happened! It's because… because…"

Richie then interrupted, "Well it's kind of my fault actually hehehehe It happened like this…" Richie then began to tell the story, but it was hard for Brock to take it.

**(Flashback)**

The two trainers entered the shop when the store clerk yelled out "OH MY GOSH!!!!!" a thief was stealing an expensive looking pair of bags and plowed through the customers to get through to the exit. The security guard chased the man through the hall as carried a stick and blowing the whistle.

"Come on Richie let's get that thief!" the two boy and their Pikachus followed the guards to a small intersection at the east wing of the mall. Just when the thief was about to make a quick getaway, Ash took Bulbasaur out to and made a quick plan to stop the guy from escaping.

"Bulbasaur carry Pikachu with your vine whip!" the little plant like creature did exactly what his master ordered and Pikachu was now high above the crowd getting a clear view of the thief, "Now Pikachu use your thunder shock!" the little electrical mouse charged up the energy inside of him and let out a single bolt of lighting knocking the thief aside. "Ouch ouch! That hurts! Alright kid you wanna play rough I'll show you rough!" the low life criminal grabbed one of his Pokeballs and threw it into the air.

The ball opened and inside came out a Vulpix! "Just give it up! You can't escape!" Ash was furious that the criminal would use a Pokemon for such a mischievous act and now he was mad… really mad. "Alright Bulbasaur you're on!" the little frog jumped into the fray after dropping Pikachu down.

The thief laughed as he thought that the brat was still an inexperienced trainer. Plant Pokemon would be incinerated by fire types but Ash was confident about his Bulbasaur and so he didn't back down.

Vulpix charged in first with a tackle attack, but Bulbasaur dodged it. It used its razor leafs to draw the little fox's attack from the crowd. This went on for a little while until he the thief got impatient and quickly ordered it's Pokemon to use flamethrower.

Ash knew that this going to be bad, if the fire starts here then it will spread all over the mall. "Alright Bulbasaur let's finish this once and for all! Use your razor leaf attack now!" With a slight adjustment of accuracy, the leaf blended well with the fire of Vulpix power and flew right to the little fox and exploded upon impact. With a huge beating being taken, the thief's Pokemon fell unconscious on the ground.

While Ash was still busy celebrating, the thief took the opportunity to dash away, but the boy knew he would run and placed Totodile ahead of time. With a little splash of its water gun, the man was pushed by a power stream of water and fell into the fountain. The hero jumped with a good yell of victory over the scoundrel. He was proud of his Pokemons teamwork and congratulated them as well. The security guards walked off with the thief. The bag that the thief had stolen was full of diamonds and jewels that could set a man for life.

The two trainers returned the goods to the shop that had all missing accessories. It was a big accomplishment for Ash Ketchum.

"Oh thank you, thank you very much!" said the jewelry store manager. "Please, as a token of our gratitude: please pick any of the stones you see here!" the little midget manager opened up four beautifully colored gems which were bright, shiny and expensive looking. Ash had never seen such beautifully colored stones before. He used to see his mother with lots of accessories and jewelries before, but he could never tell a real crystal from a fake one. The old memories raced around his head like a tsunami, but it didn't bother him much… right now his thoughts were more focused on which to pick.

The garnet necklace showed signs of strength, the emerald bracelet showed signs of kindness, the Topaz ring showed signs of limitless energy, but one grabbed his attention. It was a blue aquamarine stone. It had nothing fancy, no rings or bracelet or any other attachments. It was just a stone sitting there. Like a frozen drop of water that would never melt.

"I'll take this one!" he said with a defining smile,

"Eh? Are you sure sir?" the manager looked absolutely confused with the boy's choice. Of all the nice things he could get he chose the cheapest of them all. The boy nodded and was even about to pay for it. The manager giggled and quickly wrapped the little stone the boy had chosen.

Just right when Ash left the store, Richie came by and gave his friend a good pat on the back. "That was some show Ash! You really showed him what you're made of" the word 'Ash' echoed through the ears of nearby customers as they past by. They stopped and took a good look on the boy.

"Hey it's him! Its Ash Ketchum of Pallet town!" just before they even realized it, Ash took a good look at the crowd that were coming after him and ran with all his might,

"Oh o… (the crowd begins to gather in large numbers) RUN Richie RUN!!!!" And the rest as they say is history.

**(Back to reality)**

"… and that's exactly what happened" Richie finally ended his story with a great sigh. Ash and the others were still exhausted from the freak panic run they'd just done. I guess this is the side effect of fame huh?

"Come on guys, let's find a place to stay for the night and we can find something to eat" Brock was definitely jealous of Ash. His life long dream was being carried out by someone much younger than him. He dropped to the ground deeply depressed but then he thought _'if a kid like him could do it, then I must be overqualified!'_ the mere thought of that sentence gave him a much needed boost of morale. He hopped around having happy thoughts of girls a thousand times more than what he just encountered.

"Well at least someone's having good day…" Ash sighed as he knew he couldn't stay in Goldenrod city. The shops and hotels had magazines and posters of his picture on them.

"I guess I forgot to tell you hehehehe. I didn't really notice it at first but your face has been popping up here and there nowadays"

"Thanks for warning us… too late" Ash replied annoyingly

Just as they moved around the city a reminder popped in the young trainer's head. "Oh that reminds me, I have to bring my Pokemons to the Pokemon center!" before he could take another step, Misty pulled his ear as the boy let out a soft scream of pain.

"Oh no you don't! You've caused enough trouble for one day, I'll take your Pokemons to the Pokemon center and you two just find us a place to sleep ok?! You can pick me up at the center after that" Ash knew that she was right. A visit to the Pokemon center would mean that there would be a lot of trainers who would recognize his face in an instant. Giving up the idea, he quickly handed her all his Pokeballs and left with Richie and Brock who was still hopping around like a kangaroo.

"Hey why don't you guys stay at my place?" Richie then remembered that his dad had built a guest room just recently. He wasn't finished decorating the place but it was good enough for three people.

"Hmm I think that would be a fine idea!" said Brock with a smile. Wouldn't it be better if they stayed in a nice comfortable hotel? Heck they even had enough money to get the most expensive hotel for two or three weeks. "Well if Ash is as famous as he is now, I have a feeling that we will be having the same crowd chasing us all over again. But… if we stay at Richie's place, no one will ever know that you're with him"

Richie sat on corner as he was hurt by Brock's comment, "I mean uh… he wouldn't be staying at a person less famous… oops" the comments brought Richie even lower.

"You're not really helping Brock. (walks to Richie) Don't worry Richie, I think what Brock is trying to say is: If I stay in your place I won't have to worry about crowd control" Richie sobbed until he was back on his feet with a full spirit again.

It was an hour walk to Richie's house. It wasn't the fanciest but it kinda reminded Ash of his home back in Pallet town. Richie sighed and took his hat as he entered "Well we're here" He took off his shoes and placed them in a rack. The other two did the same.

The house was beautiful. It was small, but spacious at the same time. There were two floors that were connected with stairs. A dining room was connected to the kitchen, a living room with a sofa and three comfy chairs facing the TV and a view of the wide golf course. This place was just like Ash's house except that it wasn't located in a city. "Dad I'm home!" Richie yelled out to the kitchen,

"Oh hi there son, oh I see you brought your friends along too" the old sea dog was wearing an apron and a hairnet. Something didn't look right about the old man's fashion. It more resembled Ash's mom in a male form. The mere thought gave him a slight chill in his body. The picture in his mind didn't look right at all. "Why don't you three wait in the living room I'll be with you in a minute (smoke begins to rise from the kitchen) Oh no my dinner!!!" the old man rushed towards the stove trying to turn it off. It seemed like the gas tank was about to blow until Brock switched it right into off mode. The entire group sighed heavily in relief until they could finally speak again.

Ash wiped the nervous sweat off his forehead, "That was a close one!" he stated but Richie just chuckled at him,

"Don't worry, this isn't the first time that dad nearly blew our house" Ash giggled slightly not knowing if he should take that as a joke or a warning.

Just as they sat down for dinner, they looked at the food that the old man had prepared. The old sea dog scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. The foods were unexplainable. There was a rib that was in a shape of a chicken and rice that seemed to have been over cooked and perhaps many more… unusual dishes.

"Ahehehehe… sorry about dinner I guess I'm not really cut out to be a cook" it was then Brock jumped into the spotlight, "Nonsense mister! You have great talent! The only you need is the motivation to drive you!"

"Yeah, you should let Brock teach you how to cook. He can make a few good mushrooms into a tasty treat with the right ingredients" the old man was tempted to accept Brock's free cooking lesson, but something kept telling him not to.

"Don't worry sir, take it as a repayment for taking us across the ocean!" with that aside the old man gave up and accepted Brock's tutoring.

"Oh well… why not, oh and call me Arthur, that's my name" Things were settling for awhile until Ash realized something he totally forgot!

"Oh man we forgot about Misty! How would she know we would be here?!" the three of them could already imagine what the short tempered girl would do if she found that they were in a nice cozy house while she was out there all alone in the cold. "I'll go get her you guys stay here!" Ash immediately took out his jacket and ran right towards the front door, "Wait Ash you might want (door slams)… to bring… an umb…rella" The young boy ran as quickly as he could through the darkness of the night. He didn't know which way to the Pokemon center so he had to rely on instinct.

**(At the Pokemon center outside)**

Misty sat on the waiting bench near a bus stop. The skies rumbled for awhile signaling that a storm would hit the city soon. "Where could they be?" Misty muttered to herself. She was beginning to think that her friends had forgotten about her, but they couldn't have… could they?

As she mumbled around with her egg like Pokemon, a few drops of rain began pouring down until a trickle became a flood… well not literally of course. "Well it's official, it can't get any worst than this" just as muttered those words out, a bus that was supposed to stop at the nearby post passed by incredibly fast splashing water all the way to the sidewalk. Misty was now soaked. She sighed heavily at the raining moment. She would be angry right about now but there was no one to yell at. "I just had to ask!" the girl was about to stomp on the ground until it breaks in half but she suddenly stopped when a familiar voice came ringing through the streets.

"Misty?! Misty! Hey Misty over here!" a lone figure came running through the pouring rain. His face was barely visible, but the voice determined that it was male. Misty would've welcomed him happily but instead he just gave him a good smack on the head.

"Where were you?!" her eyes sharpened and her voice grew much louder than a roaring Onix. "I was waiting here for hours and you guys didn't even bother to tell me where you were staying!!" Ash quickly bowed and apologize to her even though her fist was about to meet his head… again. "Alright I promise I won't hit if you can just get us to whatever place we're staying"

Ash smiled happily but when he looked back into the streets he remembered that he doesn't remember which way he came from. Without a second thought Misty placed a lump on his head. "Did you at least bring an umbrella?!" the boy once again shook his head with a smirk as the girl just placed another blow on his lump… OUCH! While they waited for a good place to find shelter without the fear of getting chased by Pokemon fans Misty noticed something was missing. She'd never seen Ash without his Pikachu clinging onto him or at least nearby somewhere.

**(Back at Richie's house)**

Brock was giving Arthur a little lesson about the three steps of cooking. He was surprisingly talented, but somewhat lacking in motivation to do anything but sailing. Usually by this time Arthur would've ordered a take out or something from the nearby food shops. Richie and his dad usually had instant meals and plain noodles. Brock then realized that it was getting kind of late. Usually Ash's mom would've already had his son to go to sleep, but it didn't seem like he had a curfew or anything.

"Those two are late" Richie said as he looked away from the TV.

Brock agreed to his statement, "Well Ash didn't have the best sense of direction back when we were traveling. Where's the Pokemon center anyway?" Richie then pointed to the back of the house. The Pokemon center was only a few minutes walk from here and yet Ash didn't stop to listen. Brock sighed and removes his apron, "I think I'd better go and get them, who knows how far Ash would've gone"

Immediately he took out two umbrellas and grabbed his rain coat from his bag. "Wait Brock, what am I gonna do with the (door slams)… stew?!" Richie couldn't help but giggle at his father's demise.

**(In a fast food restaurant not far from the Pokemon center)**

"I can't believe you forgot to bring an umbrella, uhg… I'm soaking wet" Misty was really angry now. She doesn't show it through her face, but her voice can really tell her inner feelings. It was good that there were no other customers hanging around, it was almost closing time, but the waiter thought that they had enough time for two good looking couples.

"So can I get you something sir?" said the waiter (guy) in a girlish tone,

"Uh… do you mind if we just have a few regular burgers and some orange juice please" Ash then sat on a soft bench that was nailed to the wall. Misty was still wiping herself with whatever dry towels she could get from the waiter.

"I still can't believe you forgot to bring your umbrella!" the orange haired girl frowned at him as she was still mad on how they abandoned her like that.

"Geeze I already said I'm sorry, I'm even buying you dinner already" but for some reason he knew it wasn't enough to make it up for her.

"Geeze you're so dense! You still owe me that bike and that's the only reason I'm following you!" Ash quickly noticed something else was behind her words. Something she wanted to say but didn't know how to express it, but just like she said Ash was too dense to realize it.

They took a bite out of their burgers until Misty finally calmed down a bit. She starred right through the window and gazed into the endless night. It felt like eternity passed by until she took another bite. Ash was halfway finishing his food but he just couldn't take the silence that went around the place. It's not like he didn't like it, it just felt strange. Usually by now Misty would be rambling about something or someone she knew long ago or perhaps even complaining about her sisters. But there was nothing, nothing absolute silence. Ash kept starring at her only to wonder what she might be thinking.

"_What am I doing here?"_ that was the only question going through Misty's head. _"I'm here to get my bike back! Yeah that's it, why else would I want to follow this creep? I saved his life so many times already… but I guess he did save me more than I could ever do. What am I thinking?! I just want my bike back that's it nothing more nothing less! I can't wait for him to pay me back already. Once I get my bike back, that's it I'm leaving! Yeah that's a good plan… but what do I do then? I can go and catch all the water Pokemons and become the best Water Pokemon Master!... That's right isn't it? It has to be… there's nothing else I can…_ (looks at Ash)_"_ Misty deep thought was then rudely interrupted by a waving hand that snapped her back into reality.

"Hello… this is earth calling Misty, Misty are you there?" the girl immediately took out a mallet and whack her friend into his plate of French fries.

"Do you mind? I'm trying to think here!" she kept her cool as Togepi laughs at the boy's face. It was a hilarious scene of the day. Ash's hat flipped off into his glass of orange juice, his face was full of ketchup that made a perfect red nose and fries was sticking out of his hair like a circus clown.

Misty couldn't hold her funny bone anymore and burst into a loud stream of laugh. The waiters and waitress were also giggling at the boy's accidental joke. It was a laugh that would even make the dead jump and scream with delight. The laugh went on for minutes until the girl finally settled down. Ash removed the fries and other food products from his face.

"Feeling better now?" he muttered,

"As a matter of fact… I do" said the girl still giggling from the moment. They really didn't have anything to talk about. It was just pure dead silence again. The silence lasted for at least 2 minutes until Ash spoke up,

"Oh by the way, we're staying at Richie's house for tonight. Its kinda like my house except it's a little bigger" While Ash was still busy describing the minor details of the place, two badly disguised tourist eaves drop silently behind the seat next to them.

"Well what do you know, it's the twerp" said the middle aged man,

"That's strange, his Pikachu is usually next to him so where is he now?" said the cat like Pokemon

"Shhh! Quiet, if we want to know what they're doing then we have to be quiet!" said the red haired girl.

"Well from the looks of it I think they're having a date" suddenly a waitress came by with a polite manner,

"Um… can I get you something sir?"

"Oh we'd like two cheese burgers and two sodas please!" said the blue haired man,

"Don't forget a bowl of milk" said the Pokemon as he flinched his whiskers.

Before they knew it the short tempered girl with long red hair pulled them both back into hiding positions. "Listen you two, we have to get that Pikachu or the boss is gonna give us the…" she hesitated and gulp in her breath before saying a word only know to Team Rocker, "The Room…" the two of them paled as white as paper, whatever this 'room' maybe it was scary enough to frighten the bravest members of the gang.

"But Jessie we didn't even have diner yet and those burgers sure looks tasty!" Jesse looked back at him with a look that clearly says 'Are you that stupid?'

"You're the one who ate all that food we prepared!"

While the three of them were still arguing around, Ash and Misty were having the time of their lives. Neither of them thought of their dinner to be a date but no matter at which point you look at, they do look like young couples. After a few laughs and jokes and remembrance of how things went through their journeys, things became a little serious. Just when Ash was taking the last of the fried potatoes he looked at his side and believed that he heard Team Rocket's rambling. Suddenly he felt a slight warmth on his hand. Misty was also planning to get the last piece but instead they were pulling different sides of the potato (wow what a new beginning)

Ash blushed and quickly let go of the last snack potato (geeze). He felt tingly all over inside of him. Misty was blushing after taking the last piece. "Uh… thank you" she said quietly. Tension was building up. The cashiers, waiters/waitresses could not help but notice those two coming closer together. The air-con was strong but Ash was feeling all hot inside. Now realizing that they were both silent and quiet, the manager of the store told the security guard to catch all of this on the security camera… the moment was priceless!

Togepi was still muttering and wondering why they both look so red. It felt like an eternity had passed before they spoke up again. Just right after when Ash was about to say something (probably something stupid) a familiar squinty eyed face appeared on the window. The two of them gasped as they were caught by surprised by their friend. "Brock!?" said Ash after recovering from the shock.

"There you are! (walks into the restaurant) I've been looking for you all over the Pokemon center and to think you guys were here having a date"

Misty and Ash both shouted in unison, "We're not!"

After the little show back at the diner, our heroes walk back to the house of Richie and his father which was only a few blocks from where they were. Ash felt like the dumbest man on the planet after he walked right in. The rain had already stopped before Brock could find them and it seems like Arthur was able to cook a decent meal for once. Ash felt another rumbling in his stomach. Neither he nor Misty could believe it. He already had a burger, fries and fried potatoes and he's still hungry. Everyone then thought that his stomach was a portal to a black hole or something.

Misty was already way too full to see him eat any more so she quickly made herself at home in the guest room and went straight to bed. Ash on the other hand was desperately trying stuff himself with whatever was on the table. Brock got sick of eating just by watching at his friend squabble that entire chunk through his throat. Brock and Richie looked at their food for a moment and gave their share to him which he politely did NOT refuse. Arthur and his son were quite amazed that such a little boy like Ash could gobble down so much. Arthur felt proud that he could make such a delicious meal, but he then also felt nervous that the boy was about to finish everyone's plate.

It took about thirty minutes until Ash finally stopped. He didn't feel full, but he knew he just had to stop. He felt like there was some kind of hole in his stomach that was sending all of his energy away.

While all of them were still awed by the boy's incredible appetite, Arthur noticed the strange markings on Ash's right arm. He didn't say a word but it looked somewhat odd, not familiar just odd. _"A boy of his age shouldn't be getting tattoos"_ Arthur thought to himself quietly. Just as the conversation went on through the night a familiar sound echoed through the living room. Pikapi… Pikapi… Pikapi… Pikapi! A Pokemon clock dangled from the wall. It had a Pikachu coming in and out saying the exact same words over and over again.

Arthur looked at the clock "Oh dear it's that late already? Well I guess its time for bed everyone. I only have two guest rooms so one of you will have to sleep in the living room tonight" Ash immediately volunteered as he was used to sleeping at uncomfortable places.

As they greeted each other good night, the lights were off and the noise fell silent. It was like the whole city fell into a trance. The street lights were still on and perhaps that was all the light this city ever needed during the night. The other fancy lightings from shops and department stores were just an eye sore for him. Things were quiet… peaceful and relaxing just like Ash wanted. He wished that this moment of silence could last forever, but it wouldn't as a dark figure rose next to him.

Ash quickly jumps out yelling in fear only to realize time had stopped… again. "Ohh… not again" he moaned. "What do you want now you… me… or whatever!"

DA was sitting on the table with one leg up on his chest. His cap continues to cover his eyes and his nose and mouth were visible but just barely. "Well Ash seems like you're up and ready" the boy gave his usual cold smirk that would freeze the hottest volcano a thousand times over.

"Listen, whoever you are, you're really starting to scare me. Just what do you want?!"

DA jumped down from the table and took a seat on the chair, "All I want to do Ash is to help you. That's really all" there was a scent of deceit behind the boy's words. It felt cold and empty yet he was smiling. "Since we don't have any interruptions I guess we can talk for awhile" the room darkened and everything was swallowed up into the night. Two chairs with handles appeared along with a two glasses of water standing on a small round table. "Come, have a seat" the two boys sat on the opposite sides waiting the other to make a move or something. "Have you made a decision yet? I mean we should leave for Valmarian city as soon as possible" DA grinned even wider as he said those words.

"What are you talking about? I'm going to reach the city by tomorrow!" DA shrug Ash's words aside as if they were nothing but lies. "That boat won't be leaving these shores. None of them will, but if you follow me Ash I can get you there before you even know it. The sooner the better" Ash was wondering why he was such in a hurry, in fact why was he in a hurry?

All these questions ran through his mind like a wave of ideas splashing down recklessly out of their categories. Pikapi… pikapi…pikapi…pikapi! The sound of the annoying clock rang through the darkness causing the place to become unstable, "I knew this would be too good to be true, but I guess I still have time. I'll see you again Ash Ketchum… oh and one piece of advice: Friends will only slow you down!" with those last words DA disappeared into the light and Ash awoke from his slumber.

The Pikachu clocked squealed over and over again, Ash was kind of grateful about it at the moment but he soon found it to be quite annoying. Richie woke up after hearing the sudden clock ramble. He went on and turned the alarm off the little clock as he rubbed his head. His eyes were barely focused and it looked like he could doze off standing at any moment. Ash tried to go back to sleep but his eyes remained opened. It felt like his other self was watching him.

"It's that dream again…" he muttered to himself, "What's happening to me. He held both his hand in front of him only to noticed small marks that were extending from the bite mark around his arm. What in the world is happening to him? Ash was now annoyed by the mark and quickly ran into the bathroom. He used the soap and whatever alcohol to rub away the stain on his arm but it was persistent. After a few minutes of rubbing and cleaning the boy finally reached the point to hurt himself. He let out a weak yell of pain and held his right arm. His arm was now decorated with a deep scar he made himself. The boy moaned and groaned on and on until he finally gave up and went back on the couch. He slammed a pillow on his face and took a loud scream off his mind. He didn't know why, but he was angry about something… something he couldn't do, but what was it?

By morning our little hero has had the rudest awakening. Pikachu shocked his master about a dozen times with no luck of waking up. The little mouse feared that his attacks might've killed him, but to his surprised Ash was still snoring like he just slept a few minutes ago.

Misty got annoyed with her friend's loud slumber and decided to give him a big whack in the head. The sound of the mallet smacking a head's skull was bone chilling and the memento it leaves behind was not pretty either. Lumps upon lumps upon lumps was all that would remain if you cross against Misty's magical mallet **(I call it magical because it can come out of nowhere at any time)**

"Just how long do you plan on sleeping there?" said Misty. Ash held his head in agony as he was still barely awake. "Hurry up and get ready! We're leaving for Valmarian city in two hours Ash!" Immediately the boy was pulled from his sleeping place and sent to the bathroom.

"Geeze... someone woke up on the wrong side of bed" he mumbled to himself.

The group arrived at the docks in exactly two hours, the clams were on board the ship already, but then something was wrong. It wasn't anything in particular it just felt wrong. _"That boat won't be leaving these shores… none of them will" _the words of his other self poke through Ash's head like a needle. He tried to succumb the feeling and ignore it but when his friends took a step inside he shouted out, "Wait guys!" everyone stopped and looked at him with confusion. "What's the matter Ash? Don't you want to go to Valmarian city already?" said Misty "I do… but something's not right" the group became more puzzled than before.

What's gotten into the boy? First he wants to go to the great city as quick as possible now he's hesitant to even step on the boat. Just when things were silent a familiar motto came into place.

"Prepare for battle and get ready for trouble!"

"If you don' like it then make it double"

"To protect the world from devastation"

"To unite all people within our nation"

"To denounce the evil of truth and………"

There little scene was cut short when Misty interrupted, "Yeah yeah yeah we heard it all before. Can we please get on with the fight already?!"

Jessie threw out a small steam from her nose, "Excuse me but we were already half way finished!"

"Can't you be more respectful to us? What happened to the noble hero-villain relationship?" James frowned

Meowth also had to agree, "Yeah that's right! We worked hard to make this slogan and we're not about to quit it!"

"Well that slogan of yours has been rambling for a long time now! four years to be exact! Listening to you makes me wanna wish that a Snorelax came up and sat on you guys!"

"Well someone's grumpy in the morning" James noticed

"Yeah, usually that twerp would be the one shouting by now"

"Grumpy?! Who's grumpy?! I'm not grumpy!!!"

"Whatever little lady, but back to business"

"Hand over that Pikachu or else!!" said Jessie as she pointed at the Pokemon in question. A long silence came by without notice

It was Ash who broke the silence, "Uh… or else what?" Team Rocket was still silent

Jessie continued to yell, "It doesn't matter just hand over the Pikachu quietly and no one gets hurt" The gang huddled together and whispered.

Richie stated first, "You know what I don't think these guys have any plans at all"

Ash nodded along with his Pikachu, "They must be getting desperate. Usually they'd have some sort of machine to suck up Pikachu or something"

Just before they knew it, Ash was right. A huge mechanical Gyrados surfaced from the sea hovering over the trainers. "Mwahahahaha you're trap now twerps!" said Jesse with an evil laugh. Brock, Ash and Richie fought back with almost every Pokemon they had but were still not enough. Brock's earth type was no match even to a mechanical machine. Richie and Ash's Pikachus thunder shock the giant iron beast but to no avail (it was iron duh!)

Brock summoned up his Onix and wrap itself around Gyrados trying to pull it onto shore where they can battle it out easily. Richie called out his Squirtle and fought equally with its water gun. Just when the mechanical Pokemon statue was on the surface it immediately launch two water torpedoes from its back and crushing Onix to the ground with swurly eyes. Brock called his stone giant back into his Pokeball knowing it fought well.

Things then went from bad to worst. As soon team rocket was done beating Brock, another mechanical Gyrados rose from the sea. "What the? You have back ups now?!" Ash yelled out. Team Rocket was just as confused as he was and they all gazed as to see if it was a new ally or enemy.

"Mwahahahaha! We must thank you Jesse for taking out Ash's little friends. We wouldn't be able to fight him on our own…" said the girl in black uniform. "But taking you out should be a snap!" the man continued for her. "Butch… Cassidy!"

"Oh no not these two again…"

Wobbuffet (correct spelling?): Woooobufet!

"Get lost losers this is our victory!" Jessie yelled at the two interuptors

The orange haired girl simply smugged, "Correct but we'll be the ones taking the glory! Butch, activate the water blaster!"

In a few moments the 2nd robot Gyrados fired a huge amount of water from its mouth blasting Jesse and James to a nearby building.

"You low lives! How much lower can you sink in your wickedness?!"

"Are you talking about them or us?" Meowth added

"Now we can finally deal with that little brat! (fires at the S.S Jennifer)

"NOOOO!!!!! Not my Jennifer!" Arthur pleaded as his boat sank to the bottom of the bay

"You idiot, I told you to blast the kid not the boat!"

The boat sank just below sea level. Since they hadn't reach out to sea the boat remained surfaced but just barely. With so much anger inside, Misty threw out Staryu and begins a battle against her enemies. Ash was still in shock of what was happening.

Staryu unleashed a deadly spinning attack, but it just bounced off Team Rocket's iron Gyrados. Staryu then tried a water blast attack but it too had no effect. The new Team Rocket laughed evilly on top of their victorious monster as it blast away Staryu to the pier. Before Butch was about to put the little star shaped Pokemon out of its misery, Misty ran over and held her Pokemon tightly. The power of the water cannon that the Gyrados had was incredible. If it could break a boat in two in just mere seconds how long will skin and bones last? The stream of water rushed through the robot Gyrados once again but Misty only held her Staryu tighter hoping to take in all the pain that she was about to receive.

Her body slammed against a board sign which shattered into pieces in an instant after contact. The orange haired girl fell to the ground wounded and barely conscious after the impact but Team Rocket wasn't done with her yet. They planned to take Staryu as a prize for their boss, but the Water trainer still refused to let go.

"Urrrrr…!!!! That idiot just won't let go of Staryu!" said Butch

"Fine then, just use the water cannon and blast her out of the way!" shouted Cassidy

Butch hesitated for a moment before initiating the water refill. Misty was bleeding all over from her face to her arms and it looked like she can't stand another blast like that. The water cannon may only be using water but there is a slight chance of it becoming a lethal weapon.

Just before Butch could activate the cannon an angry voice yelled out behind them. "NNNNOOOOO!!!!!!!!" Ash saw Misty's impeding disaster and leaped before even thinking of the consequences. He stood in front of mighty machine without fear as the blast of water flowed out from the mechanical mouth. The boy felt small drops of water on his skin until a sudden chill came upon Ash's mind which sent him to a place far away where no one could reach him (mentally). Everything was moving in slow motion like 'Matrix'. Misty slowly opened her eyes thinking either her or Ash would be blown away already, but it was neither.

As she looked closely to the attack, Brock's Onix was standing against the current. Brock barely noticed the incident until he realized that all his Pokemons were coming out even against his will.

However… his Pokemons weren't the only ones.

A silent out burst of a powerful wave struck throughout the city. All the Pokemons were attracted to the voice and were screaming in pain! Nurse Joy tried calming the wounded Pokemons that were in the nursery. Some of the creatures tried dragging themselves out of the Pokemon center to find out where the sound was coming from. Several trainers restrained their beloved Pokemons in anyway they can. After awhile it became total chaos all over the city. Officer Jenny called in for back up from the police department as she clobbered two or three rampaging Golems.

Ash's unexplainable aura returned to him once again this time it was stronger and could be felt anywhere within twenty miles. Birds and other creatures couldn't understand if they should run for safe haven or to follow the sound that rang clearly in their heads.

Ash swallowed up all his emotions before coming to his natural senses. He could hear voices coming from the Pokemons around him but couldn't quite make any word out of it. He could feel and see everything but it seemed like he wasn't in control of his own body. "Onix… squeeze attack… Staryu… water gun… Pikachu… thunderbolt… NOW!" all three Pokemons jumped into position and immediately obeyed his orders to the letter. Onix wrapped itself to the mechanical being holding it steadily into position while Pikachu used his electrical surge to Staryu's water attack which blended quite perfectly into the robot's mouth. The shock destroyed the upper half of the machine sending Onix down to the ground badly injured and both Team Rockets back into the blue sky. Ash quickly fell to his knees by the time the battle was over.

A few minutes later Misty was now able to stand up. Her body felt a little numb from the water blast but quickly her sights were now focused on the unconscious trainer. Just before our hero collapsed onto the ground Brock's Onix quickly leaped in and catch the boy even though he was heavily injured by the last blow. Brock quickly grabbed his friends and head towards the nearest safe haven they could find.

A few hours had past before things started to settle down. The Pokemons that went rampant caused considerable amount of damage before realizing what was going on. It was as if they were possessed by the sound that was barely heard by humans. The docks were a complete mess, the market districts and residential areas were in ruins and many others had seen better days. The police force which was lead by Officer Jenny had their hands full controlling the panicked crowd and catching Pokemons that were still on the loose. It would take months before things would run smoothly again in Goldenrod city.


	7. Hopeful Lies

**Chapter 7: Hopeful Lies**

On the next day, after the incident at the docks of Goldenrod City, Brock and Richie were able to bring Ash and Misty back at Richie's place. The city streets were declared as a danger zone to all residence since the Pokemons were going wild.

It wasn't long till Ash was regaining a bit of his conscious back. The first thing he was able to do was smell…

There was a smell in the air. A wonderful smell… it was stew… or something close to that at least. The aroma was great and it seems like there was lettuce, pork… and other delicacies I can't even name.

"Do you think he's alright?" Richie asked Brock as he looked at the unconcious Ash on the sofa.

"I wouldn't worry about him. Ash maybe small but he's stronger than he looks"

He lied he was dead super duper worried about Ash. He didn't have that many scratches as Misty but his body was so weakened it almost looked like he could die at any moment. Just then, Arthur came in with some bad and good news

"I spoke with Nurse Joy at the Center. Your Onix and Misty's other Pokemons are all healed and will be waiting for you Brock"

"Thanks sir, I just wish I knew what happened to my Onix. He never acted like that before"

"Yours wasn't the only one that was acting strange" said the old sea dog, "The whole city is in chaos! The police requested that everyone should stay inside until they announce that it's safe to go around again. And I want no excuses what so ever to be going out you hear?!"

Brock and Richie nodded as they have never seen Arthur so nervous and frustrated before in their lives. He was still at a lost after losing his prized Jennifer to those Team Rockets. He never thought that he would ever see his S.S Jennifer at the bottom of the bay. The police were roaming around with several trainers who seemed to have 'lost' their Pokemons during the confusion. They didn't have to tell the people to stay in their houses, they were too afraid to go anywhere at this point.

"Well it looks like we're not going anywhere today"

Brock was in deep though for awhile until his face brightened up with an idea.

"Hey Richie can I use your phone for a minute?"

"Yeah its right next to the living room, it's the only one we have" he said pointing to a Pokemon phone on the wall

Brock began dialing the numbers like crazy that it would so hard to even decipher what was the first number he pressed, "(dialed like crazy) Hello?... hey Tracey its Brock……. really? Well anyway I need to speak with the professor right away ok thanks. (waits for awhile) Professor?"

The screen on the monitor lit up to see an old man in his lab coat.

"Oh hi there Brock I wasn't expecting you to call back so soon"

It was nice to see the professor in good heath but Brock wasn't in the mood for cheesy talk today. He immediately got to the point.

"Professor, have you heard anything about Pokemons going wild or anything?"

"No not at all is someth… "

"Professor! I just got a mail from Varidian city! Take a look at these readings!" that the voice of Tracey just off screen

The professor took the long band paper and read every word with patience. His eyes widened with surprise mixed with fear after a brief look at the note.

"That can't be right! Tracey, look into the database and see what you can find! This reading is way too much even for a psychic Pokemon" Brock gave a puzzled face in return, "Oh I'm sorry Brock but it seems like you're right. I have here reports about Pokemons acting strangely around the Hoenn and Johto regions. Do you know anything about this?"

"Well… you wouldn't believe me if I told you"

"Why's that?…"

Brock and Professor Oak (A.K.A Sammy Oak) spent hours on the phone explaining on what just happened in the city. The story was pretty farfetched and more a fantasy than reality but from the tone of his voice and emotions sticking out of his face he was dead serious.

"I see… this story is hard to believe but I think I'll check up with you when I can. Oh and please don't tell Ash's mother about this, she's worried enough after seeing him fight at the Cerulean gym"

An hour had passed after Brock had hung up. Misty was already awake from her little nap. She had bandages all over her face and arms. The wounds were mostly caused by splinters and small rocks that hit her at an amazing speed.

The orange haired girl slept peacefully for only a short time but Ash seems to have been sleeping forever since he came back from the fight. Misty looked at him with worried eyes. She felt like she needed to say something… anything… but the words were froze in her lungs dropping away back into her brain.

What did she want to say?

"Urrggg..." Ash moaned as he tried to reach for his face. He felt stiff and numb all over like a prune that was squeezed into nothing. "Ohhh what happened?" Brock quickly jump next to his friend began starring at him with a serious glance.

"Hey Ash ya feeling any better?" Brock said with that usual smirk on his face.

"I feel…" a sudden rumble came from his stomach, "heh heh hungry I guess" Brock fell down silly but with some relief to know his friend was alright. After a few minutes of stretching his back, arms and legs Ash finally got up and start doing laps around the house with his Pikachu.

Brock looked at Ash with a stare that clearly says 'What are you doing?' Ash smiled back as he couldn't stop jogging around. Everyone thought he would still need recovering after that little fight, but it looked like he was ready to take on the entire world. It was strange at first but then they remembered that Ash felt tired and hungry last night. He must've recovered from that little exhaustion that day.

After a series of hours running around in circles around the house and field Ash's Pikachu began to show signs of fatigue. The little mouse was going slower and slower, but he was trying to keep up with Ash. After a few more minutes Pikachu collapsed to a nearby flower bushes.

"Oh sorry Pikachu, I didn't know you were tired already" Pikachu rested at the end of the field panting heavily but Ash was barely even breaking a sweat! Something wasn't right at all. It wasn't bad but it certainly wasn't right. Misty was wondering how Ash got so much energy while she was basically famished!

Right after lunch, Ash continued his workout by doing push ups with one finger and sits up without any hand support. Brock and the others wanted to join him for that little exercise but just looking at the young trainer already made them tired.

Brock couldn't help but be proud at Ash as he was now taking his training more seriously.

Richie was actually jealous of Ash and wanted to be more like him. He idolized him and looks up to his friend as a role model in his life.

Arthur didn't want to express himself much but he was jealous of who Ash's parents were. If he could, he would've adopted that boy right on the spot.

Misty herself also couldn't help but notice Ash's unusual behavior.

After a few minutes Misty walked towards the balcony on the second floor. The sight overlooked the city down town area and golf court. It was a great sight but what really attracted her was Ash's little Pikachu who was trying to keep up with his master. _"I can't believe he's not even tired yet" _she thought. Just then Ash finally showed signs of fatigued. He crouched and held himself by his knees while panting endlessly. He then realizes that he and Pikachu shouldn't be the only ones working out! He called his Pokemons who laughed with glee and began training with their master with pride.

Misty's heart race after looking at Ash. His body was getting sweaty and his eyes completely focused. She stared at him and smiled happily.

**(Misty's POV)**

"I guess he's finally getting used to his Pokemon training" I said to myself quietly. His hair was not as spiky as before and he was only wearing his black shirt. His soft gentle smile is just so… so… heart warming. I wish I could talk to him… I guess I should praise him at least. He did fight off Team Rocket… but what should I say? _'Come on Misty he's your best friend… it's the least you could do!'_ My thoughts are ringing out like crazy! Just before I knew it I was already on the same field with Ash.

He was taking a 5 minute break on a bench near the garden. I guess this was my chance. I just needed to say 'thank you and congrats' and I'm done. My heart was beating faster and faster as I approached him. He looked at me with those deep dark eyes. It felt it could take me away… far far away from here. I needed to say something to him… anything.

**(Normal POV)**

Ash was gazing at Misty for several minutes. His Pokemons were all exhausted from the little work out but now they felt a whole lot stronger than before. Even Totodile was too exhausted to even let out a little laugh. "Hey Misty what's up?" he said breaking the silent moment. She couldn't speak… she just blush in reply.

"Uh… nothing!" she said finally.

"Doesn't look like nothing. Come on you can tell me"

"No, it's nothing really!" her heart was pounding hard on her chest. She could feel the sound of the pump every two seconds. She turned away and walked slowly back into the house but Ash grabbed her arm, stopping her on her tracks. Ash knew her best friend too well. He knew that tone of her voice and he'd know that she was lying.

"Come on Misty you can't hide that face from me"

"Well what do you know!?" she screamed at him at the top of her lungs making the boy back away with sadness in his eyes.

**(Misty's POV)**

Who the heck does he think he is?! I just want to congratulate him and be on my way but now I just feel like I want to whack him! My mind's going around in circles and I can barely think straight. What's wrong with ME?! First I whack him for just being himself and now I'm yelling at him for no reason! Gosh I need to rest.

**(Normal POV)**

Misty was generally not in a good mood. She was holding all of her emotions behind her mask but only 'anger' managed to slip through.

Ash took a step back as he was surprised to see how Misty reacted. _"What did I do this time?"_ he wondered. But the girl just left without a word. "I guess it must be a girl thing" Pikachu agreed with Ash with a nod.

Back inside Pikachu decided to follow Misty and see what's gotten into her. He tried to follow the girl, but was cut short when he saw Togepi on top of the stairs. The little egg like Pokemon was about to drop from the top! Pikachu immediately leaped forward before she fell on the first step.

"Pika pika!" (Be careful, you could've hurt yourself!)

"cu preeee" (Mommy's angry, did daddy do something bad?)

"Pi Pikachu ! Pikapi pika pikachu" (Stop calling him daddy! Besides Ash didn't do anything)

"cu tic cu tic" (Then why's mommy angry?)

"Pika…chu" (It must be a girl thing)

**(Brock's POV)**

I was proud of myself after teacher Arthur on to cook. The man has a lot of spirit, but… I wonder what happened to Richie's mom. I guess that's another thing those two had in common. Except Richie's missing a mom and Ash is missing a dad. Wait what am I thinking?! I shouldn't be thinking like this about those two, their lives are way perfect!

Just as I was preparing desert for tonight's little feast I heard Misty yelling out again. I guess they must've had another fight. I can't get that girl at all! I mean Ash saved her life and now she's acting nothings happened. She should at least thank Ash for that. Maybe when I'm finish I'll tell her that.

I still can't believe Ash is finally taking his Pokemon seriously now. He used to be overconfident and slow but I guess he's all grown up. Arthur came to me a few minutes ago and said that all the boats in the city docks were damaged during the attack done by Team Rocket. I guess our little trip to Valmarian will have to wait. Ash might feel a little depressed. It's not every day you get to see your goal just slipping away from your hands. Who knows maybe Ash might rethink on his journey to Valmarian and have a little vacation instead.

**(Normal POV)**

Ash finally retired from his workout and was inside with all of his Pokemons. They were panting heavily while their master was just having a breather. His body and stamina were tripled the last time they were around. "Come and get it!" Brock was ringing a triangle to signal his friends that the food was ready.

Ash gave his Pokemons Pokechow he bought from Cerulean city and his Pikachu a bottle of ketchup just the way he liked it. Misty cooled herself off by taking a little shower and put on the new shirt and shorts she bought from the mall a few days ago. They all ate quietly and peacefully just how Brock liked it. It was silent and all the noise you could hear was 'chomp, gulp, gluck, chew' until,

"So Brock, when can we leave for Valmarian city?" Ash broke the peaceful meal. Brock knew he was gonna ask that question sooner or later, "Sorry Ash but ever since the attack, no boats will be leaving for Vaalmarian city or anywhere in awhile" everyone expected Ash to sigh or something, but instead he just gave out his usual smirk.

"Well I guess we could head for Olivine city then" Ash said as he gulps down his food.

Everyone yelled out in confusion "OLIVINE CITY?!" the young boy nodded in reply.

"Yeah, I got some friends visiting the city right now and now they want us to join them on their return trip" Misty let out a sigh… again,

"Ash can we please just have a little rest and relaxation? I mean we did just battled two Team Rocket teams and you barely recovered!" but Ash smiled without worries in his face,

"No way, if we can get there within a week, we might be able to catch a trip to Lilycome city right away and who knows we might even get to see a lot of Pokemons along the way!"

"One week?! We can't get there that fast even with a bus" the young trainer once again smiled with glee as he already planned everything out.

"That's why we're going to leave tonight!" Everyone who just recovered from the state of shock, fell back into their previous position "Let me explain. We'll now be doing things differently from now on. We'll travel at night and sleep by day. If we do that we're guaranteed to make it in Olivine in 4 days" Ash waited for a brief moment waiting for his friend's reaction. "Oh and there won't be any bugs during the night" he added.

Misty raised her hand in agreement "I'm in!"

Before long, the gang packed up their belongings and quickly said their farewells to Arthur. "Why don't you go with them Richie?" said the old sea dog,

"But don't you need help with Jennifer?"

"Jennifer can wait my boy. You need to brush up on your skills or you'll be left behind! Besides, I think mom would be very proud to see you become friends with a Pokemon trainer like Ash" Richie hugged his father tightly and let out a single tear from his eyes. He never felt such happiness ever since he met Ash and he was about to pass up an opportunity like this one!

"Hey guys wait for me!" Richie yelled out as he quickly packs some food and clothes for the trip. He followed Ash group and immediately joined in for the ride.

Arthur smiled as his son and his newly found friends travel through the early night… to Olivine city. "Jennifer… our son seems to have found a role model. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but I guess it's what he wants. I hope you understand…"

**(Meanwhile in Valmarian City)**

Gary looked at himself at the mirror. His eye lids were barely hanging above his eye. He just fought three trainers in a row and trained all day with his Pokemons. He ate nothing but a ham and egg sandwich and a can of soda for the entire day. He was amazed that he arrived at Valmarian City before Ash.

He felt proud and couldn't wait to rub it on Ash's face. He was already preparing on how he was gonna say it too. _"Ha ha! Well well, if it isn't the loser squad! What's the matter did you guys ride on a Slowpoke to get here?" _the boy giggled the moment he would see Ash he would repeat that same sentence until he drops. After awhile Gary lay down on his bed room which he rented in a Pokemon center. He flipped through the channels on TV but found nothing of interest. As he scrolled around to the news area his eyes widened.

Ash was on TV… again! "Goldenrod Disaster" was the title of the story. There appeared to have been a great disturbance in Goldenrod city this morning. Gary heightened the volume so he would catch every word clearly. There was an attack attempt by Team Rocket early in the morning. It had damaged many ships along the sea shores and even now several water Pokemons are behaving strangely often attack fishing boats and ferries. Some reports say that this was a ploy Team Rocket was using but no evidence shows. Though there weren't any wounded but the sea traveling agency of Goldenrod city are halting all sea travels until further notice.

Gary barely listened to the early news and wanted to focus more on what was Ash doing there. He muted the TV and as the camera focused on Ash. Gary stood up as he studied Ash's techniques as he commanded an Onix, a Staryu and two Pikachu. It wasn't as complicated as the one he did in Cerulean city, but it was still amazing. Gary stood again… seeing his rival performing such incredible feats leaving him at awe.

**(Back in Pallet Town, Professor Oak's Residence)**

Delia was now visiting professor Oak's place. She didn't have anything to do but clean up the mess he and Tracy did since this morning. Papers with intelligible writings and numbers and formulas were scattered throughout the place. Instant meals were littered all around making a sickening aroma.

"_How can they live like this?"_ Delia thought, "Hello is anyone here?" there was no reply. The only thing that was making a sound was her lungs and the air-conditioner… the rest of the house was in a complete silence. "I think I'll need Mr. Mime's help on this one" she sighed with a sweat drop hanging from her face.

"NOOOO!!!!"

A loud scream rang through the entire house. Delia covered her ear and decided to take a look at professor Oak's lab. Tracey was on the ground with coffee stain all over his face. He was snoring happily while the professor was busy calculating something, but it appears to be a failure.

"Umm… professor?" Delia poked her head out through the door having a little look inside.

**(Sam Oak's thoughts)**

"_I failed… again! How is this even possible? Even since I got that note from Varidian city I've been decrypting these strange brainwaves from the Johto region I've been working non stop to find out what kind of Pokemon could do such a powerful wave blast. The reason why the Pokemons were acting strangely must also be related to this. If a human could hear such powerful psychic sound it would blow their minds completely. It could be a weapon that Team Rocket developed just like they said, but it's impossible. They'll need a very power generator and at least 500 Alakazams to even get near such frequency. I guess I'll have to figure this one on my own"_

**(Back in normal POV)**

"Hello? Professor?!" Delia practically screamed after having the thought that the professor past away.

"Wha?... Whaaaaaa!!!" the old scientist fell from his chair and slammed his head to the ground. "Ouch…oh Delia, I didn't here you coming" he said finally. He stood up and pat the dust that covered his coat. He looked around and noticed that everything was a mess. "Aheh I guess I forgot that you were coming. I'm sorry about the mess hehehe" Delia smiled and was relieved to see him unharmed. The old man tried gathering the papers that were just about everywhere.

"My my, you and Tracey must've stayed up all night"

"Well technically yes, but in reality we've only been working for six hours ahehehe"

"Well I guess I could start by cleaning up the house"

"Oh no please don't mind the mess! I'll get right on it hehehehe" the professor began shuffling through the papers and folders and placing them on random shelves

"Umm… professor do you mind if I stay here tonight? (Oak's stood in shock) Well you see I've been feeing lonely in my house for awhile and I just can't stand it anymore. My son always contacts you and rarely even calls me anymore"

"Umm… uh well… of course you can stay but I think Tracey has the guest room"

"Oh don't worry about that I can just sleep here in the living room! Thank you professor"

Not long when Delia was about to get her things, Tracey appeared and began shouting something in an cryptic messege, "Professor!!!!!!! Oh hi Mrs. Ketchum. Professor I got a call from Dr. Birch in Hoenn. He says that he might have a lead on those strange readings"

"That's great! I'll call him right away"

"I'll head over to Celadon city and catch the next boat ride to Hoenn. He might need my help!"

"Alright Tracey but don't do anything rash ok? Oh don't forget to come to Valmarian city when you're done!" (Tracey was long gone already. He took the bus and head right off to who knows where) "(sigh) Well I guess I'd better get started on cleaning this mess"

"Oh I think I'll call Mr. Mime to help out. Just let me get home and I'll come back right away. Oh and thank you professor for letting me stay"

"Don't mention it. I've been staying at your house more than I could remember"

The professor never imagined that Delia would be staying at his house. Right after the cheerful lady made a quick dash to get her things, the old man quickly tidied up the place as fast as he could. He stuffed papers into trashcans and vacuumed the place before she would return. He even brushed up some coffee for the two of them. He took a quick bath and changed into a new lab coat. By the time he finished he sat on the sofa and watched TV and waited for Delia's return.


	8. The Fool's Wisdom

**Chapter 8: The Fool's Wisdom**

"Alright everyone the sun's up, time for bed!" Brock took out his sleeping bag and quickly made camp on an empty open field near the dirt road. Ash and the others soon followed. They didn't care if their sleeping bags weren't fully open as long as they were comfortable nothing else mattered.

Ash however wasn't tired at all. His body was still full of energy he even thought he could make it to Olivine city by sun down. With Pikachu and the others still sleeping peacefully Ash decided to take another quick exercise.

The young trainer traveled through the nearby woods to see if he could find any rare Pokemons to train for his journey. After awhile he couldn't see any Pokemons at all. No bug, bird or plant type. "Hmm… that's weird, what happened to all the Pokemons?" he said to himself. The boy looked high and low, under and over but still not a Pokemon in sight. "Where could they be at this hour? If I remember what Brock said 'plant types always comes out during day break to look for food, but it's way past sun rise already"

Suddenly he heard a disturbance around the bushes. "_Aha I got you now!"_ he thought as he prepared a Pokeball. "Wait, how am I suppose to catch it when I have no Pokemon?" the sound became louder and louder until it was close enough to be heard. It was then Ash realized it was a cry for help by a Pokemon. He rushed through behind the bushes looking through every high grass and tried to find the source of the plea for aid.

After a short while of looking around, Ash found the source. Beside an Oak tree in a nearby meadow an Espeon was crying desperately for someone to hear her. "An Espeon?! What's an Espeon doing all the way up here?" as he approached the helpless Pokemon the little cat let out a threatening hiss to scare him off. "Whoa easy there little fella, I'm not gonna hurt you"

Ash slowly approaches the Pokemon and analyzed the wound. The Espeon's leg was broken from some sort of attack, and it won't be able to move unless someone helps it. Ash took out a first-aid guide book from his pocket and read through the instructions.

An hour had past until the boy finally got things together. He wrapped the Espeon's leg with bandages and used a stick to hold it together. The creature was now calm and collective and gave Ash a little lick on the face.

"Hahaha hey cut it out you!" the boy tumbled back as he rubbed Espeon behind the ear which all cats do love to be scratched. "Hey, I don't remember seeing Espeon's in this forest. Do you have a master?" the psychic Pokemon tilts its head acting all innocent. It had a collar saying only one word.

'Anabel'

The name was strangely familiar to Ash. He knew he heard that name somewhere but couldn't quite put a needle onto it but now that didn't matter.

"Come on let's get you back to camp before we find your owner" Ash held the Espeon in his arms and walked back to camp and since it was still day time he remembered the path he took and made it back before breakfast… well if there was breakfast that is.

He remembered that Brock and the others were in dreamvile so there was no one there to make breakfast. Ash sighed and quickly heard his stomach growling… again. "Man I'm really hungry… are you hungry little fella?"

The cat like Pokemon nodded with a pur. Ash quickly went through Brock's bag and took out some ingredients. Ash knew he couldn't cook, but after reviewing several steps from what Brock did he was able to get things started. He managed to get the water boiling after getting good fire wood. Just when Ash was about to follow Brock' recipe a sudden voice came through his ear

"Put in some mushrooms…" said the voice. Ash looked around but saw no one. "Put in mushrooms…" it said again "Hmm… mushrooms… ok" Soon Ash was followed the voice's instructions and watched as his meal turned into a magnificent master piece that would have Brock's food look like Pokemon food (no offense Brock)

The sweet aroma of food could be smelled from a distance. Ash made a bucket full of this… unnamed meal and quickly sips a spoon full to see how it tasted. His eyes widened and quickly realized that this thing was rich in so many flavors. The taste swelled through his mouth like fire, it was hot but the taste was worth the burnt tongue.

Pikachu woke up after smelling that sweet delicious scent in the air. Richie and Sparky also followed soon after Brock and Misty woke up from their morning nap.

"Hey Brock, are you making breakfast already?" said Misty barely awake.

Brock shook his head in response, "If I could cook in my sleeps then I'd be the best cook there is"

"Good morning everyone!" they all stared at the direction of the voice and were surprised to see Ash awake and cooking!?

"Hey Ash what are you making?" Richie walked up to the bucket and sniffed a few times to get a scent. "Wow… what is this?"

"I don't know, I just followed some of Brock's recipes and I made… this thing" Everyone took turn smelling the stew Ash made and in moments they were already drooling over it. "Hey don't drool! It's the first thing I ever made!"

"Well are you gonna let us eat or what? I'm starving!" Brock picked out some plates for his friends and bowls for the Pokemons.

"Well that's a first coming out from you" said Ash to no one in particular. It was probably 11:00 AM in the morning so everyone was still sleepy.

After everyone took a sip of Ash's creation their eyes widened as their tongue was covered with so many flavors they couldn't even tell where to start. "Wow Ash I didn't know you could cook like Brock!" Richie said as he continues to take small bites mushrooms and small slices of meat.

Ash blushed in embarrassment as he knew his cooking couldn't compare to Brock's home made food. But Brock thoughts disagree. He didn't express it or said anything out loud but he knew that this unknown meal was better than anything he can concoct.

"_This is great! I don't know what Ash put in this stuff but it's wonderful! I'll ask the recipe when the time's right"_ Broc was eating non-stop as he continues to guess what Ash could've put in this little miracle meal.

Forty-five minutes had past before they finally finished their meal. Misty and Richie were still awing for more of Ash's gorme but unfortunately the bucket was empty. Pikachu and Ash's other Pokemons were literally licking their plates after knowing how tasty it was.

"Wow Ash if you could cook this for breakfast I can't wait for lunch" everyone giggled at Richie's little humor. It was already 12:00 so it was already lunch.

"Man that meal really gave me that extra boost (sees Espeon) Wha!!? What's that?" Misty startled as she thought that it was bug type Pokemon.

Ash held the cat like Pokemon onto his chest and rubbed the back of its ear. "Oh I forgot to tell you. I found this Espeon in the woods this morning. He's a little hurt so I decided to patch it up before we leave"

Brock stared at the psychic Pokemon for a few seconds before making an assumption, "An Espeon? I don't remember seeing Espeons in the forest. Come to think of it I don't remember seeing Eevees or any other of its forms in this forest"

Misty then noticed something on the Pokemon's neck as it purred at Ash, "But it has a collar so I guess it must've come from a trainer right?"

Ash agreed to her saying, "Yeah but what kind of a Pokemon trainer would leave its Pokemon in the middle of the forest?"

"I hope it wasn't abandoned. That's the worst thing you could do to a Pokemon" stated Richie

The Espeon hissed at the others and scratched its head on Ash's jacket. It was definitely asking for an ear rub which Ash gave unconditionally. Pikachu came by and Espeon greeted him with respect.

"Wow that Espeon really knows its manners" said Misty with a delightful smile. She tried giving the little cat a rub around the ears but all it gave in return was a deathly hiss! "Whaaaa?!!"

the cat like Pokemon stared at the orange haired girl with threatening eyes but soon returned to normal when Ash gave it a little pat around the neck.

"I guess it likes you Ash" said Richie with a smirk on his face.

"I can't believe it!" everyone looked at Brock who was now standing on his sleeping bag. "We've only been sleeping for 3 hours!!!"

Misty tilted her head and asked "So… what's wrong with that?" "Don't you get it?! Don't you feel a little bit tired at all?"

The gang suddenly realized that Brock was right. For a moment they were actually exhausted from the night travel and planned to sleep by day but now their eyes were completely widened and not a yawn in sight.

"Wow you're right Brock" Misty agreed and gave out a little stretch, "My body feels great! I haven't felt this energized ever since we left Pallet Town!" Richie and his Pikachu also joined up to see the morning sun.

"Well then, I guess we can keep traveling to Olivine city" the others agreed as their fatigue was completely gone. They packed up their camp and headed right off to Olivine city… which was still a few days away.

**(Back in Valmarian City)**

"The winner of this match is Gary Oaks of Pallet town!" the referee yelled out as he waves the blue flag to signal the victor. Gary's Umbreon had just beaten 19 Pokemons single-handedly but the young trainer wasn't satisfied. The image of Ash's Pikachu zapping out hundreds of Pokemons that were mainly rock, plant and fire types haunted him.

"_If that Pikachu can handle so many in just one blow… how long can Umbreon stand?"_ Gary shook the thought out of his mind and tried to push his Pokemon even further "Alright Umbreon, just one more opponent and we can call it a day!"

The little black feline Pokemon engaged the new opponent's Arbok. The battle went on for awhile but with Umbreon totally exhausted he was barely able to dodge Arbok's poison sting attack. In moments the battle shifted to a tie with both Pokemons knocked out. Gary wasn't disappointed about Umbreon. He was disappointed about himself. A trainer is responsible of his own Pokemon's health and Umbreon was now in no condition to fight. "Umbreon is unable to battle. The winner of this match is… (crowd cheers)"

**(In the Cerulean gym)**

A storm was striking the near the city of Cerulean. Daisy watched as bolts of lighting struck from the dark clouds, leaving nothing but destruction in its wake. "This is like… so not fun anymore!" she said to no one particular. Her other sisters were off shopping while she had to take care of the gym if a trainer should happen to past by. She sighed at moaned as she stared at Misty's Goldeen. "This must be how Misty felt when we were on tour. I'll have to like… give her a gift or something"

Suddenly the door of the gym smashed open. "Oh a trainer! Finally!" Daisy jumped from the office and took up battle position at the edge of the pool. "Alright if you're here to earn a badge then you'll have to go through me!"

Sadly… there was no one there. The wind blew the door so strong that it flipped opened. Daisy was shock at first but quickly gathered herself and closed the door with a defining 'lock' sound. A loud streak of thunder screamed through the window and clearly made a statement that no one messes with Mother Nature.

Right after the thunder sound died down the back door of the gym burst open shaking Daisy in her high heels. She slowly turned around and looked as a dark figure slowly approached the pool. The boy looked familiar. He had a black T-shirt a cap and a jacket… "ASH!!!?" Daisy screamed as he was surprise to see Misty's 'Boy friend' hanging around.

"Oh I'm sorry," said the boy. It was then Daisy realized that it couldn't be Ash. His hair was dyed pure white and the tone of his voice was dark and cold, unlike Ash's that was soft and cute.

"Uhh… who are you and what do you want!" Daisy prepared her Pokeballs just in case if that boy was a Pokemon trainer.

"I'm sorry to have interrupted your moment of peace" said the white haired boy, "I'm just here to pick up a few things for my friend" he quickly picked up two Pokeballs and walked closer to the Goldeen.

"Hey what do you think you're doing?!" Daisy dashed up to the boy who just sucked up two Goldeens right in front of her, "Hey those Pokemons don't belong to you now give it back or I'm calling the police!"

The boy just shrugged at those words and slowly made his way to the front door. "Alright that does it! Exeggutor go get him!" Daisy pulled out a tree like Pokemon out.

"Exeggutor? I thought all the Pokemons here were water type?" the boy was caught by surprise to see a plant type Pokemon in Daisy's possession but he didn't express it through his face.

His eyes were cold and his pupils were dead black. "Come Exeggutor… it's time we got rid of this annoyance!" the three headed Pokemon strangely obeyed the boy's command and went into his Pokeball without any resistance.

Daisy was stunned to see her Pokemon got sucked in like that "Hey what happened just now?!" she demanded an answer,

"Do you have any more?" the boy replied "Wha?..." "Do you have anymore Pokemons with you? (Daisy takes a step back) Oh who am I kidding, COME OUT NOW ALL OF YOU!!!" the Pokemons that Daisy kept for her sisters came out of their Pokeballs by the boy's command. He immediately sucked them up into his own Pokeballs and left the gym the same way he came in.

A thunder struck nearby making a violent roaring sound… and the boy disappeared. Daisy broke down and fell on her legs. She couldn't believe what was happening. "The girls are gonna kill me for this…"

**(Back on the road to Olivine City)**

As the journey of our heroes continues, they came upon a familiar scene which brings back so many memories. "Ash you idiot you got us lost again!" well I didn't say it was good memories did I?

Misty whacked Ash again with her magical mallet as the boy yet again manages to get them lost in the woods. "I know I know! I was sure we took this short cut before…" everyone fell down anime style after realizing that Ash had taken them to the same path,

"Ash you idiot that's the reason we couldn't find our way to Goldenrod city the first time! You had us lost remember!?" Misty was already at the top of her lungs when she said that. Quickly Ash remembered what really happened.

"Oh yeah, now I remember!" Misty hung her head with a sweat drop.

"You're hopeless you know that" she added more insults to her list. Ash could care less about her taunts, but some how it was giving him some sort of motivation to overcome it.

After a few hours of wandering aimlessly through the woods the gang sat under a huge Oak tree that stood alone on an empty grass area to catch a little breather. Brock was preparing his royal special steak. Ever since he tasted Ash's first meal, he needed to brush up on his skills.

Ash was once again training with his Pokemons, but now he was doing different routines. Some of the tactics Ash gave were pretty much complicated, but he had complete trust in his Pokemons and he knew they wouldn't let him down.

Richie was amazed by Ash's progress and tried doing the mimic his maneuvers. Richie's Pikachu (Sparky) was able to do a triple tail spin and following with a thunder shock but Ash's Pikachu was able to hit its target with great ease. As much as Richie tries he fails to do anything close to Ash's training capabilities.

It wasn't long until Ash took a little break to notice his friend was actually training harder than before. He quickly leaps in and helps his friend by giving out some pointers. In moments they were now almost in equal footings,

"Hey Ash!" Richie yelled out suddenly, "Let's have a battle your Pikachu against my Pikachu!" Ash smiled and nodded in reply.

Ash's Pikachu made the first move by using his tail and slapping Sparky to the ground but it recovered quickly after the sudden shock. Richie then ordered a tackle attack but Ash quickly countered it with agility and thunderbolt. Just when the fight was getting nowhere, Ash built in a brilliant plan for this kind of challenge. He ordered Pikachu to let out several bolts of electricity which weakened it considerably. Richie saw this as an opportunity and ordered Sparky to let out every ounce of electricity left for one single shot.

Ash watched as his Pikachu was struck by a huge thunder attack but then he grinned. "Alright Pikachu now use that energy against him!" with a quick order, Ash's Pikachu drained the thunder attack and used it to throw in an even bigger thunder shock! Richie tried to do the same but Sparky could only absorb so much electricity and soon fell to the ground with swirly eyes. Richie gave out a slight sigh of relief. He knew he couldn't beat Ash in a fair fight… in fact he wouldn't have beaten Ash if Team Rocket hadn't winded up his Pikachu.

"That was a great fight Richie!"

"Yeah but I still couldn't beat your Pikachu"

"Don't worry about it, by the time we get to Valmarian city we're all gonna be much stronger than today! (sees Brock waving his hand) Hey supper's ready, come one let's eat!"

Sparky came by Richie's foot with its head down in shame.

"(sigh) Don't worry Sparky I'm not mad at you. I only wished that I could fight Ash to the fullest when I get to Valmarian city"

"Pikachu" (Me too…) replied Sparky

"Hey Richie, come on, it's Brock's special steak and you don't want to miss it!"

"Coming! Hey don't start without me!"

The happy group of friend huddled to the camp site and ate their food long before the sun sets below the mountains. Ash decided to stick with his plan on walking by night and sleep by day. But due to an unimaginable fluke, they managed to find themselves at the same place they set up came this morning.

"Well I guess we didn't really go anywhere after all" Brock mumbled, "Well there's no better time than the present. Come on let's go everyone!" Ash waved his hand and the group slowly followed behind… it wasn't like they were given a choice.

The gang traveled a good distance between them and their old campsite. Now that he had realized his mistake, Ash decided to follow the coast line where they could see Olivine city. It was so close, but to reach it they would either have to travel by boat or by their water Pokemons. Ash only had Totodile and Misty had only Staryu she left her Goldeen back at the Cerulean gym. They all let out a huge sigh of disappointment. They really wanted to get to Olivine as fast as they could, but it would seem like it will take another five days at least.

The gang traveled even further than before, but their legs seemed to refuse to take another step. "What's the matter guys?" Ash turned around to see his friends all lying down on each others backs.

"I'm totally pooped out" said Richie,

"I can't take another step" said Misty,

"How can you keep going Ash?" asked Brock. Ash just smiled and decided that they really should rest for the day. The sun would be up in a matter of hours. It was not long until he spotted a small abandoned house at the edge of the beach.

It wasn't a five star hotel but it was a good place for travelers to take a nap. It was made entirely out of wood with a chimney that hasn't been used ever since it was built. There was a small round table with two chairs and a flower which withered a long time ago. The very scene itself reminded Ash of his other self. He tried to shake it off as a bad dream, but now it seems to haunt him and his every move.

Just as Ash took a step into the house, the scene changed and he saw himself starring back at him. "Wha?!!! What do you want now!" he yelled out.

"Ash what's wrong?" Ash looked back to see Misty with a frown on her face. He looked back to see himself only to realized that he was looking at a mirror.

He gave out a little wind of relief. "It's nothing, I just got scared of my own reflections"

"Really Ash, you can be quite a Slowpoke!" Ash giggled at himself as he found that insult quite amusing.

"**Well at least you're having a good time… heh…"** the shadowy figure looked upon Ash with an evil grin before disappearing into the night.

Ash and the gang quickly find themselves a good place to take their beauty sleeps. Brock slept on one side of the room while Misty, Richie and Ash took the upper floor. Misty and Richie instantly went to sleep the moment their heads touch the soft dusty pillow. Both Pikachus were lying side by side along with Togepi in the middle. Ash however on the other hand was still awake. He kept looking as the sun finally awed him with its mighty glow.

There were actually three reasons why he wanted to travel by night.

1) He could get to Olivine city much faster

2) He could catch rare Pokemons that only come out at night, and finally

3) The recent freaky dream that has been terrifying him seems to only come out at night as well.

"_Well I guess I'd better get some sleep too"_ Ash thought as he gave out a defining yawn. He laid down on his sleeping bag on the floor and slowly shut his eyes hoping not to have those dreams of 'him' again. Before going to dreamvile he took off his favorite cap and folded it neatly in his pocket.

**(Ash's Dream)**

Ash stood as he saw a large crowd gathering around him. He was in a huge dome filled with both people and Pokemons. The wonderful feeling of being cheered entered his heart and soon filled with greatness.

"This is it..." he said to himself, "I'm here…" Pikachu was on his shoulders giving out a good 'Pika' for morale support.

The referee shouted out "This is the final match between Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town! (crowd cheers) and Galyoken also from Pallet town!!!" Galyoken? Ash moved in to battle position. He's never heard of that name before, but it felt somewhat familiar to his ears. His opponent gave out an evil grin that nearly shook fear in his heart but Ash stood strong and called out his Pikachu to do battle.

His opponent called out the same Pokemon. They battled equally well for a very long time until it finally came to a tie. Ash had already lost 5 and his opponent was the same but he was still smiling. Ash got irritated by the smirk of his opponent and decided to do his trademark hat flip. The crowd burst into joy and clearly knew that this match was all his. The grin on his opponent was long gone and was replaced by a frown of anger.

The white haired boy summoned up his giant Zaptos and prepared for a fight that would determine the battle. Ash suddenly felt numb. His body froze just when he was about to summon a rock Pokemon to aid him. He tightened up his grip and picked another Pokeball. "I choose you…"

Ash was stunned on what he just summoned. It was a dark figure he couldn't really make out. It was a Pokemon familiar to him but this one had a name. Ash's subconscious shutdown as he was just about to order an attack. He could feel himself moving but he couldn't act. He felt like a doll being controlled by some puppet master, moving every string in his body. (the rest of the dream will be explained at later chapters hehehehehe…)

**(Back in reality)**

Ash was curling in his sleeping bag like a monster. He let out several painful moans and held his arm tightly. The mark on his arm was growing unknowingly. It was somehow giving Ash strength and stamina to go on, but at the same time it was draining something from him. Not his blood nor any other chemicals but something else… something that couldn't be touched.

Misty woke from a sudden rumble around the room. Richie was still snoring peacefully, but Ash was a whole different story. He was tossing and turning and gritting his teeth nearly biting his tongue out. His facial expression consisted of pain, anger, sadness and conflict. Let's just say he didn't look too good. His sweat glands were acting up and tears began running through his eyes like something horrible just happened.

**(Back in Ash's dream)**

The scene changed from the stadium to a small open field surrounded by a large thick forest. He was alone and it was completely dark. He carried took out a small flashlight from his pocket (which he still has in the real world) he looked around seeing if anyone else was around. The boy wandered around in his dream hoping to see something than his shadow from the moons… wait… moons'? Ash glared out into the sky and there he saw a sight he never thought he would ever see. Two moons with one twice as big as the other was hovering over him.

"_Ok it's either I'm going crazy or the world has turned upside down here"_ Ash thought with a confused look on his face. His flashlight slowly dimmed as the batteries began to exhaust itself. "Oh man not now!" he tapped the useless piece of machinery forcing it to work again, but nothing could stop it from shutting down.

"Hey Ash" a figure stood out in the open waving his hand as a friendly gesture. "Come on everyone's waiting for you!" the little child who looked about eight years old had white hair and dressed as a mere peasant looking. He had pointy ears almost like Pikachu's and short whiskers on his face. Ash smiled as he thought he would see everyone but sadly that wasn't what the boy meant.

Ash followed the white haired boy through the woods just beyond his reach. It seemed like he was walking for hours until he arrived at another open field. The two moons were gone and the darkness was lifted by a stream of golden light. It was sight so beautiful and magnificent that it was able to fill his entire heart with joy.

Pokemons of all species were hanging around the field with a huge lake dabbed right at the center. There was an abundance of food and more than enough space to play hide and go seek and tag and perhaps many more. "Oh man if this is a dream, please don't wake me up!" Ash ran through his Pokedex to input all the Pokemon files in his database. He played around with the Pichus and all the other Pokemons until the white haired boy approached him. The Pokemons stood still and bowed their heads on his approach. They made way for the boy who seemed just like any other ordinary child.

"Well how do you like it here Ash?" he said giving small joyful smiles at him.

"This place is great! I can't believe there was even such a place" they both laughed like they were already friends. Ash couldn't let go of that sensational feeling deep inside. He was feeling so happy that he couldn't think of anything else.

**(Back in reality)**

Misty finally noticed Ash unusual rambling. First he was groaning with pain and now he was giggling happily, _"What kind of a dream are you having Ash?"_ her thoughts were cut short when Ash turned into a comfortable position around his sleeping bag facing her. Misty blushed but was surprised to see Ash in his good moods. He was smiling like he having a nice dream so she didn't want to disturb him. She then quietly walked away to take a little afternoon air.

The afternoon skies would've been great if only it wasn't for the stormy clouds that were floating just above mountains. Misty would think of it like any other rain clouds but this one was different.

It resonated a dark aura that could even be felt through her skin. Misty patted away the dust on her shorts and quickly made her way back into the house but she was stopped by a lone 8 year old white haired boy who stood in front of the door.

"Oh I'm sorry, who are you?" she asked politely.

"What are you doing here?" he replied with a frown,

"We're travelers, sorry we kinda found this house so we took it that no one was living here" Misty rubbed the sands off her shirt. The white haired child looked at her with utmost anger like he was reading her mind.

"You should leave him alone…" the boy looked left and right hoping no one was around to see him.

Misty tilted her head in confusion. "Wha…?"

"I said leave him alone!"

"Wha… what are you talking about?"

"Don't you dare hurt him! If you do I'll… I'll… I'll hurt you BACK!"

"Listen, I don't understand what you're saying, calm down" she reaches for the boy

"Get away from me ya old hag!"

"Old HAG!? Listen here you little runt just because you're younger doesn't mean I can't give you a little peace of my mind!"

The boy startled but held his ground at the front of the door. "This is your only warning…" he smirked and quickly ran towards the back of the house. Misty gave chase but soon realized he disappeared. She looked around the abandoned house still puzzled by the boy's psychotic rambling.

"Gee for a little runt he sure can run" with so much thoughts in mind she head back into the house.

Brock was still muttering something about being the best Pokemon breeder and then shifted to girls again.

"_I guess Brock will never learn his lesson"_ she thought as she climbed the stairs to the bed room. She believed that Ash was still having his good dreams and I believe she was right. Ash still had that great smile on his face. He wasn't tossing and turning anymore more of a peaceful baby who just found happiness in sleeping.

**(Back in Ash's dream… again)**

Ash was still hanging around with his new found dream friend. Pokemons of all kinds came by to play with them. There was much laughter and so much happy thoughts that he couldn't bare to take one more step. After a brief moment of excitement Ash and the white haired boy took a little break under a tree and placed their feet in the lake. There was silence in the air. Everything was perfect, the wind, the atmosphere, the Pokemons. Nothing could ruin the moment.

"Hey I never got your name"

"Name?... What's a name?"

"Don't you have a name? (the boy shook his head) Well it's kinda like how you call people. Like me, my name is Ash"

"Ash… you're a Pokemon?"

"Huh? No no no no. It's what you call people or things. Like this… this is Pikachu"

"Pi…ka…chu (Ash chuckles) I want one!"

"Huh? Want a what?"

"Me me me! I want a name! Call me something!"

"Well I don't know… hmm…"

"Chu! (Ash stares at him) I want to be called Chu!"

Ash giggled at his dream friend. He liked the name because it reminded him of his little mouse friend Pikachu. "Alright then, from now on your name is Chu!" Chu raised his hands in the air and waved it like he just didn't care.

As these two newly found friends were having the time of their lives… a storm suddenly blocked the sun like some of dark magic was cast around. "NO!!" said Chu as he stood up against the clouds, "I just met him! Give me more time please!" thunder struck down from the sky tearing the tree just by the lake to millions of pieces,

"Ok… I understand…" Chu said silently in defeat

Ash bottled his head in confusion as he duck away from the tree. The lighting struck so hard that a branch flew straight at him. "Alright, alright! I'm going!" Chu looked at his newly found friend, "I'm sorry Ash but I guess we'll have to meet again some other time" he slowly walked towards the woods holding Ash's Pikachu firmly in his arms.

"Hey wait a minute where are you going with my Pikachu?!" Ash practically screamed from his mouth as he tries to catch up with Chu. He felt himself falling further away and soon tumbled to the ground.

"Don't worry… I'll see you soon… your 'majesty'" Ash could barely hear Chu from the distance. He saw Pikachu disappearing into the darkness. His eyes were soon filled with tears as the evil aura engulfed him into a trance. Ash was about to succumb to the wave that nearly took over him, but a voice came in and saved him from the terrible nightmare.

**(Back in reality… again)**

"Ash? Ash wake up! Wake up!" Misty shook Ash from his sleeps. He was moaning in pain and she believed that she saw him crying. A tear escaped his eye as he slowly raised his upper body from his sleeping bag. He looked around for his beloved Pikachu and realized that he was still there. Ash gave out a sigh of relief as he saw his best (Pokemon) friend sleeping peacefully next to him.

"Is something wrong Ash? You looked kinda pale" Misty grabbed his face and glared at it for awhile. Ash just replied with his usual charming smile… which was getting to be quite attractive.

"Oh sorry, I was just having a bad dream that's all hehehehe"

"Well I'm glad you're alright, you gave me quite a scare there" Ash shook his head and asked Misty to go back to sleep. They still had a long journey ahead of them so he thought that she'll need all the strength she can get.

The mentally disturbed boy rushed downstairs quietly trying not to wake up his squinty eyed friend. He tiptoed towards the front door until… CRASH!! Ash slipped from his toe and fell on the table which sent the flower vase flying through the air and crashing on the wall.

Brock took up defensive stance with a frying pan in his hand to whack the hostile guests. "Alright you, show yourself! I have a weapon and I'm not afraid to use it!" Brock shouted out as he swings left and right with his sleeping hat covering his eyes, "Turning off the lights ha!? Well that won't save you from my wrath!"

Brock continued to swing his so called 'weapon of justice!' and smashed almost everything he couldn't see. Ash quickly removed the blinding hat off of his friend and took the frying pan away from him.

Brock quickly came to his senses and calmed down. "Oh hey Ash, I thought it was someone else hehehe" Brock rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment only to notice that something was really bothering his friend. "What's wrong Ash? You look like you just saw a ghost" it took a few seconds for the boy to react,

"Huh? Oh its nothing, I was just having a bad dream that's all"

"A bad dream huh? Tell me more…"

Ash refused at first to Brock's request but then he realized that his squinty eyed friend was probably just trying to help. Ash told him about his strange dreams (only the ones he had now and not the 'other Ash') Brock quickly analyzed the dream like a physiatrist. He thought for a short moment before he came to a conclusion.

"Well Ash I believe that the dark field and the single tree represents you. You some how feel lonely and empty inside and the two moons represents that you want somebody, but not just anybody. This someone would have to understand you and that is why you're jealous of looking at the moons. The Pokemon paradise represents your passion for Pokemon from what I can tell. You love to see Pokemons happy and you're happy around Pokemons am I right? (Ash nods dumbly) But for the kid and the storm… I guess I'll have to analyze it further but at least you can understand right Ash?"

The young trainer some how felt relieved from the great stress that hovered over him. Brock was completely right but he didn't really quite understand the two moons thing. He was still an innocent child who could barely understand women.

"Thanks a lot Brock, that really helped me" Ash quickly succumb to his own feelings and went straight back to sleep. Brock sighed when his friend was finally gone, "Man that was close. I can't believe I made that all up!"


	9. The 2nd Reunion

**Chapter 9: The 2nd Reunion**

After a few nights of traveling through thick woods and dirt roads, Ash and the gang finally made to their destination. Olivine city stood right in front of them as the sun slowly rises to greet them happily.

"Ok the first thing we do is find a place to sleep" Misty growled and everyone agreed. They've been sleeping on earth and rocks for the past 5 days and now for the first time they would sleep under a sack of fluffy cushions.

Brock immediately registered for 2 rooms as the prices were kind of steep after the recent incident at Goldenrod city. Trading ships wouldn't dare cross the ocean unless they get a green light from the head coast guard that it was now safe. Brock and Richie took one room while Ash and Misty took the other. They didn't bother talking or doing anything much. When their heads touch their pillows… nothing could wake them.

Knock knock knock! The sound of the door ramming through his head was painful. Ash didn't bother replying and folded the pillow over his head. The knock continued for at least 2 minutes until Misty got so annoyed he demanded that Ash answered it!

"Ash go and tell whoever it is to come back tomorrow!" the boy got up from his bed carrying his pillow while answering the door.

"Hey Ash how are ya?" said the brown haired girl,

"Please come back tomorrow…" Ash yawned as he was definitely not listening to her. He nearly closed the door until the girl gave him a little piece of her mind,

"Hey that's not a proper way to treat a lady!" Ash finally coming out of his sleepy state and looked closely at the girl

"MAY?!!!"

"Yup that's right! May Maple, the finest Pokemon coordinator at your service!" she politely bowed to Ash with a sweet smile on her face. "Sorry about disturbing you, I just wanted to make sure you were the one" May gracefully looked left and right as if she lost something. "Hey you wouldn't have seen Drew passing by would you?" May and Drew had settled their rivalry a long time ago when she finally beaten him at his own game at the Hoenn league. Now… well let's just say they're catching up on old times.

"Oh well, I'll leave you back to your sleep" May slowly walked towards the elevator but then Ash had a quick thought.

He didn't want to dream again so he decided to tag along. "Oh wait May, wait for me!"

The two of them relaxed a bit at the hotel lobby. May had just ordered two cups of hot chocolate and some cookies to sink their taste buds with. They chatted about old times and remembered all those embarrassing moments they had with Max and Brock. They had a few laughs until a small boy came in with four Pokeballs on his arms,

"Next time sis, you're gonna have to get your own Pokemons from the center!" he dropped all four Pokeballs on the table and wiped the sweat off his eye brows. "I'd tell ya May, if it weren't for me you would never become a great Pokemon trainer like Ash"

May coughed sarcastically giving his brother some deathly gaze. The boy looked at the person his sister was sitting with and was shock to see that heart warming smile again, "Hey Max, its great to see you again"

"Gwaaa!! Ash! I didn't know you were here!"

After their little greetings, Max, Ash and May sat on the lobby table and continued with their little chat. There were no other guests hanging around the hotel guest area so they were free to talk as loud as they wanted.

"Well well well… the famous Ash Ketchum himself… I'm honored" said the green haired boy.

"Drew!" the group said in unison.

"So this is who you wanted us to bring along? I was expecting… more…" Ash smiled at the Drew. He was just about May's age but a little older and snobbish. His purple jacket matched his attitude and the rose he carries could melt a girl's heart if they weren't accustomed to him as friends. "Good to see you again Ash…" said Drew with his trademark grin.

"I see you haven't changed hahahaha" Ash gave out a small hearthy laugh

Max then sat down next to his sister before speaking out, "So Ash, is it true that you're going to the Valmarian league? (May pounds him) Ouch! What was that for?"

"You idiot of course he's going to the Valmarian league he told us on the phone didn't he!?"

"Hahahaha, I see you guys haven't change too" the boy just repeated what he just said

"So you're participating in the league as well? It a shame that a wonderful coordinator such as myself will have to fight someone with such… meager skills" Drew gave out a silence insult

"_OH MAN!"_ May and her little brother knew he shouldn't have said that. Ash wasn't the kind of person who would take an insult about his skill lightly. They waited for a few seconds to see Ash outburst but to their surprise he came out with only…

A smile…

"Yeah I guess you're probably right hehehe Wait… does that mean you're also joining the Valmarian league?!"

Ash's friends didn't express much reaction through their faces but they were indeed very surprise to see that Ash didn't even react to Drew's taunts.

May however would've exploded and gave him a big whoopin the moment Drew usher those words but… I guess people do change overtime.

"Uh… guys… hello?"

Ash brought them back to reality after they realized how much he has grown.

"So Drew, you're competing in the Valmarian league?"

The green haired boy recovered from the shock, "Huh? Oh yeah that's right! But not just me… May, is also competing as well"

"WHAT?! (they felt relieved to finally see emotions on that boy's face) You're competing in the league too May?!"

She nodded her head proudly and held a letter of invitation in front of Ash's face. "Yup that's right! My father got the mayor to finally sign up for the competition and now here I am" she smiled with glee but was cut short by her brother's little joke,

"He only did that because you wouldn't stop annoying dad (wham) ouch! That hurt!"

"It was meant to idiot!"

**(Meawhile just outside the hotel gates)**

Growl… a very familiar sound of hunger that came from a pair of no-do gooders who just don't know when to quit. "Oh I'm hungry!" said James,

"Be quiet James can't you see that I'm hungry too?!" said Jesse with her usual unhappy frown. This Team Rocket just had the worst week of their lives. After being blasted away from Goldenrod city their luck had reached negative. First they landed on a hive of Beedrils then they were chased by a pack Scythers and not long after that they were attacked by a real Gyrados.

"Let's admit it, our luck had run out!" James was now sobbing under a pine tree, "Our boss will fire us for sure!"

Jesse had enough her companions whining and decided to give him a whack too. (Man I just realized that girls in anime are always giving the guys whacks! Sigh I guess it's a girl thing) "Now listen here you blumbering idiot! We had been trying to get a hold of that Pikachu for ages now and nothing has ever stopped us before!"

"Yeah, but our dedication brought us nothing. All we got are a bunch of Pokemons that are barely any use to the boss" said the talking Meowth.

"Grrrr… now see here… huh? (sees May trying to catch his little brother) Hey does that person look familiar to you guys?"

James looked at where Jessie pointed and placed his hand on his chin, "Hmm… she does kind of remind me about someone"

"Oh I remember! That's the girl that's been traveling with the twerp back in Hoenn!" said the talking Meowth

"You're right! But what could she be doing here?" said the red head

Ash walks out with Drew and catches Max who stole the last cookie.

Jesse, James, Meowth said in unison, "Aha! It's the twerp and his Pikachu!"

"Come on Ash give it back!" Max was jumping to grab Ash's hand but his size left just beyond his reach,

"Come on Max, you had more share than May and I combined" Ash tried to reason with him. May knew that Ash would be on her side but unfortunately it wasn't as she thought.

"Here Drew you should get the last one. From the sound of your stomach, you haven't been eating much have you?" Drew was shock to see that Ash was able to see through his cover. He hasn't eaten anything ever since he agreed to come along with May and Max. He admitted defeat and gobbled down the cookie with his usual smirk. May and Max jaws would drop to the ground if they could. The Ash they knew a few years ago was very different from the Ash now.

He was smarter, more masculine, and observant and appeared to be very skilled with his Pokemons. The three of them (May, Max and Drew) remembered seeing Ash on the news channel a few days ago. Drew was only kidding when he told Ash he wasn't very skilled. He was actually afraid to fight Ash if they should meet in battle at all.

Drew thought "_This certainly can't be the Ash that beat the Elite 4 in the Indigo Plateau! He was much more child like back then and I know people don't grow up that fast"_

May thought _"He's certainly grown. I never thought Ash would be so… mature. The Ash I knew was much more carefree and not very thoughtful for anyone. He would only think about his Pokemons but I guess time can really change people"_

Max thought _"Wow! Ash really looks a lot different from the last time we saw him. He actually looks cool! I wish I had him as a brother rather than this annoying sister!"_

On the corner of the hotel building a plot is being brewed once more to capture Pikachu.

"Alright… so you get the idea?" Jesse whispered to her companions,

"I don't know Jesse don't you think it's rather rash?" James said in return.

Meowth nodded in agreement, "For once I agree with James, I think your plan is a little to whack. We're crooks Jesse not criminals"

"DO YOU GUYS WANT TO GO TO THE ROOM?!!!" her two chickened companions startled but quickly recovered after hearing the word 'Room' What could be so horrible in this room? "Ok… you two know what to do… now get!"

**(Meanwhile, in Ash/Misty's room)**

The orange haired girl yawned at the air. Her hair was completely messed up and her eyes were half asleep. She removed the dust from her eyes and made her way to the bath room. She looked at herself and thought of something… strange (or magical)

"_Hmm… maybe I'll dye my hair blonde. Ash said he used to like blonde girls…"_ she was thinking deeply, cutting herself from the rest of the world, _"Wait a minute! Why am I thinking about him?! This is all that idiots fault! Why did have to make us sleep by day and walk by night?! It would've been the same the other way around! Geeze this guy is just too dense to listen to other people's opinion! I can't wait for him to pay me back my back!"_ she was mentally screaming her head off. She wanted to shake Ash's face off her mind but at the same time he wanted to hold a tight grip on it.

The war between her mind and heart was fierce. She couldn't explain all these emotions running through her body. It felt good and yet it didn't seem right. She would read romantic novels and her mind would project her and Ash. She would watch soap operas and would still think about her and Ash.

"I must be going crazy! I need some fresh air!" Misty opened the window wide open and breathes the peaceful clean air of the ocean. Since Olivine city was a port city it was directly linked to the ocean. "Ahhhh… that feels so much better…"

Misty once again looked out at sea, gazing upon its endless beauty. She could stare at this scene for hours perhaps even days if she was given the opportunity. However she would never be given that chance. Her eyes quickly shifted to the streets below as she sees Ash with May (oh-ho!) Her mind grew with utmost anger.

"_What is he doing?!"_ she thought. She looked at Ash laughing away with blushes clearly red on his cheeks. He seemed so happy around May and Misty didn't want to disturb this moment but her body and mind were telling her something else.

Misty's subconscious: "Look at him laughing around like an idiot. He's making a fool of himself just standing there and why is he so happy?!"

Misty's 2nd subconscious: "He's with a friend right now. He hasn't seen her in years. How would you feel if you just saw a long lost friend?"

Misty's subconscious: "Geeze you're so dense just like Ash! He's probably flirting with her right now"

Misty's 2nd subconscious: "WHAT?! Misty what are you waiting around for!? He's becoming a Brock junior before your very eyes!"

Before Misty realized it, she was already at the hotel lobby ready to pull Ash's ear until she noticed May on Drew's arm. She stopped just right at the gate holding herself together and trying to act as normal as possible. "Oh hey Misty your awake!" Ash was caught by surprised to see that her dead tired friend was now up and running.

"Hey Misty! I didn't realize you were here" said May

"Oh I was uh… still sleeping" (Yeah… we'll go with that)

"Misty, I'd like you to meet our guides to Valmarian City" said Ash as he gestured to May and Drew

"Huh? Guides?"

Max decided to explain, "Yeah, Ash phoned us a week ago saying that you guys needed a lift to Valmarian. May and I were coming along to get something for professor Elm and we met Drew here"

"Can you believe it Misty? May and Drew are actually competing in the Valmarian league too!" the boy said in a friendly excitement

"Really? I guess I could say 'I expected no less from the world's best Pokemon coordinator' hehehehe"

As the old and new gang held their conversation into the evening a questions popped out of Ash's mind. "Hey when are we gonna travel to Hoenn?"

Drew muttered at himself leaving May to explain. "Sorry Ash, we were trying to get the last trip out, but since the recent Pokemon behaviors no boats are allowed to leave the ocean" Ash face sunk to the table,

"So when can they start sailing again?" Misty asked.

"Well if the reports are correct, we'll be able to take the first boat early in the morning. That is when the ocean patrol will give the green light" Drew relaxed at the sofa he was sitting on and put his feet on the table.

"DREW!" May patted away Drew's feet and pointed a finger at him with a threatening stare, "It's very rude to put one's feet on the table! And to think I thought you were a gentleman!"

The snobbish boy felt uneasy by her deadly gaze. He forced out a smile and tried to pick his usual rose but then he remembered he ran out of those lovely flowers. He could feel a big smack coming up, but Ash pulled through for him "Come on May relax… Drew is just being himself so you can't really blame him"

May looked at Ash's cheerful smile again and lowered her fist. She knew Ash was right and Drew was a snob ever since she met him. How can you blame a guy just being himself? May grinned back at him just as cheerful as before. "_This is weird… I feel like Ash is now my… brother or something"_ she thought.

There wasn't much to do after the little talk. May, Drew and Max were staying at the same hotel as Ash and his friends but they were now tired and wanted nothing more but to get some sleep.

Ash and Misty walked back to their room and stayed there till night fall. Misty was taking a shower and Ash was playing with Pikachu, Togepi and his newly found Espeon who refuses to go into a Pokeball. Well… not exactly playing more of listening. Pikachu was having a conversation with Togepi but Ash couldn't understand a word. His Espeon was by his side making sure nothing bad happens to him.

"Pika pika pikachu" (So what do you to do today Togepi?)

"Togic togic preeee!" (I want daddy to play hide and seek)

"Pikapi pikachu!" (For the last time, he's not daddy! He's Ash!)

"Togic togic to togic preee" (What's wrong with daddy? Can't I call him daddy?)

"Pika Pika… pikapi…!" (Well no… but… well Ash is… um)

"Togic preeeee!" (You call him master but I want to call him daddy. Is that wrong?)

"Ash is my master but I don't know…!" suddenly... Pikachu began speaking in human language

"Ash is master and father to us all. It does not matter what we call him. Ash is Ash" said the Espeon

Togepi squeeled out in victory, "Well then it's settled! Ash is master and daddy!"

Ash laughed at them, completely oblivious to realize that they spoke in human language, "You tell him Togepi hahaha!" (Pikachu, Togepi and Espeon stared at him) "Huh?! Wait a minute… did you just talked?"

"Pika pikapi…?" (Wait… did he understand us?)

"(slaps his head) Oh man I really need to get some sleep I'm hearing things"

"Hey Ash is something wrong?" that was Misty who was shouting in the showers

"No it's nothing, I'm just tired that's all (goes to his bed) Good night Pikachu, Espeon, Togepi"

The young boy went out like a light the moment he laid eyes on his bed. It wasn't the greatest but at least Misty would finally stop complaining about sleeping on the grass and jagged rocks. "I wonder if I'll see Chu again…" he thought before closing his eyes.

Misty walked out of the showers with only her bathing towel wrapped around her. Ash was giving out snores that would make Snorlax's sound like a bird chirp. Misty giggled at his soft innocent face. Pikachu and the other Pokemons (who were not in their Pokeballs) were already sleeping by the boy's side. Pikachu and Togepi were taking their naps by his arm. Espeon, who was still half awake, was curling under her master's feet with great determination to protect the human who saved its life.

Misty changed into her PJs and took a closer look at her friend. She flicked away a strain of hair off his face and looked even closer. Their lips were centimeters apart and she could feel his warm breath on her face. She could've sworn that her heart was pounding faster and faster. As she got closer her face was about as red as a cherry.

"Ugh… Pikachu… thunder shock…" Ash was talking in his sleeps. Misty quickly came to her senses and moved away.

She smiled and giggled, "Heh… even in his sleeps he's training. That's Ash for ya"

The night went well without any disturbance. The night was peaceful and perhaps tonight our heroes can finally rest from their long travels to Valmarian city.

**(Meanwhile in the ruins far from Dr. Birch's laboratory)**

A group of explorers enters a newly discovered ruin that was covered with vines and fungus. It was pretty well hidden from the human eye but when professor Birch discovered it by accident he immediately reported his findings to his friend in Kanto. Professor Samuel Oak has been very intrigued by this new discovery and has sent many experts to find out what this ruin may be. Tracey was the first person to inspect this new ruin.

"Well Tracey, did you find anything yet?" said the voice on the radio, "No Dr. Birch nothing yet. We're still trying to dig through the gate I'll… (the gate breaks down) Oh the gate is open! I'm going in the rest of the team" "Tracey, wait! You have to wait for…" Tracey switched off his radio and ran in with three other archeologists into what appears to be an empty room. To all their amazement led to disappointment. The ruined building they spent days cracking in was completely empty. It was a 10x10 square room. There was a hole on the roof appeared to have been man made to let air into the building. Several tattered glyphs could be found on the wall, but that was all there was. No bones, no unknown Pokemons, no artifacts nothing… Tracey could feel himself sinking under pressure of anger as all his hard work was for naught. He spent the past few days riding Ash's Pigeon that professor Oak agreed to lend him. Crossing borders on a Pokemon is strictly forbidden unless they have verified documents.

Tracey stood up and made camp inside the ruin. It wasn't everything he expected but now that he's here he might as well make the best out of it, "Well I guess I'll have to make the best out of it…" see I told you so…

"Anything yet?" said the old archeologist.

"Nothing yet" replied Tracey who forced out a little smile, "I'll try and decipher these glyphs, maybe they can lead us to another ruin or a hidden treasure or something"

The old man looked back at the boy who was hoping to find more, "I have learned many things when I was at your age boy and I know that hopeful thinking can only lead to disappointment" the old archeologist spoke his strange words of wisdom. Tracey nodded in reply but in his heart he still hoped for more.

**(Back in Olivine city Hotel Ash/Misty's Room Early Morning)**

Misty slowly opens her eyes to the world around her. The window was blowing soft gentle breeze into the bed. She didn't want to wake up… she was having the moment of her life. She closed her eyes again hoping to go back to sleep...until,

"Hey Misty its time to wake up. We're leaving for the cruise in two hours!" Ash had just finished his morning showers and was already changed into his casual clothes. A black T-shirt, a jacket, long pants and his trade mark cap (Have you ever seen him wear anything else on a journey? Wait, don't answer that…)

Misty placed her pillow on top of her head and ears hoping that she could get a few more minutes of sleep. "Come on Misty, we can't go without you" Misty finally gave up and got up from her bed. Ash glared and giggled at her. He had seen Misty waking up before but after seeing her now he couldn't help but burst out a laugh.

Misty's hair was curly and undone. Her PJs were wrinkly and crumpled like a prune. Her eyes were dangling just below her lids. She was still sleepy since last night. Ash was laughing so hard he fell to the ground holding his stomach. Misty took a mental note to whack him later but now she was still too tired to even raise her mallet.

An hour passed by until everyone finally got up and running. The gang (which now includes May, Max and Drew) heads towards the near by docks to catch the biggest ship they have ever seen! The S.S Notilus. The biggest linear cruise ever to run the seas of Johto and Hoenn. It was about 1/8 the size of Olivine itself.

"Well this is our ride" said Drew. His friend's jaws dropped to the ground as they were awed by the wonderful sight. Without a word coming from them Drew continued, "You see, my father is a friend of the captain of this ship. He was able to get a hold of him and managed to squeeze us in his busy schedule"

The gang approached the sailor who was checking the invitation tickets of every passenger. "Hello" said Drew. The sailor looked at him with a suspicious glare, "Since when did the Goldeens learn how to fly?" everyone glared in confusion with a look that says 'Where did that come from?'

Was Drew babbling random words? Everyone looked as confused as a Slowbro and none of them could make out of what he just said.

"Ahhhh… you must be the VIPs" said the sailor, "Please sir follow me" The sailor escorted them through the great Notilus bridge. There were three floors up that were all guest rooms and four floors in the deck which includes the kitchen, crew's cabin and engine room. As the sailor gave them a little tour around the ship he made his way to the front of the boat where he expected to see someone in particular. It was still early so there weren't a lot of people hanging around.

The passengers were still checking in their rooms while Ash and the others were having the time of their lives. "Captain!" said the sailor with a salute, "The VIPs have arrived" the gang turned their attention to a large man dressed in a white uniform of a navy marine. His mustache was curly at the ends and his hat was decorated with a face of a Lapras. His pocket watch chains were hanging just below his belt and a pipe that breath in bad air. There was no need for any description. With just one look the gang could already tell that he was an important man.

"Hi" was all the word that Max could muster. The old man turned around and gazed at them with deathly eyes. Everyone was in shock on how to react. The captain took a step closer and another one even closer. Everyone took cover behind Ash as their fears got the best of them. Ash was also scared, he would've wet his pants if he could but as he gaze a little more to the old captain… he could see a small smile behind that mask of seriousness.

"Why hellooooooo there!" the captain's face suddenly changed from the dark serious admiral look to a friend happy-go-lucky smile. "You must be Ash Ketchum from Pallet town yes?" Ash nodded dumbly, "Well then, it is my pleasure to welcome you aboard the S.S Notilus! My crew and I have been attending famous celebrities for years but to be having Ash Ketchum, May Maple, and Drew **(insert last name here)** and their companions would make an old man like myself feel young again" The captain showed them around the ship's hull and structural points. There was a Pokemon center in the ship just in case of an emergency. Like all Pokemon center, this too was also being run by a nurse Joy.

After 30 minutes of endless touring around the Notilus, the captain finally showed their rooms.

"WHOA!!" One word says it all.

"This will be your rooms. Each of these rooms are for two passengers. I have prepared four rooms just like this" The captain said handing them the keys.

The rooms he showed was not a room… more like another house! Each room had two floors connected with a spiral stair. The first floor was a living room with a mini bar attached to it. There was a sofa and two comfy chairs on top of a silk carpet with TV and cable included. The light colors were changeable from normal light to romantic red and jazzy blue. On the second floor was a bed room fit for a king. Two king size beds and soft cuddly pillows laid neatly nearby. On the far side of the bed room was also a king size closet. The closet was filled with suits and dresses of every modern fashion and culture known to man. It was now official… Ash and his group hit jackpot!

May didn't take long to make herself at home. Brock and Richie stayed in one room, May and Max in another Ash and Misty in the third and Drew had his own room (lucky guy).

"Hey May…" said Max while unpacking his clothes. "Do you think that Ash is… different?" May hesitated but she knew what her little brother was talking about.

"Yeah… he is" she said finally.

Max adjusted his glasses and noticed some sadness in his sister's eyes "What's wrong, you don't like the new Ash?"

"No, of course not! I like the new Ash. He's calm caring and very mature. Not like the old Ash" May gazed onto the window looking at the nearby ships that were just about to leave. She remembered how Ash was like back in the old days.

"Ash was a self sentimental boy who didn't care about anything else but his Pokemons and winning badges and tournaments. He barely listens to me, Brock or anybody. He loved his Pokemons and would even give his life for them"

"He's more controlled of himself unlike last time. It makes me wanna have him as a brother"

"Yeah… he doesn't leap without thinking anymore… wait a minute! You already have a sister!"

"Yeah but having a brother is another thing don't you agree?"

"Why I outta… (sigh) never mind…"

"I bet he'll put on a great show in the Valmarian league"

"Yeah… he probably will and he probably might win… but…"

As the Maples chat about Ash's recent changes… they didn't realize that another group was having the same idea.

Richie was playing with Sparky who seemed he caught the taste for ketchup like Ash's Pikachu. When Richie opened the side pockets of his backpack there were ketchup bags stuffed and munched together.

"Wow, when Ash said that my Pikachu would be addicted he wasn't kidding!"

"Well I guess your Pikachu and Ash's are at the same level now huh"

"Nope… his Pikachu is way stronger than mine. He was practically training my Pokemons for me hehehe"

"Yeah… he's changed a lot"

"You noticed it too? He's different from the last time I saw him"

"He not the over confident Ash we knew back then. He thinks before doing something rash. He plans ahead and doesn't show any of his weaknesses like a true Pokemon trainer. Back then, he used to jump into a Gyrados infested lake without even thinking"

Richie laughed as he could already imagine Ash jumping into a Gyrados's mouth, "I guess Ash and I are now completely different people huh…"

"I'd be lying if I said 'no' but you two were different people ever since you guys met. Who knows you might be more skilled than Ash"

"Nah… I wouldn't say that… but…"

As time flew like wind in the air, Drew enters his suite.

"Will this be acceptable Drew?" said the captain blowing smoke from his pipe.

"Yes this will do. Thank you captain" the old man gave out a smile and took off his hat,

"Please call me Bob" said the old man. "All your belongings are on the second floor and if you need anything just call room service" Drew gave his usual smirk and opened the window curtains with a rough force.

The sight of the sea was magnificent from his room. He had the view of the ocean and the ship's outdoor pool. The place may not be crowded now but when the ship sets sail, this place will be full of ladies for Brock to pick on. (no offense to women or Brock fans)

"I see that you're participating in the Valmarian league. You must be very proud of yourself" said the captain

"Maybe, but I guess you could say I'm excited (Bob glares at him)"

"Excited? For winning I believe"

The green haired kid simply laughed, "hahahaha When I first battled against my opponents in Hoenn the only thing that comes through my mind was winning and nothing else. I would push my Pokemons through the toughest training and every possible tactics. Back then I was considered the youngest pro ever. Until someone opened my eyes to things that were obvious to others"

"Opened your eyes?" the boy said confused

"Training is an important part of fighting that much is true… but… it will still not be enough to prove your worth. Ash showed me my mistakes and I intend to correct them"

"He sounds like a great trainer from what I heard, but I believe you can beat him"

"Beat him? No... but"

The three trainers said in unison, **"I wish I could battle him… with everything I got"**


	10. The Hailing of The Seas

**Chapter 10: The Hailing Of The Seas**

Ash left his room almost immediately after he settled in. Misty was by his side to keep him company as they explored the inner area of the ship.

They wandered around from the guest hall to the dining room where a menu is given for every customer. Since Ash and Misty were VIPs their orders were free of charge.

Ash ordered his usual meal. It wasn't complicated but it was delicious. Misty however couldn't decide what to get. She had menus ranging from Kanto traditional dishes to Johto and Hoenn cultural dishes. So many things to choose but not enough stomach to garb them all. "Ohhh… I can't decide on what to eat! (Togepi points to what Ash is eating) (sigh) I'll have what you're having Ash"

The waiter recorded it in his notepad, "An excellent choice madam" in a moment he disappeared into the kitchen.

Ash was surprised to see what Misty said but he didn't show it through his face, "Are you sure Misty?" Ash said with a confused look. He didn't know if Misty would like the things he just ordered. It was a simple dish that can be made almost anywhere.

She nodded in reply and added to that, a smile.

Beeb beeb, beeb beeb, beeb beeb! An annoying sound popped out from Ash's pocket. He didn't have an alarm clock or a cell phone. He grabbed whatever was making that sound and took out his… Pokedex?

"My Pokedex is ringing?" he opened the little machine and immediately saw an old familiar face.

"Ash, Ash is that you?" said professor Oak whose image finally appeared on screen.

"Professor Oak?!" Ash screamed out at his Pokedex with a confused face.

"Ahh, Ash, I was hoping your Pokedex would work!"

"Whoa professor… what… how?" the boy simply speechless on this new discovery

"Hehehe I forgot to tell you before you left. I installed a phone function in your Pokedex so I would be able to contact you"

Suddenly, Delia's voice could just be heard off screen, "Is that him? Is that my Ash? (push away the professor) Oh hi Ash! Where are you and how come you never call!"

"Ahh! Sorry mom, I was busy training with Pikachu and my other Pokemon and we were kinda out in the woods. I'm in Johto right now and I'm on my way to Hoenn"

"Well the least you could do is call me! I was so worried I thought something bad happened to you! Oh and by the way, I moved in with professor Oak for awhile. I just can't sleep when you're off to such an adventure!"

The professor quickly regained control of the phone, "Yes yes yes, you can chat later please! Ahem… now Ash the reason I called is because we have an emergency"

"An emergency? What's wrong, did something happen?" Ash's face turned dead serious

"We're not sure but I'll tell the details. I sent Tracey to professor Birch's laboratory a few days ago and he made progress in finding some ancient ruins. Since you're on your way to Hoenn I thought you could drop by and see if he's alright. I lost contact with him yesterday and it has got me deeply worried"

"So you want me to find Tracey?"

"No, I want you to find Dr. Birch then go find Tracey. He might have some info on this ruin" Samuel struggled to keep a proud face as Delia's arms tried to reach out for the phone.

"Sure thing professor! I'll call you when we get to Hoenn"

"Oh one more thing Ash! If you need to call me or anyone in particular just dial the numbers at the back of the Pokedex. Although I'm still surprised that you're still in Johto. It's already been a month, I would've expected you to be in Valmarian already"

"Well there has been some… accidents and other things hehehe"

"Accidents? Ashy you were on TV and you were a hero!" Delia yelled out as she managed to pull her magical mallet from her back, "But don't you ever scare me like that young man or I'm gonna give you more than a piece of my mind! Oh and hi there Misty"

"Hi Mrs. Ketchum" said the girl

After regaining conciousness, the professor pushed Delia off the monitor, "Yes yes yes we know. Ahem anyway Ash. Please call me when you get to Hoenn and oh I forgot to tell you that I've added some money into your account so don't you worry about financial problems ok?"

"Gee you really didn't have to do that professor I'm doing fine with what I have right now"

"I know you are but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Have a safe journey!"

Ash quickly closes his Pokedex just in time for his food to arrive. Misty giggled on the amazement at what Ash had ordered. It was exactly what she expected from him. A simple cheese burger and a soda followed by French fries and friend potatoes.

Suddenly, Ash began to have an uneasy feeling. Like a nail stuck in his throat. Every time he looks at Misty his heart would skip a beat and whenever she talked to him he would feel itchy all over his neck. It was some sort of… bug that kept annoying him. Suddenly out of nowhere Ash's mind popped out a strange yet wonderful idea.

Ash gazed at his company hoping to get a glance in return but she was more focused on feeding Togepi to notice him. "H-hey Misty…" Ash spoke up. He was stuttering a bit and his hands were shaking. What did he want to ask at a time like this?

"What is it Ash?" Misty replied innocently. She was still feeding her egg like Pokemon like a little baby.

"Well umm… I was wondering… do you have any plans for tomorrow night?" Ash said finally

"Well I was going to go to the pool tomorrow before sun set so… not really. Why?" the young trainer's heart was now increasing its pace. It felt like it was gonna explode any minute.

"Umm… if you don't have any plans, why don't you come with me to the restaurant at the top floor we can have dinner there" Ash hands was still shaking. He didn't know why he was asking but he just felt like he needed to. "If you don't want I completely understand!" he added

Misty hesitated as her mind went on a thought rampage.

"_Oh my gosh! Is he asking me out on a date?! No he probably just wants to have dinner with me. But doesn't that still sound like a date?! Wait he's probably just joking. But his eyes look so serious! Man I should say something! Come on Misty say something anything!"_

"Uhh… sure Ash I'd love to"

"_Wait! Anything but that!" _Misty'smind was now in confusion with her lips. She agreed to Ash's offer.

Ash eyes widened with happiness. He was trying to hold back his emotions behind his mask but soon realize he was smiling like an idiot who just got his first Pokemon.

"_Wow, she agreed? Of course she agreed she's my best friend! But why am I feeling so happy? I've had dinner with her before so should this be any different? Man I need to lie down!"_

"Great, so I'll see you there at six?" Ash smiled with glee

"Yeah that's fine with me"

Before they knew it, the two young soon to be couples had finished their food. They stood from their chairs and left on different paths. They needed time to think. Ash just asked Misty out on a date and he doesn't even know it.

However, unknowingly under the buffet table. Team Rocket (Butch and Cassidy) over heard everything.

Cassidy said to her partner, "Did you hear that?"

Butch replied with a smirk and a nod, "Looks like those two are going out for a hot date!"

"And you know what that means!" they laugh evilly on the situation but it soon disappeared as Butch thought of it,

"Yes, finally those two can be together! Isn't it romantic?" WHAM! Cassidy pulled out her magic mallet from her back,

"No you idiot! This means we can catch them alone on the top floor. From there evil giggle When those two are busy sweet talking with each other. We'll grab his Pikachu and Togepi and present it to our boss! He'll probably give us a promotion and after that he'll make me the new leader of Team Rocket, and soon I'll over throw the government and soon I'll become the most powerful person in the world! Mwahahahahaha!"

"Uh… earth to Cassidy, please come back to earth" Butch was waving his hand trying to bring his companion back to reality.

**(Time skip. The next day… or should I say the next night… ok that joke sucked but hey… can you blame me?)**

It was an hour before six o'clock. Ash was already way ahead and dressed himself in the outfit the Cerulean sisters made for him. Besides… all the passenger that were taking this cruise were all high class and he didn't want to look like an alien.

He combed his hair so they would look just as spiky as before. He added cologne and placed a rose on his vest pocket which he requested from Drew especially.

He arrived at the dining hall on the top floor thirty minutes early. Misty was still nowhere to be found.

"Ah… you must be senor Ketchum. Table for two yes?" said the valet in a polite manner. Ash nodded dumbly in reply. "Please follow mua"

The table Ash chose was on edge of the floor. It overlooked the sea just how Misty would like it. A nice romantic candle on top and beautiful music was in the air. Ash sat on one side as he waited for Misty. It was still early.

A little early…

"_I don't believe this!"_ Misty was mentally screaming, "_Of all time to over sleep why tonight!? I bet Ash is gonna be mad at me!"_ she was taking a little nap near the pool this morning. She went for a quick swim with May and was exhausted after they were finished. She then lay down at the nearby bed chair for awhile just to catch her breath but it turned out to be a long nap instead

"Come on come on! Where are my keys!? Ah here it is!" she entered the room hoping to see Ash, but he was already long gone. "Aw tarter sauce! He even went ahead of me! I gotta get change and fast!" she raided the closet looking to see if there was anything good to wear. After five minutes of searching she remembered the dress she brought from Cerulean. She quickly got dressed and put on some make up. She wanted to look as beautiful and feminine as possible.

"Ok, dress… check, lip stick… check, make up… check!" she then looked at the clock, "Oh no only five minutes left!?" she began tearing through the shoe stack and took out the lovely high heels that matched her dress.

By the time she was finished with her dress up she looked around to find her Togepi but it was gone. Togepi wasn't there anymore. "Togepi? Togepi!" she began to panic and started looking for her egg like Pokemon, "Togepi, this isn't the time to play games!" she then heard an oddly familiar giggle from the outside. She ran out and saw Cassidy and Butch holding Togepi like a trophy.

"Butch and Cassidy! I should have known it was you!" truthfully she was kinda expecting Jesse, James and Meowth.

"Well we loved to stay and say our motto!" said Cassidy

"But we have to jet and leave for the getto!" said Butch

They dashed off towards the nearest side of the ship to get into a life boat and escape.

Ash was sitting at his table. He was still looking at the entrance of the top floor. He ordered a bowl of chicken soup to pass the time, but he mostly just poke the meat with his fork.

"_She's late…"_ he thought. "_But Misty's never late. She's usually early for… well everything"_ He looked at the sea,

"Hey Ash!" Ash looked behind him and saw Brock with Officer Jenny… again? "What are you doing all alone and…. WHAT ARE YOU WEARING?!" Brock was amazed on how Ash was dressed. He admitted in his mind that he even looked better than him.

"Oh I was planning to have a friendly dinner with… uh someone, but I guess she's a little late" Ash forced out a slight smile from his face but inside he was wondering if he got stood up (AKA… ditched).

Brock's eyes widened (well not really widened more like surprised) with awe! The famous Ash Ketchum was having a date?! "Wow Ash you really made progress! Tell me! Who's the lucky girl?!"

"Come on Brock, our table is ready" said Officer Jenny in her lovely attire.

"Coming my princess! looks back at Ash Tell me all about it when you're finished" he whispered

Ash once again look out to the ocean, hoping to see something… or anything to take his mind off this date for at least a moment. He then looked at the lower floors and saw the unexpected. Team Rocket (the one with Jesse, James and Meowth)

"Oh great not them again!" he stated.

He decided to ignore them for now until he heard a scream that sounded very familiar. "Misty!" he whispered to himself, "Come on Pikachu let's go!"

However, it wasn't Misty who was screaming. A girl who got tackled by Butch was smashing him with her purse.

"Ouch (wham!) I'm (wham!) sorry (wham!) I (wham!) didn't (wham!) see (wham!) you (WHACK!)" he was knocked out cold by the last one with Misty's magical mallet.

"Grrrrr… Don't you have anything better to do?!" Cassidy was really mad at Misty for ruining her plan.

"Other than kicking Team Rocket away…? NO! Now give me back Togepi!"

"Hmm… what's the word I'm looking for… oh that's right… NO! NEVER! You're supposed to be on a date right now so run along or you'll be late!" Cassidy held Togepi tighter on her arms.

"Alright that's it I'm not playing around! Go Psyduck!" a little duck Pokemon appears from the Pokeball and prepares to fight.

"Oh so you wanna play rough huh? Fine! Go Raticate!" a rat like Pokemon appears from her Pokeball and also prepares to battle.

"Raticate use scratch attack!"

The Raticate jumped forth and used its claws to tear through Psyduck's beak but it didn't seem to have an effect on Psyduck.

"What the? It should've hurt!" Cassidy was confused

"Ha ha ha! Sorry but Psyduck has a headache and it would take a long time for the pain to kick in! Now Psyduck, use confusion!"

In mere moments the Raticate began tumbling over and over until it saw Cassidy holding Togepi. Since he was confused, Raticate thought that Togepi was a giant cheese ball.

"Hey! Raticate stop that! Stop that this instance!"

But Raticate wouldn't quit. What kind of a rat would pass on a huge cheese ball?

Just as Cassidy was stunned by Raticate's claws, she dropped Togepi on the floor and during the confusion Togepi accidentally uses its teleport ability and disappeared from sight.

As Ash and his friend Brock with his date (who was supposed to be on vacation) Officer Jenny rushed towards the source of the scream. Suddenly Ash saw Espeon running towards him with quick lighting speed. "Espeon?! What are you doing here?" the little cat gave a soft meow before jumping off. Its ears twitched by some sort disturbance.

"Espeon, can you sense something?" Ash took a step closer until a bright light appeared on top of him. "What the? What is tha…" his sentence was cut short when a Pokemon dropped by his arms, "Togepi?... Come on, Misty might be in trouble!" they continued running towards the portside of the boat.

Misty was now furious. She was still afraid on what happened to her Togepi but soon her fears turned into anger when she looked upon Cassidy. "Alright, where did you hide Togepi?!" she shouted

"How should I know? It must've used its teleport ability to flee the battle! Oh well I guess your Psyduck and Staryu will do!" Cassidy prepares her Raticate for another battle until suddenly.

"BOOM!!!!!!"

A large explosion erupted from the back of the Notilus, making the entire ship come to a complete stop. Cassidy and Misty looked up to see another Team Rocket coming in with a submarine! Two girls probably in their late teens one was blonde and the other one had purplish hair.

"Sorry to ruin your party Cad…!" said the blonde girl

Cassidy was still in a state of shock as she turned around to see the two familiar faces.

"Annie… Oakley… I knew you would follow me eventually to steal my prize" Cassidy kept a calm face but in her mind she was saying, _'What are you losers doing here?! This is my show! I'm calling the shots and you little spoiled dweebs aren't gonna stop me!'_

Misty was now in panic. Her Psyduck won't be able to fight against all of Team Rocket and to add to make things worst, her 'date' with Ash just seemed to have gone down the drain.

Just before Cassidy could ready her Raticate, Annie unleashed her Espeon's psychic power against her and sent her swimming with the fishes.

"Tsk tsk. I was hoping that boy and his Pikachu were here but I guess we'll have to settle with this girl's Psyduck instead" said Oakley in a bored tone, "Go Ariados use spider web and bind that duckling!"

Ariados leaped into the air and spat out a large string of her web onto Psyduck. In moments Psyduck fell and was no longer able to battle.

"Oh no Psyduck! (grabs another Pokeball) Go Staryu!" a star shaped Pokemon appeared.

Oakley laughed at Misty's pathetic attempts to stop them from getting their prize. "Please… do you actually think your Staryu can take on my Ariados? Come on Ariados use poison sting!"

"Staryu dodge it and use tackle attack!"

Staryu dodged the poison stings and slammed its body against the giant Spider like Pokemon. As Misty's Pokemon recovered from the attack it just gave. Staryu began to get show signs of fatigue.

"Staryu what's wrong?" Misty was concerned of her Pokemon.

Oakley gave out an evil laugh and explained, "While your Pokemon was still battling I secretly activated Ariados special attack 'life drain'! Soon your little Staryu won't be able to even lift itself up.

"Gee sis did you have to be so rough? I mean look at the poor thing…" Annie's Espeon was sitting on her shoulders meowing in victory.

Just for a second there, everything seemed to be going Team Rocket's way until…

"Hey if you want a match then face me!" everyone turned to see the new trainer who showed himself.

Ash stood on the balcony of his room glaring at Annie and Oakley with anger clearly stated on his face.

"Well it looks like we won't be going home empty handed after all! Come on Annie!"

Annie giggled before getting into battle position along with her partner. Ash jumped from the balcony with Pikachu and HIS Espeon. "Why don't we make this match interesting? You two against me!"

Oakley and Annie knew what they were getting themselves into. They may be spoiled teenagers but they still watch the news channel (only for latest fashions). They heard how Ash was able to defeat thousands of Team Rocket's trainers and they weren't about to make any mistakes.

"Pikachu, Espeon, I'm counting on you!"

"Nice Espeon, but does it know how to fight?!" Annie took the liberty of attacking first, "Espeon, use Psychic!"

But Ash knew how to counter such a powerful move, "Espeon, use quick attack!"

Before Annie's Espeon could fully charge its attack it was knocked down by Ash's Espeon but it wasn't out of the battle yet.

Oakley observed Ash's quick maneuvers and tactics and decided to launch a counter blow. "Ariados use…"

She was then cut off when Ash ordered another attack, "Pikachu use thunder shock on Ariados and give cover! Espeon tackle her Espeon NOW!"

His Pokemon followed his orders exactly the way he planned it. Ariados was completely knocked out by Pikachu's attack and Annie's Espeon was out of the picture before she even knew it.

The two sisters summoned back their Pokemons.

Oakley gave out an evil grin and raised her hand, "We expected much from you Ash, so I guess we'll just have to use our ultimate weapon!" the Notilus began to shake as a huge submarine submerged from the deep sea. It wasn't as long as the Notilus but from the looks of its weapons, it appears to pack quite a punch.

"Oh Wendy dearest, are you ready for pick up?" said Oakley through her radio,

"I told you not to call me that!" said the voice from the other line, "I'm only helping you two for profit so don't be calling me friend anytime soon" "Awww but Wendy, we make such a great team" Ash was stunned with shock as the big submarine opened up its torpedo hatches.

"Alright brat, now hand over the Pikachu and the rest of your Pokemons or we'll blast this ship and everyone on it!" Oakley pointed her finger at Ash as she threatened to blow the ship up with their mighty submarine.

Ash hesitated for a brief moment. He couldn't give away his Pokemons. They were his life and his passion and he wasn't about to let some goons carry them off without a fight.

(…)

Moments passed by very slowly. It felt like time itself was slowing down… in fact that's exactly what happened.

A sigh came out of Ash's mind, **"It looks like you need my help again… Ash"**

Just as he was about to reply Ash lost conscious and his body was taken over again by a dark and sinister force.

A long moment of silence past by before anything started to move again. Time resumed to its normal pace and balance was restored… however… something was not in place.

Ash gave out an evil grin that would put Giovanni's to shame.

A thundering storm began creeping in from the south… like a dark curse that follows the young trainer wherever he goes.

Oakley hesitated for a few minutes before she finally collected herself.

"Hey Oakley what's going on over there?! Oakley? Annie? Hello is anyone there?" Wendy was shouting through the radio like crazy.

"Go ahead…" Ash said finally, "Go ahead and shoot… let's see what happens then" his dark cold tone was back. It struck fear in Team Rocket's heart and no one would dare go against him now.

"What?!" Oakley was shocked! "A… are… are you crazy!? There's more than five hundred people on this boat don't you know that?!"

"So what? Are you gonna shoot or just stand there like an idiot all day?" Ash shrugged the words off his lips still keeping that evil grin on his face.

"What's with that kid? He's not acting like himself today!" Annie was literally shaking in her boots.

Oakley held the radio tighter and tighter giving out a sneer to her opponent! Does he know that they were bluffing? "I'm serious you little dweeb! I'm gonna tell Wendy to shoot unless you give us your Pokemons NOW!"

Ash looked at her with his eyes glowing blood red, "Hmm…………… no…" he said.

"GRRRR!!! Alright brat you asked for it! Wendy shoot NOW!"

"Huh? But I thought…" Oakley was now in panic mode. She couldn't control what she was saying since she was so afraid of Ash's grin. "I don't care what I said, just shoot now!"

Wendy pressed the 'fire' button and two torpedoes were launched from their tubes and headed straight for the Notilus.

"Ha what do you say now ya little brat?!" Oakley roared with victory as she just countered Ash's little taunts.

"Uh… sis" said Annie a little nervous,

"What is it? Can't you see I'm having my victory gloat here?"

"Yeah I know that but do you realize that… WE'RE STILL ON THE BOAT!!!!"

"WHATTTTT!!!!"

The two teenage sisters panicked as they had no plan to get out of the ship safely.

The crew and passengers panicked and immediately head towards the nearest life boats to save themselves from the incoming disaster.

The torpedo got closer and closer until it was just three feet away

Three feet

Two feet

One feet…

The impact would've caused a huge explosion around the portside of the ship. Everyone ducked and covers and awaited for the impact… but after a few minutes… nothing happened. No 'kaboom' no explosion not even a scratch!

Suddenly… a Gyrados appeared from the sea and on its mouth were two torpedoes still spinning for an impact. The Gyrados threw it to the air and it exploded.

Ash once again gave out an evil Grin making himself look like the bad guy rather than Team Rocket. With a wave of his hand three Wartortles came running up from the ocean and stayed in a line formation. "You know what to do… WATERGUN!" Ash commanded.

In mere seconds, Annie and Oakley disappeared into the night sky "We'll get you for this!!"

Everyone was amazed by Ash's command ability. Were these wild Pokemons obeying his every command? It seemed so because it looked so!

The young trainer walked onto the ledge and whispered several words that were intelligible. A sudden moan could be heard around the ocean… as if some giant creature was crying.

Wendy checked her monitors again for any activity. The sonar radar was quiet until it started making funny sounds. "What in the world!?" a swarm of water-type Pokemons were popping out all around the submarine. It was frightful and yet beautiful at the same time. In mere moments, the giant claws of the sea creatures began tearing through the hull of the sub. "Oh o, this isn't good! Everyone abandon submarine!"

Huge foams could be seen from a distance where the Team Rocket submarine was afloat. The sound of steels and iron being torn apart wasn't very healthy for the ears or the eyes at all, but Ash didn't care.

Just before he fell to the floor he muttered a few words that were barely heard by anyone…

"Gal…yo…ken"

Misty held Ash into her arms when he crashed down. "Ash? Ash wake up!" she screamed out.

Brock tap her shoulders and held Ash's wrist to feel a pulse. He was relieved to feel pulse, but then realized that the boy was only sleeping. "(sigh) Don't worry Misty he's only sleeping"

"Really? Thank goodness. He scared the heck out of me!" Brock smiled at Misty's face as it lit up with embarrassment, but I soon disappeared as he realized that all the Pokemon Ash summoned were leaving.

May, Max and Richie were next to come along Ash's side. They saw the whole thing but were too stunned to do anything.

The Pokemons that came to aid Ash disappeared strangely as they had arrived. Some dove back into the ocean and some just swam away, heading off in different directions.

It took his friends hours if not minutes before getting Ash into his room. He may be a shrimp but taking him to the 3rd floor can be tiring. The ship had gone into minor repairs and it seemed they would have a few hours delay. But no one really cared. They already saw a show that was truly worth their money and time.


	11. Companions Demise

**Chapter 11: Companion's Demise**

The morning came by before anyone truly realized it. Ash slowly opened up his eyes as the light broke through the curtains. He yawned once but he couldn't move. There was some sort of weight lying down on his chest. It wasn't heavy but it felt comfortable and relaxing. He wasn't fully awake yet and with the good feeling he had just then, he didn't feel like getting up any time soon. He then felt a tickle on his stomach, something that reminded him of Pikachu when he slept beside him. He turned his head side wards to see what it was. Once his visions focused, he saw that it was… Misty?!

She was fast asleep. Her head was nestled comfortably by his chest, her arm was wrapped slightly around his waist. Ash was surprised… more like shock but he didn't move. He glared at her face slightly. It was the same happy expression that she had when she was sleeping on him back in Cerulean city. They were sharing one king size bed which still had plenty of space. _"Oh great… now what do I do?!"_

Ash found himself feeling very awkward in his current position. One side of his mind wanted to push her away or say something out loud to surprise her, waking her up immediately but another side (the one he doesn't listen to very often) was telling him to just lie there and enjoy the feeling he was having. As minutes past by Ash realize that they can't stay like that forever. He was hungry and he believed that his Pokemons would be worried sick about him.

He tried pulling away from the girl with as little movement as possible. Ash knew if he made any sudden mistake, Misty would pound him to a crisp. Slowly he pushed away Misty's head to her pillow and gently removes her arm from his waist. He didn't get far when he saw Misty began to cry. A tear slipped off her eyes even though she was sleeping, and her smile turned into a frown. Ash quickly stopped pushing her away and glared confusingly on why she was crying. He moved in closer to her making his chest a pillow for her to use again. Her beautiful smile returned and her tears were gone. _"Brock would never let me out of this if he knew Misty and I were like this"_ he could already imagine the expression of his friend's face when he'd see him in this position.

As he tried to imagine what his friends would say, he quickly noticed Misty waking up from her sleep. Ash thought if she knew I was awake she'll kill him for sure.

Misty rubbed her eyes and looked around. _"That was a nice dream"_ she thought. _"I wonder if Ash is awake?"_ Ash's eyes were closed, "I guess not" she then noticed something slightly different. His breathing was faster and his cheeks were slightly pink. She felt uneasy and decided to wake him up.

"Ash? Get up sleepy head" Ash slowly opened his eyes making him look like he just woke up… and it worked too.

"Ugh… what time is it?" he muttered. "Its 11:00 AM and its time to get up!" Ash gave out his warm smile in reply making her blush slightly.

They both stood up noticing that they were still in their 'date' clothes since they forgot to change last night.

By the time they got into their regular clothes, it was already lunch time. Ash and Misty left the room at exactly 12:30 PM. The storm clouds that appeared last night disappeared from sight as if it never existed. The floors were still wet and the crews were busy repairing the smaller sections of the Notilus. The ship was running but only at half the speed compared to yesterday. The engine was damaged by Team Rocket and the rudder was creaking loudly at times making it hard to find a peaceful place on the boat.

The two arrived at the dining hall a few minutes later. Brock, Richie and the others were already having their appetizer. Brock saw them coming in and asked them to join their table. The captain himself was there too.

"Hey guys what's for lunch?" said Ash with his usual happy go lucky mood

"Well that depends on what you wanna eat" Richie replied which was followed by a giggle for a moment until the captain lend out a hand.

"Mr. Ketchum, on behalf of the crew of Notilus and myself I wish to thank you on saving us from Team Rocket yesterday"

"Yeah you totally blast them off to who-knows-where!" Max added

May had to agree as well since they never seen anything like that before, "I didn't realize how much you've grown Ash I might actually have to watch my back then"

"I myself have to admit… it was a good show. I have never seen such strength before" amazingly, Drew managed to give a compliment rather than his usual snobbish words.

But Misty on the other hand was having a different idea, "Palease! I could've done that myself if Mr. Show off didn't show up"

"I really gotta know Ash, how did you do it?" said Brock as he took a sip out of his soda can.

Ash sweat drop and scratched his head in confusion. He remembered fighting Team Rocket but he doesn't remember beating them, nor could he remember the water Pokemons that came to help him. He didn't express it in his face so he just went along thinking that everything would start kicking back into his brain.

"Uh… sure, it wasn't a problem. But to tell you the truth captain, it was kind of my fault actually. You see Team Rocket is after me and my friends. If we didn't come on your ship, there wouldn't be any damage"

"Uh? (everyone had the same reaction) Umm… I see, but still… please accept my thanks" the captain extends his hand and Ash accepts gladly with a smile.

Once again, his companions glared at Ash with amazement. Was he being modest and noble? Everyone was bottling up all their emotions until May couldn't hold it any longer! She had to say something to get Ash out of that little 'Knight in Shining Armor' act.

"So Ash, what Pokemons are you gonna use for the League battle?" May said with great anticipation.

Ash thought for awhile… everyone knew he would pick Pikachu for every battle. It was his trade mark Pokemon and perhaps strongest Pokemon in his arsenal.

"Hmm… dunno" he said with an emotionless face. 'Pika!' "Hehehe I guess Pikachu will have to be my first, right buddy?" 'Pika!'

While the entire gang went on with their daily lives… a feast was prepared for them… and them alone. The finest dishes from around the Orange Islands to Hoenn were served on their table and Ash couldn't wait to gobble it all down.

The food disappeared two hours after it was served. Broke could've sworn he was seeing noodles over his head. May and Drew were so full that they quit before taking desert. Max and Misty were near 'vomiting' state. Richie looked at his last hot dog… he quickly put it down because his body couldn't take anymore. Even Ash was feeling kinda woozy from that meal.

"I'm not taking another bite…" said Max, putting his hand on his mouth. He didn't feel well, and heck he didn't even look well.

"Me neither…" said May and Misty. They held their stomachs as it rumbled with pain.

"I'm heading back to my room, you coming Ash…? Ash?" Brock looked at the seat where Ash was sitting but he wasn't there anymore. "Hey where'd Ash go?"

"Over here Brock!" said the trainer holding a box of chocolate milk.

"Hey Ash I'm heading back to my room, you wanna tag along?"

"(stomach rumble) Yeah, I think I need to lie down a bit" said the boy as his gestured by rubbing his stomach

"You guys go on ahead… ohhh… I feel sick to my stomach… ohhhh… literally" Max looked visibly green for some strange reason, like he was sea sick or something.

"Come on Pikachu let's go"

Ash made it to his room first. He unlocked the door with the key Misty gave him and walked in like he own the place. But now something felt different. Sure the room was nice and cool from the air conditioner but this time he could feel another sudden chill running through his spines.

Brock couldn't help but notice Ash's unusual gasp. "What's wrong Ash?" he looked at the direction Ash was staring at but saw nothing. "Ash? Hello…?"

Ash quickly snapped back to his senses and smiled. "What's the matter Ash? You've been dozing off into space for quite awhile now and it's really bugging me" Brock crossed his arm and was hoping to get a good excuse from him.

Ash just shook his head then walked into the room without a word and shut the door behind him leaving a very worried Brock.

Ash was silently waiting in his room. He knew this feeling quite well. It has been happening for awhile. A sudden cold chill following through his bones making him more cautious to his surroundings.

"Pikapi pikachu?" (what's wrong Ash?) Pikachu saw his master looking carefully at every object in his sight. Espeon also noticed his new master's uneasiness and leaped to his side.

Ash could feel another presence in the room but he could not see him/her. He waited and waited until a sudden clang came from upstairs. Small footsteps slowly came down the stairs. Ash looked closely as he thought it would be his other self that he's been seeing for sometimes.

"Oh hello Mr. Ketchum, sorry to bother… I just finished" said the maid with a bright sunny smile.

Ash sighed with relief. He was really expecting his other self to appear but then he just shook the feeling off and head straight to the bath room. "Maybe I'm taking this a little too serious" he mumbled to himself.

Ash took off his T-shirt and jacket and changed into his PJ. He wasn't planning on going anywhere anytime soon. He was planning on staying in his room until tomorrow. Before going to bed he walked towards the sink and washed his face. He gave out a few sudden coughs and washed his hands. Pikachu was gulping ketchup next to the bathtub hoping that Ash wouldn't find him.

"Pikachu, I told you no ketchup until six o'clock! (sigh) Look, you got ketchup all over the place!"

"Pika! Pikapi!" (but Ash!)

"It's bad enough with you having ketchup with almost every meal I had! Now hand over the bottle and you can have it back when we get to Lilycome!"

"Pikachu… pika!" (ok)

Pikachu surrendered his half empty bottle of ketchup to Ash.

Ash quickly folded himself to sleep with Pikachu by his side. Espeon stood on guard to see if any intruder tries to sneak in. He looked around and snuggled right under Ash's arms.

The rest of the days flew by momentarily. Before Ash and his friends knew it, they were already at the docks of Lilycome city, a port city of Hoenn.

The entire gang rushed out of their rooms to catch the first glance of the city borders. It was indeed a sight to die for.

Ships sailing in and out of the port, peaceful mornings unmatched by almost any city, wonderful food aroma running through their noses and nearly everyone in the city was probably still asleep. A busy town like this would always be busy in the afternoon.

Things didn't change much since Ash left here a few years ago. It was still a bustling town as it always had been. Cars running freely through the streets, pedestrians crowding through the sidewalk, Team Rocket stealing Pokemo… wait…

"_Team Rocket?!"_ Ash's eyes widened with the mere thought popped in his mind as he sees Jesse and James running out of the Notilus Pokemon Center with at least two dozen Pokeballs with them. Nurse Joy tried to give chase but her body wasn't built for this kind of endurance, "Hey come back here with those Pokemons! Someone please stop them!"

Just before Ash could leap to the plea for help. Richie stood on Team Rocket's path with Sparky on his side. Ash stopped on his track as a fight was about to begin. Jesse and James summoned their Pokemons (Lickitongue and Victreebel)

"Sparky (the name of his Pikachu!) Zippo (Richie's Charmeleon) get ready! (Pika!) Surrender Team Rocket, those Pokemons do not belong to you!"

"As much as we like to talk and say our motto, I believe we don't have the time. Victreebel use vine whip attack! (as usual the plant Pokemon eats him) Why does this always happens to me?!!!" as usual, James flower like Pokemon would always attack him before attacking the opponent.

Jessie was really getting ticked off by her partner's stupidity, "Grrr… Lickitongue tackle that twerp!"

"Sparky dodge their attacks and use thunder wave! Zippo, use head butt!"

With Sparky's lighting reflexes, the little mouse dodged Team Rocket's attack with ease and while in the air it gathered up its energy and shock Victreebel from behind. The flower like Pokemon was startled but was unaffected by the attack. Zippo struck out with its head but was quickly slammed to the ground and fainted.

Victreebel recovered from the little shock and engaged once more with Lickitongue. "Sorry twerp but electricity doesn't work on plants! Victreebel, use sleep powder and then use razor leaf attack!"

The flower Pokemon quickly obeyed James's orders on track. It first released its sleeping powder from itself. Richie quickly moved in and barked out orders, "Sparky, hold your breath! Don't breathe the powder!"

The electrical mouse held its breath for awhile and moved out of the powdered area but it was caught off guard by Lickitongue's lick attack.

The battle faired well for a few minutes until Richie noticed how tired his Pikachu was becoming. He needed to end the battle fast because if he doesn't, he'll know that he wouldn't be an opponent worthy for Ash to battle.

**(Richie's POV)**

I need to win this… I have to win this. I will prove myself to Ash that I'm also a trainer worthy of him. If I can beat Team Rocket on my own with just Sparky and Zippo… then that will be my proof. There won't be a doubt in my heart that I'm a true Pokemon Trainer!

I have to admit when I met Ash just a few weeks ago, I couldn't believe how powerful he's gotten. I know I can't beat Ash now… but I'm gonna try my very best and show him how powerful I am! "Sparky, use the new move we've been practicing!" I looked at my Pikachu with pride bursting out of my heart and soul. He used its tail to knock Victreebel away and used thunder shock against Lickitongue in quick succession.

Victreebel was still standing while Lickitongue was unconscious. I thought that this battle was surely mine for the taking and soon I got careless. "Alright Sparky," I began, "Just one more shot and we're done!" (Pikachu!)

**(Normal POV)**

Richie ordered his Pikachu to use thunder shock to blast Victreebel away but that was his fatal mistake. _"Electricity doesn't work on plants!"_ Jame's words rang through Richie's mind as the plant like Pokemon didn't even react to the electrical shock wave!

As Sparky dropped from the air, James took over and smiled with glee. "Victreebel, use vine whip one more time!"

The thick vines wrapped around Pikachu tightly and swung him across the docks, landing on several crates of fruits.

Richie was shock… his Pikachu was knocked out of the battle with just one swoop. He couldn't believe his eyes… he even thought he was watching a nightmare… but it wasn't a nightmare.

He fell on his knees as he watched himself defeated by Team Rocket who were barely a match for the power Ash brought upon. Just when Jesse and James were about to fly off on a balloon, a sudden voice came from below, "Now Cyndoquil, use flame thrower!" said the first voice, "Masquerain, use whirlwind!" said the second voice.

With the blast of the attack, Jesse and James dropped the Pokeballs that they stole. Ash realized that the Pokemons inside might get hurt so he quickly summoned Snorlax to catch all of them with its stomach.

With Team Rocket's exit phrase was done (the "Team Rocket's blasting off again" thing) Nurse Joy quickly counted all the Pokeballs and was relieved that none of them were damaged or missing. "Thank you Ash" she said with a smile while putting all the Pokeballs in a bag, "I'm glad a trainer like you came along for the trip, otherwise it would've been a disaster" she bowed politely then left the scene back into the Notilus Pokemon Center.

Richie held his Pikachu, holding back the tears in his eyes. He just realized how weak he was. He began to have doubts about his skill and now he was gonna do what no Pokemon trainer would ever do in five years time. But he wasn't going to say it just yet.

Ash walked up to Richie from behind.

"Hey Richie, is your Pikachu ok?"

"Yeah… he's fine. I'll just go to the Pokemon Center and have him treated there for awhile"

Richie left the docks with a heavy heart. When Ash and the others were out of sight he let out a tear from his eyes.

He was feeling down on the dumps not because of his defeat… but because of his weakness. If he couldn't defeat the Team Rocket which Ash had been battling for years… he began to think that he was nothing more but an annoyance in his companions eyes.

Richie arrived at the Pokemon center a few minutes later. He handed Pikachu over to Nurse Joy of Lilycome City. He didn't have much to do but wait for his companions to get to him.

Meanwhile… the gang finally finished taking out their luggage after a stressful time at the 'arrival' line. They waited for hours just to get out of the ship, and now they must take a bus to Dr. Birch's laboratory. Suddenly… a familiar sound came by which didn't catch them by surprise.

(rumble) "Hey guys… why don't we go find something to eat for the trip?" said Ash with his usual smile. Misty sighed with disappointment. She thought Ash still would've been full after everything they ate at the Notilus but nothing could fill that black hole he called stomach for long.

Suddenly May saw a fast food restaurant and got an idea, "Hey guys, why don't we just buy some fast food and we can eat it in the bus" they all nodded in agreement.

"Hey Max, can you get Richie at the Pokemon Center and tell him where we are?" said May.

Max looked at her with an annoyance look, "Fine… it's better to get a human this time rather than your usual Pokemons" he said in defeat.

Ash looked at his little friend who was slowly walking away from the group, "Hey wait up Max, I'll go with you!" he chased after Max and caught up to him, "Besides, I need to check in my Pokemons as well" Max smiled as his 'brother' and walked through the streets of Lilycome.

"So Ash, what will you do when we get to Valmarian City?"

"Huh? Oh well… I thought I'd go find some trainers and battle out my Pokemons until we get better than we were before"

"I would like to watch it. Too bad I can't come though…" The two of them stopped on track… Ash too was also surprised to hear those words coming from Max.

"What?... you're not coming with us?"

"Well… since we're taking a cruise from Patleburg City, My dad wants me to stay behind and watch the gym with him for the entire month so I won't be able to watch you battle"

The child's face was full of disappointment. He truly wanted to see Ash fight at the largest stadium in the world. He wanted to see Pikachu and his master holding that trophy, rather than her sister gloat at him all year long.

Max let out a little unsatisfied moan as the storm clouds gathered right above the city. No one realized it, but this was actually the same storm that has been following the gang for quite sometime now.

Ash himself was disappointed about this recent turn of events. Back during his Hoenn journeys Max would act like a little mascot to him. But now he's like a little brother to him. He was more disappointed than Max could ever be.

They arrived at the Pokemon center ten minutes after their little conversation. Before they walked in, Richie came out with a sad look in his eyes. "Hey Richie!" Ash yelled out waving his arm with a friendly gesture. Richie was surprised to see his role model here, but he didn't react it in his face.

"Hey Richie, Misty and the others re going to this cool fast food place you wanna tag along?" Ash gave him his usual smirk.

Richie was still devastated from the fight he had earlier but he didn't want to show weakness. He forced out a little smile. "Yeah… sure Ash I'll join you" he said finally.

Max noticed the change in Richie's behavior. He was usually hyperactive like Ash but now it seemed like he was but a mere shell of a man without a soul. "Hey Ash, why don't you go to Nurse Joy and have your Pokemons patched up, we'll go on ahead and meet you back with the others!"

Ash took a mental note of Richie's attitude as well. He thought that it was just the sun playing tricks on him so he ignored it and walked into the Pokemon center. He was lucky that it was still early in the morning. There weren't any Pokemon trainers around so Ash didn't have to worry about fan crowds.

**(Meanwhile… somewhere in the nearby woods)**

"Hey James…"

"Yes Jessie…?"

"What did we do wrong in that brilliant plan of mine?"

"I don't know Jessie, but I do know that this won't be a happy ending for any of us"

"You mean 'no happy ending for us'" said Meowth

"Grrrrrr! I knew we should have fled when we had the chance but those brats just had to come and steal all our Pokemons! Grrrr! We were so close and we just to run into one of his friends in Lilycome! What luck!?"

Meowth let out a small sigh "Actually Jessie it was us who were stealing"

"If you steal from a thief, does that make you a thief?" siad James

"Oh be quiet! We're not giving up just yet! Come on I have another plan!"

The two partner in crime let out a small stomach rumble, "The only plan I have right now is to find myself some food to eat!" said James

"I second to that!" Meowth added

"Why you little… (stomach rumble) Hmm… well I do feel kind of hungry…"

"Then it's settled! We'll leave the twerps alone for awhile until we're running with a full tank" said Meowth

The trio all cheered in agreement and left for the nearest food stand. Unknown to them however that they were being tracked by two other groups.

**Team Rocket (BETA)**

In a life boat in the middle of the ocean, a pair of evil-doers are attempting to make for shore with barely anything but their clothes and some sort of listening devices.

"(listens to the radio) Well what did they say? Do you hear anything?" asked Butch as she rowed the life boat

Cassidy gave him a shhh sound to keep him quiet, "Well it looks like Ash's team is still in Lilycome city. We'll have to get there and capture any of his Pokemons that he has with him. If we show all the rare Pokemons to our boss he'll…"

"Oh please not that story again! (gets whack with a magical mallet) Oh… my head"

"He'll first promote me then make me boss… then… and then…"

**Team Rocket (OMEGA)**

"Well? What did they say?!" asked Oakley to her 'friend' Wendy

"Well it looks like Ash's team is still in Lilycome city with his friends. If we go at this speed we'll be able to reach Lilycome Port in three days tops"

"THREE DAYS?!!!" shouted Annie "They'll be way ahead of us before we could make it to shore!"

"Be quiet sis! (pause for awhile) Wendy, can you make the submarine go any faster?!"

Wendy puts down her ear phones and sighed, "Are you kidding?! With the damage we took from the last battle we barely managed to put things back together as it is! If we go any faster than this there's a chance we might break the submarine before reaching any land at all!"

"But if we go faster we might be able to reach him before the other teams do (sees Gyrados swimming through the window) You know what……. You're the captain so why don't we just take it easy and relax ahe…ahe…ahe…hehehe"

**(Back in Lilycome city, the 'Kanto Delicacy' fast food restaurant)**

"Wow, I can't believe they have Kanto style of burgers here too!" said May.

Brock was glaring at the clerk with drool clearly showing on his mouth ignoring May's comments.

"I know Ash will like them a lot"

Misty stood by her side awaiting her order, but couldn't help notice that May knew so much about Ash. "You think he'll like them? I know he likes burgers and all but I think they're all the same"

May glared at Misty's ignorance. _"Man… for a girl who's been traveling with Ash for more than three years, you think she'd know him from head to toe"_

Drew stepped in as he carried several plastic bags filled with all sorts of food assortments. It was quite clear that he was bored and tired about the whole 'acting like a servant' and wanted to dump the cargo ASAP but with May giving him deathly glances he had very little options.

**(Somewhere outside) **

Meanwhile, Max walks along the streets of Lilycome city with Richie. The trainer still had his sad look in his eyes. Max felt insulted, _"Doesn't he know that he's traveling with a human being? They'd probably want socialize once in a while"_ They pretty much like to socialize once in awhile. "Hey Richie, what's wrong? By now I thought you'd be gloating about how you acted this morning"

Richie kept quiet and ignored what Max said. He wasn't in the mood for small talks and was barely even noticing the world around him. In fact, he almost got ran over by a truck if Max didn't help his off the road. It wasn't long until the little boy was beginning to get annoyed by the young trainer beside him.

They walked for a good long distance and it was still quiet. Richie didn't say a word. Not to him or his Pikachu nor anyone for that matter. He just walked and followed Max wherever he would lead him.

"Alright I've had it!!!!" Max finally gave up and gave Richie a good weak jab to his arm, "What's the matter with you? We've been walking around for the last thirty minutes and all you're doing is standing there like an idiot. The least you could do is say hi or something!" the little boy crossed his arm and pouted his face. He wasn't gonna take another step unless his companion starts talking.

"Huh? Oh I'm sorry… I was just… thinking" Max took a step back… he wasn't expecting a reply but glad to know that his friend could talk all the same. "About what?..." Max replied with another question.

"About… things and Pokemons" Richie said again with his sad tone. Max uncrossed his arm and got back to walking and muttered around like a whisper, _"Sheese what's wrong with this guy? Back on the boat he was like on top of the world but now he looks like… well… something opposite"_

The two compadres arrived at the meeting place a few minutes later. Misty was the first to notice them and greeted them with a smile, "Hey Max, hey Richie" she looked around behind them, "Where's Ash?"

Max looked up to her (since he is a short dude), "He had his Pokemons checked in before we leave. He said he'll catch up with us at the bust station" Misty frowned in disappointment.

**(Back with Brock and the rest) **

Brock finally came by after finally giving up flirting with the cashier lady. He agreed to stick with the plan they made and head for the bus station. Their original plan was to head towards Valmarian city after they had gotten to Goldenrod, but after what just happened these past few weeks have clearly messed up their schedule.

The squinty eyed man let out a sigh as he was rejected several more times on his way to the bus station. Usually May or Misty or even both of them would pull his ear but after a the first four or five girls they've been pulling him away from, they finally decided to ignore him and let him go on with his new record streak of rejections.

The gang chats for awhile along the sidewalk until May decided to pop up a not-so-funny question. Richie, Max and the other boys were ahead of them while the two girls were lagging behind. May smirked at Misty and let out her question, "So… how's Ash been doing?"

"Hmm, Ash? Oh he's been doing well I guess" Misty was hesitant to speak at first but she managed to pull herself together in time.

"What I mean is… does he have a girlfriend yet?"

"What? No of course he doesn't!" Misty was slowly becoming frustrated and wanted to end the conversation and move on to a new topic.

A moment went by as May kept pestering Misty on Ash's personal life, "Really? I guess being a Pokemon trainer in Kanto can really be tough. I guess having a relationship would be quite hard since you're traveling all the time" May kept the conversation on for a long while. Misty really wanted to move ahead so they would catch up with the boys but it appears that she was trapped by some sort of spell May had cast on her.

"So Misty… who do you think Ash would go for? I mean what kind of girl is do you think Ash would like?"

"How should I know? I mean he never talks about anything but battles and Pokemons!"

"Really…? (pauses for a moment) How about you? Do you like him?"

"WHAT!! He's my best friend that's all!"

"Uh huh… yeah… 'best friends' You'd be amazed how much he talks about you back when he was traveling with me"

"Well of course he'd… wait… he talks about me?"

"Yeah, usually when we're traveling. He usually remembers on how you growled and yelled at him most of the time"

"Is that all…?" Misty sounded a bit saddened

"Yeah… mostly. But you know the strangest thing about that? He always laughs every time he finished thinking about it. I think it's a weird habit of his"

"Hey girl! If you don't get here, we're leaving without you!" that the voice of Brock who was already way ahead of them

May decided that this would be the best time to close the conversation and leave Misty in her own thoughts of how to react at this. And to the other girl's surprise… she was actually thinking on how to react.

Misty held her breath for a few short moments and her heart skipped a beat or two before regaining her sense of reality. She felt like an idiot just standing in one spot and looking at the ground. _"How about you…? Do you like him?" _May's words echoed through her ear like parrot that kept repeating itself over and over again. Misty finally shrugged it off after a few seconds. Her methods on how she did that however shall remain a mystery.

**(Bus station) **

The gang reassembled themselves at the bus station lobby. Ash returned with his Pokemons fully healed. Brock and Max were checking in on the latest bus leading to Mauville City. May and Drew were waiting on the couch to recover the energy they used up. Richie stood alone in a corner leaning against the wall still depressed on what had happened. Misty, after recovering from May's question, acted like nothing happened and greeted Ash the same way she does almost everyday. "You're late again!"

"No I'm not!" Ash countered with his smile now turned into a frown.

"You should've been here about an hour ago!"

"So what?! You're not my mom!"

"Well the least you could do is get here on time!"

Brock stepped in breaking those two apart, "Now, now Misty I believe Ash must have a very good reason why he's late… right Ash?" the young boy nodded in reply.

Suddenly Officer Jenny came by and told Ash that he left something. It was his Pokedex. "Oh Ash there you are" the police officer started, "You left this on my scooter. Really Mr. Ketchum if you get lost again I can't guarantee your safety. The least you could do is to know your way around town before taking a walk" After that the officer left Ash with his future clearly saying nothing else but 'pain'.

Misty had veins popping out of her head and her fists were clenched, ready to pound one boy's head to a numbness he won't forget.

Ash took cover behind Brock who had no intention of staying around for much longer. Misty was about to give Ash a whoopin of a lifetime for three reasons.

1) He arrived an hour late making them take the next bus which is five hours away.

2) He abandoned her at the Pokemon Center in Goldenrod city (but he came for her anyways)

3) Because it's tradition…

Just when she was about to give Ash a punch in the face, Drew stepped in with tickets in his hands, "Great news everyone," he stated out, catching everyone's attention (except Richie) "I've managed to get a few straws pulled and it seems our next bus trip to Mauville city will be here in two hours" Ash was relieved. Misty finally loosened her fist and sighed, she really wanted to give Ash a whoopin but we all know that she'll have plenty of time to do that.

Since the gang had nothing better to do, they sat on the lobby area and ate what they bought from the fast food restaurant. Ash was the first to dig in along with Pikachu and Max. They stuffed themselves until they nearly choked.

As the gang ate their way to pass the time a familiar voice rang in from behind. "Well, well well… this is a great place to hide Ash Ketchum. No one will ever expect you to hide out here" the gang turned their attention to the lovely long haired lady who just entered the station with a Magnemite hovering over her shoulders. "It's good to see you Ash…"

"Jasmine!" they all shouted in unison. Yup it's Jasmine, the gym leader of Olivine city!

Brock wasted no time to get into his proper act, but before he could even finish his catch up lines, Misty and May glared at him which would only bring one thing to his near future… PAIN!

"Jasmine? What are you doing in Lilycome city? Are you here on vacation?" said Ash while eating his burger.

The gym leader gave them all a sunny side up smile "Well, it's not really a vacation, but something similar to that. I had my friend took over the gym while I was away. Oh and congratulation Ash on getting permitted to the Valmarian league!"

"_Heh… looks like everyone knows about it already"_ he thought… "Uh… thanks!" he said

"So you're traveling through Hoenn for your vacation? I could recommend you some places if you want" May took a sip through her cup of hot chocolate with her pinky sticking out of the holder.

"Well actually…I'm not exactly here on holidays. I got a call from an old friend who's working in Littleroot town. When I got the call I took my time here in Lilycome before heading out" she looked at her watch and compared it to the clock on the wall.

"Well the next bus out of here doesn't leave in the next two hours. So you might as well stay with us" Ash said after swallowing the last chunk of his burger.

Brock agreed to his statement, _"That's a great idea Ash! I can't believe you're actually growing to be a full grown man!"_

Jasmine hesitated for awhile "Hmm… well…" Drew interrupted her before she could speak, "We have two extra tickets…" in amazement she agreed, "Ok sure why not!"

As they all sat down for a bite Jasmine remembered something important, "Oh that's right I completely forgot!" the gang looked at her, "I'm sorry, but I also have a friend who's accompanying me so…"

"Like I said… we have two extra tickets…" Drew echoed what he previously said.

"Oh… ok" Jasmine finally sat down in defeat and opened up a bag of chips.

Their little meal went by without any disturbance. Jokes were passed around and a few laughs were exchanged in motion. There were several funny moments during the conversation but all in all they were reunited with their old found friends.

**(Meanwhile… outside of the bus station. On the shores of Lilycome city)**

A pair of ridiculously disguised villains finally arrived at their destination near the shores of the city. Hungry and exhausted from the sailing they've done for almost seven hours… their endurance finally paid off.

Butch sat on the pier with his hands totally numb from all the rowing he's being doing. "Finally!" he yelled out, "We made it!"

Cassidy grabbed herself up and moved along quickly through the docks with great speed. "What are you waiting around for Butch?"

"I'm waiting for my arms to recover!" he countered, "Some man you turned out to be! Come on we have to keep going!"

"That's right… I do all the work while you take all the glory!" Cassidy was already gone before she could hear him. Butch let out a sigh and quickly made his way to where his partner was heading. "I hope this time our luck can hopefully change for once!"

As Team Rocket (BETA) searches around the city for Ash and his friends, another group moves in from under the deep blue sea.

Annie and Oakley were too stubborn to listen to Wendy's blabber. After they were sent to their rooms, the two annoying sisters stole two sets of diving equipments and swam from their submarine to the shores of Lilycome City with determination to get Ash and his Pikachu before the other Teams can.

"Was that Butch?" said Annie taking her scuba equipments off her.

"It must be… Come on! If they're here that means Ash can't be far ahead!" the two lovely girls switched into disguised mode as they quickly followed Butch through the crowded streets of the city.

**(Back in the bus station)**

While everyone had their fill on the food they all took a little nap in their seats. But just before Ash could take his own nap… a figure loomed over him with a darkened face. It was Richie.

"Ash… can I talk with you for a minute?" he asked with a saddened tone.

"Sure" Ash replied holding his stomach as he let out a quiet burp.

Richie took the empty seat across Ash still with a saddened face.

**Author's note:** (IF YOU PEOPLE ARE THINKING THAT THIS IS **YAOI **THAN NO IT IS NOT THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR LISENTING)

"What's wrong Richie? You look a little bit down"

"Ash I… I… I'm quitting the Valmarian League…" Richie pained after saying each word clearly to his friend. Ash himself was surprised.

"Wha…?" was all he could muster around his mind, "What? But why Richie?"

"I… I don't think I'm strong enough…" a tear slipped through Richie's eye. "I don't have the skill or the strength to fight… I know… I'm pathetic and…"

"That's not true Richie!" Ash interrupted, "You're not weak at all!"

"But I am! Look at me I'm just a loser who can't even beat the Team Rocket you've beaten a hundred times before! I can't stand it anymore!" he wasn't even hiding his face anymore!

"Richie, calm down! What's wrong with you!?" Ash tried to hold his friend down but his recent outburst pushed him down to the couch.

"I'm sorry Ash… but I'm not worth it… I'm not worth fighting you… I'm not even worth being your friend!" his tears were now falling freely on his face. "I know that people who accept their defeats are supposed to be strong… but I don't feel strong at all… I'm just a weak pathetic loser who's just chasing a dream I can't even see anymore. I'm just trash not even worth being looked at!"

"ENOUGH!!!" Ash yelled out to him but not loud enough to wake the others from their sleeps, "Is this what you really think about yourself Richie?" he gave out a smile to cheer up his friend.

Richie didn't know what to say or react to that question… should he nod or deny everything he just said. "Yes… I think this is what I think of myself…"

"Well you know something Richie?" the boy quickly opened up his ears and wiped the tears off his face. "When I first became a Pokemon trainer I had only one dream… to be the strongest trainer in the entire world! I battled many of my opponents every chance I could get but after awhile… someone taught me something very important! When you lose… take the lost with pride. It's a gift to make you stronger" Richie stopped crying as he was taken by Ash's words, "You and I have our share of losses right Richie? (Richie nodded) Well… if someone like you can take a lost… then he's more than welcome to join up with me… cuz I know he's gonna be a strong opponent!"

'When you lose… take the lost with pride. It is a gift…'

-Drake-

Elite Four

Richie felt like a huge burden had just lifted from his chest. He let out a smile that he couldn't do all day and let out a single tear of happiness slide down his cheek. Richie felt like a real idiot of thinking that way. How could he forget such an important lesson? He covered his face with his hat and relaxed on his side of the couch.

"Thank you… Ash…" Richie said quietly

"No problem… so… does that mean you're not quitting the League?" the boy shook his head and smiled again at his friend with glee. Richie could never feel happier than this.

It was then he knew… that Ash accepted him as an opponent and a rival… a long time ago.

Just as Ash finished talking with Richie about that little mental problem… he let out a sigh of relief as he had successfully changed his friend's mind of leaving the group. He felt proud of himself but was sad that no one was awake to hear what he said.

Suddenly… out of the blues… a pink oval shaped Pokemon entered the bus station hopping around with a blank happy face imprinted all over its body. "Huh? A Clefairy? What's it doing here?" Ash said to no one in particular.

"Clefairy!!!!" yelled the voice from the outside, "Clefairy you come back here this instant!" (WHAM!) the girl smacked her face on the transparent door that clearly had a sign saying "Pull"

"Hey, are you ok?" Ash got up and help the clumsy girl to her feet. "Huh…? Wait a minute… you're WHITNEY?!!!!"

The girl jumped back taking a combat stance with her cow like Pokemon (Miltank) "Who are you and how do you know my name!? Are you a stalker! Answer now or prepare to face my Miltank!"

"Whoa Whitney! It's me Ash, remember?! I won against you in Goldenrod city three years ago!" Ash was in panic. If Miltank would use one of its moves against him he would've gone into a coma for a year. Its times like this he'd wished that Misty was around to give him a clobber.

"Ash?" Whitney finally got out of her battle position and looked at his face closely… and I mean real… closely… "It is you!" she screamed with great delight as she held him in a bone crushing hug. Ash swore he heard some of his ribs cracking in his stomach.

"Uh… yeah… it is" he was blushing slightly towards her. "Umm… what are you doing here anyway Whitney?"

"Oh I'm looking for the bus station. I let Clefairy out for one minute and she runs away like a wild one again hehehehe" Ash sweatdrop and giggled a few times before pointing out a sign saying "Bus Station" with bold letters hanging around it.

"Oh here it is! I finally found it!" Ash dropped his head anime style followed by an even bigger sweat drop hanging on his head.

When the two of them walked in the station with Clafairy, Whitney placed her hand on her mouth and made it look like a sound amplifier before yelling out. "JASMINE!!! I'M HERE!!" her yell was so loud that if she added a few more notes the glass would surely break.

Everyone woke up from their little naps and immediately saw the girl that was making all the high pitched noise.

"Ouch… my ear hurts…" said May. Max could still hear ringing in his ear echoing over and over again.

"Jasmine! There you are! I've been looking for you all over the place!" said Whitney with her smile still on her pink haired face.

"Oh hello Whitney, what took you so long?" asked Jasmine looking a bit groogly from her little nap.

"Oh you know… this and that happens and… oh! You'll never guess who I found in front of the bus station today!" her face brightened with excitement.

"Let me guess… Ash?" Jasmine probably made a rough guess

Whitney gasped, "How did you know?! Are you psychic?"

"No, it's because he's right in front of me…" she pointed at Ash who was directly a few paces in front of her. "Oh…"

Suddenly, the speaker turned on with a ding dong sound, announcing the next bust arrival and departure. "Excuse me," the attendant began, "All passengers who are on route to Mauville city, please board bus number three, three, one. We will be departing in one hour thank you" with a silent click the broadcast ended throughout the entire station.

The gang immediately got up and walked towards the entry gate. Jasmine explained the situation to Whitney and hopefully she got all the info through her thick head.

"_YES!!!!! More chances for me!"_ Brock thought silently around himself with a smile on his face.

Just as the entire gang (now including Jasmine and Whitney as 'guests') took their seats around the air-conditioned bus a driver announced his regulations on the bus, "I'm sorry everyone… but all Pokemons must be put in their Pokeballs until we reach our destination"

Everyone was fine with the regulations but it was Ash and Misty who were having trouble with that kind of rule. "Please sir, can't you make an exception this once only?" Ash begged but the driver shook his head, "My Togepi doesn't like being in a Pokeball, please sir!?" Misty added with sparkly eyes.

"I'm sorry ma'am but rules are rules…" he blocked the entrance of the bus, denying them entry.

The two trainers let out a sigh. Misty hasn't let her Togepi in a Pokeball before in her life and Ash was no different. His Pikachu had never seen the inside of a Pokeball nor have any desire to go into one.

"What am I gonna do Pikachu? I know you don't want to go inside a Pokeball but…" (PIKACHU!!!!) "Ok ok I get it! Hmm…………."

"Oh what am gonna do Togepi? (To chic preee!) Hmm… well I could put you in a Pokeball. (Togepi begins to cry) Oh no I would never do that to you Togepi! (sigh) (Togepi stops crying and laughs again) Hmm… what should I do?"

Just as the bus driver began packing all the luggage into the side of the bus, Ash and Misty looked at him and thought of an idea with the same perspective. "I got it!!!" they said in unison.

After several brief moments of 'lightening' their cargo, Ash and Misty entered the bus with smiles on their faces. "Hey you two, so how'd everything go?" said Brock

"Not bad…" said Ash

"Yeah… what he said" said Misty

"I know it must be tough for the both of you. Neither Pikachu or Togepi have ever been in a Pokeball before" said Brock with a frown. He began to wonder why they were smiling idiotically.

"Oh I think those two took it quite well" Ash's smile was beginning to get more and more suspicious but Brock decided to ignore it.

**(Brock's POV)**

I guess those two are taking it quite badly. It must be a shock for Pikachu. He's never been in a Pokeball before in his entire life and now… "I guess he's having a hard time taking it" I whispered to myself.

I guess Misty is taking this pretty hard too. Togepi has been by her side for a long time, it was practically glued to her and now… I guess she feels like a gap was made.

I looked outside through my window seat. I went to Ash and tried to cheer him up a little, hoping it would help him with his rough mind. But as I moved closer… I noticed Ash's bag was slightly bigger. I guess Pikachu must've gotten some more ketchup. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that it had extra pockets and ears… EARS?!

I raised my eye brow in suspicion and took a closer look and not to be seen by the others. I got closer and closer until I heard a soft "Pika" sound! There was only one explanation! Ash hid his Pikachu in his bag!

I rushed to his seat and gave a disappointed face onto him. "Uh… hey Brock… is there something wrong?" he said to me. It was so clear what he was doing back there. He lightened up his bag so he could hide Pikachu inside.

"I'm very disappointed of you Ash Ketchum!" I barked at him at a loud tone! He tilted his head and gave a face that said 'What are you talking about?' I grabbed his bag, "I know that you and Pikachu are inseparable but rules are rules!" I opened his bag and all his things came out. There were his clothes and several of his personal belongings but… no Pikachu. It was then that I noticed that the ears were those Pikachu ears that May bought for him and a Pikachu doll he won in a carnival back in Varidian city.

"Brock!!! What are you doing!! That's my bag!!" Ash was screaming right on my ear. I looked like a fool! I had to make something up quick and fast! "Oh I thought you were… umm… never mind. I guess I was wrong hehehehe" I quickly took my seat and kept quiet until the bus departed.

**(Normal POV)**

Ash gave out a small grin to his recent success. He knew that one of them would be too suspicious about his bag and he was prepared for it. Misty smiled in return.

Misty sat next to him and whispered to his ear "So Ash… you didn't really put Pikachu in a Pokeball right?" Ash shook his head in reply. "So where did you put him?" Ash gave out a grin, "Somewhere you'll never guess. What about you? Where did you put your Togepi?"

"If your not telling me then what makes you think I'll tell you mine?" she shrugged away and took her seat by the window.

The bus took off from the station after twenty minutes later. They soon left the city's limits and headed off to Mauvill city, but first they will have to go through the small town of Fortree along the way for a pit stop.

The trip went on for hours without any interruptions. It was long and extremely boring without any Pokemons hanging about. However…

Unknown to them, was the fact that Pikachu was having the time of his life in a luggage that Ash snuck in the side of the bus. He was happily sucking out all the ketchup Ash left for him in a small brown package that was meant to look like a normal bag.

"pika pika!" (This is the life!)


	12. The Unnatural Events

**Chapter 12: The Unnatural Events!**

The journey on the bus continued with our beloved heroes but without their Pokemons and any sorts of entertainment… the trip looked almost like a walk on the park. It was only a matter of time before someone would get up and shout out one phrase…

"I'M BORED!!!!"

Everyone turned their heads towards Ash, who was yelling at the back of the bus. It was good that there weren't any other passengers or he'd really make a bigger fool out of himself than Brock. But who could blame a four-teen year old boy who's wasting precious time of his life in a vehicle traveling about forty kilometers an hour?

No one could reply to that. The whole gang was bored to sleep and no one had any idea to keep themselves busy. Max suggested on playing a game of 'poker' or 'go fish' with a set of cards he found on one of the seats.

The road to Mauvile city was a smooth one. There had only been a few bumps and pot holes in the dirt path so the game they played would not be interrupted.

"Do you have any three?" said May

"Nope, go fish" replied Drew with a bored tone similar to her, "Ok my turn… do you have any king?"

"Yes…" replied Misty, also with a bored tone.

"I win… again" Drew declared and threw his last pair onto the ground.

"This is so boring" May stretch out her arms and twist herself a few times to get rid of the stiffness around her.

Beep beep… beep beep… beep beep. Ash's Pokedex rang from his pocket. He quickly answered it with anticipation. "Hello?" he greeted.

"Hello? Ash, is that you?" said the voice on the other line. "Oh here we go!" the screen finally appeared on his Pokedex, showing the face of a long remembered friend, Dr. Birch. "Hey Ash how's the journey coming along?"

"Professor Birch!? Hey how are you doing? Professor Oak was worried about you!"

"Hehehehe… sorry about that, I was caught up with my work that I barely had any time to call him. Anyway Ash I'm glad I was able to reach you in time. Where are you anyway?"

"We're on our way to Petalburg city. We'll drop by your lab in Littleroot town. Oh and by the way, have you seen Tracey? The professor is also worried about him too"

"That's what I wanted to talk about. I've been trying to contact him for days and there's still no reply from him! I hired a team of professionals to get him but it looks like they haven't arrived yet"

"Hey professor it's good to see you!" said May

"Oh hello May, it's nice to see you again too but…"

Just then, Prof Ivy's voice could be heard from the distance, "Professor, we got another signal! It could be the same wave!"

"What? Really? Everyone get into position quickly! I'm sorry Ash, but I have to break off. Please look for Tracey. The ruins he was in is located somewhere between route 119 and route 111 and be careful too. I heard that the Pokemons have been acting up from a few days ago.

"Don't worry professor, it's just along the way. We'll bring him back"

"Thank you Ash, see you soon!"

With their good byes said, Ash turned off his Pokedex and continued on with his game of 'go fish' with his friends.

"So that's our job huh?" said Jasmine. Everyone turned to her with a quizzed face, "Like I said back at the station 'I wasn't exactly here on holidays'. I really meant that, you know"

"We're actually here to assists on some research professor Birch asked us" Whitney added.

"So the professionals that the professor was talking about are you two…" said Misty. The two gym leaders nodded with their usual smiles. "Yup that's right! And I'm also gonna see all my old friends back in Hoenn too! Weeeeeeee!" Whitney spin herself around till she got dizzy. There wasn't much of a commotion and everyone else didn't have much to do. They were all going to the same place so they might as well travel together.

'Strength comes in Numbers on the Battlefield'

-Greek/Latin Proverb-

The trip went on without much disturbance. The deck of cards that they were playing with had a reason for being left behind. It was missing a king of clubs. One single card missing and the whole deck is ruined.

"Are we there yet?" Ash moaned. He was already half asleep and his eye lids were about to give in to the unbearable boredom. If it wasn't for the giant pot hole he would've gone off with the next blink of an eye.

"(The bus trembles) Whoa what the?!" Ash gave out a soft yell as the bus began to shake

May held tight onto the bus railing, "What was that just now?"

"I think we just hit something" Brock tried to reaasure them that it was nothing

It was then, the driver began to speak, "Umm… sorry about that everyone, I guess the roads haven't been fixed since last year. Please fasten your seat belts just in case we should encounter any more of those bumps thank you"

"Hey, where are heading to anyway?" Max asked and as usual, Brock had all the answers

"Well if we're traveling from Lilycome city to Mauville city, we'll have to pass through Fortree town which is kinda along the way"

"What! It'll take us forever to reach Mauville then!"

Richie let out a soft giggle and smiled at the boy, "Not exactly Max. You see, last time when you guys were traveling, you guys hiked from town to town. But now we're taking the bus, so I believe we might make it to Fortree town in a few more hours. The bus will have to stop there to gas up until we can head off to Mauville city"

May was surprised to see the boy's sad attitude turned upside down, "Wow Richie, you must've traveled in Hoenn a lot to know the roads and places"

"Not exactly… I read all the books about Pokemons and gym leaders here in Hoenn, hehehe"

Max also noticed this and decided to ask, "What happened to you? Back in Lilycome you were practically down below the dumps"

"(scratches his head) hehehe I was just having some thoughts that's all"

"Anyway I think we should… (the bus trembles again) WHOA!!!" Brock held his back pack tightly to protect all the supplies he had with him.

"Hey driver, do you mind driving a little more careful?! You have passengers here!" May yelled to the driver

"I just hope we get there in one piece and not in pieces!" Max held onto his bag too and fastened his seat belt.

Poor Ash was still standing when the earthquake began, "Whoa… (the earth begins to shake) WHOA!!!!!"

"What was that? An earth quake!?" Misty screamed

The driver immediately spoke out to his fellow passengers, "All passengers please remain calm and brace for impact! We're going through an immediate stop!"

In but moments, the earth shook around the land of Hoenn. The earth cracked as if the very core of the earth shattered and broke into a million pieces. The ground trembled and knocked the passing bus off its ground. The woodland that surrounded the road quickly succumbs to the wrath of the earth. The Pokemons that took residence in their hallowed trees now abandoned their homes in search for safer sanctuaries. (Sorry guys I was in the 'moment')

Misty took cover under the protection of Ash's arms. She held her back pack tightly and braced for impact. May and Max held under Richie while Drew and Brock were on their own.

The bus came into a complete halt while the earth quake continued. It went on like this for five minutes before it finally died down.

The gang pulled themselves together before taking any further movements. They didn't want to be caught by another earth quake unprepared.

They stayed in that position for another ten minutes before getting out of the bus. Luckily the vehicle wasn't that badly damaged and it looked like the bus driver would be having it running in about a few minutes.

The gang decided to take a little breather but the atmosphere around them gave them a sense of uneasiness.

The forest was on its way to a full recover but the sounds of bugs gave Misty the goosebumps. Everyone knows that she hates bug type Pokemons but something else was bugging Ash.

He could hear… voices… faint voices of people.

"Guys, did you hear that?!" Ash looked at everyone but none of them heard a thing. (Help me!) "There it is again!" the young trainer quickly dashed towards the source of the sound. His ears couldn't betray him… could it?

He ran further and further into the broken woods and the voice became louder as he moved. After a few long moments… he arrived at the source of the sound… but something was wrong. The voice was no more. It was quietly… changing into another kind of voice… more like a squeak rather than a voice.

Ash moved further into the woods and came upon a place that used to be a Bulbasaur's nest. "Oh no!" he shouted.

The nest that was placed at the center of the grove was completely covered with fallen trees and just beside a small parch of leaves… a Bulbasaur was trapped between two lumbers. Its bones were broken that was certain but it was alive. It kept screaming out in pain like a new born baby… and perhaps it was still a new born baby.

Richie, Brock, May and Misty soon catch up with their friend.

"We need to save that Bulbasaur now!!" Ash commanded

"Right behind you Ash!" Richie followed Ash and helped him in anyway possible.

Brock wanted to stop them but if he knew Ash, then he knew that it would take a miracle to stop Ash from doing anything, "What?! Ok you guys, help me pull this tree out. May, you get ready with your Pokeball and capture it. It'll be safe once it's inside the Pokeball! Misty, you hold the Bulbasaur and try to calm it down"

"I'm on it!" Misty followed the boy's orders

Brock barked out commands like a field officer in a war zone. Ash and Richie took up position while Misty tried to talk some sense to the little grass Pokemon.

"Alright everyone… on the count of three! One… two… THREE!!" the squinty eyed boy counted and pushed the log with all of his might

The boys gave every ounce of strength they had left in their arms but the tree trunk just wouldn't budge! Ash was now getting furious, "Come on! Why won't you… MOVE!!!!!!" with a loud roar the tree slowly swept the dirt on the ground and loosened the grip on the trapped Bulbasaur. Misty held the little critter still while May sucked it into her Pokeball.

The Bulbasaur made little effort to resist and was quickly captured.

"Alright! Now that the Bulbasaur's in there, we won't have to worry about it getting hurt anymore!" said Brock in a relieved tone

May looked at him confusingly, "What do you mean by that?"

"Don't you know? Pokeballs are like tiny rooms especially made for Pokemons. When a Pokemon is in a Pokeball, it goes to sleep mode until it's called upon or when it wants to I guess"

Ash looked at the Pokeball, amazed that a simple gizmo had such an ability, "Wow, really? I guess I never really gave thought to it. Well anyway, we should get that Bulbasaur to the nearest Pokemon center as fast as possible!"

After the successful rescue attempt by Ash and his friends, they decided to head towards Fortree town which was only a few hours walk away from the bus.

**(Meanwhile… in the training center near the Valmarian stadium)**

Gary was once again on his winning streak! He challenged any trainers that think themselves as the best of the best. His Umbreon, Arcanine and Nidoking were whacking Pokemons with such ease. He trained them over and over again and again and soon… it suddenly became a daily routine for him.

Gary was now gloating over his defeated opponents, "Hahahaha! Come on you peons, is this all you got? I've fought flies that last longer than you! Come on, who's next?!"

The audiences that were witnessing the battle couldn't believe their eyes. Thirty Pokemon trainers from all around the world were defeated by one kid and three Pokemons with barely any effort.

"That kid is unstoppable!" said one of Gary's opponents

"If only that other kid from Pallet town was here, he'd put that kid in his place!" said another

The mere mention of Ash's name quickly put the crowd's mind at ease. Gary may be powerful, but Ash's glorious victory in Cerulean City took the country by storm.

Gary gritted his teeth with anger. His strength now was comparable to Ash but if he is strong as Ash was a month ago… how strong could he get now?

The boy shook away the thought and focused on the task at hand. "Alright you wimps, is there anyone else here that has the guts to fight me?"

The room was silent. There were no other trainers to challenge him. He looked around and begins to walk away towards the exit.

"I will fight you…" said a voice from the back of the room.

The audience and defeated Pokemon trainers looked at the entrance of the Training center. A young boy, about Gary's age with beautiful white hair walked down the corridors. He had a similar resemblance of Ash's fashion style, but the colors were a bit far off. He had long pants and black T-shirt and a jacket to cool it all down.

Gary smirked and began his so-called 'psychological war, "So, you wanna battle? Don't you go crying to you mommy when I beat you!"

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you'll go crying in my stead" the boy countered.

"Kid, you don't wanna fight him, he's too powerful even for us!" said the defeated trainer.

"Step aside human… this is no battle for you" the white haired boy pushed the trainer aside and stood on the Pokemon battle field. "So how many Pokemons do you require?" he asked politely.

"It doesn't matter! I'm gonna beat every single one of your Pokemons!" Gary was now yelling out, not hiding his I'll temper anymore.

"Very well then… I choose you… Vulpix" the Pokemon that he commanded came out of his Pokeball without being summoned.

The crowd stood in awe as the boy finally removed the cap that covered his face. He was a dashing handsome kid with bright white hair that reflected the lights around it. It was like looking at a legendary Pokemon. Gary felt a strange similarity in the boy. A feeling he could only get when Ash was near by.

Gary smirked once again as he knew if he could feel Ash then it would be like fighting him. He then begins to send out commands. "Alright Arcanine, show'em what you've got!"

"Fire versus fire…? Interesting…"

"Now Arcanine, use flame thrower!"

The dog like Pokemon unleashed a stream of fire from its mouth and onto Vulpix… but it didn't even make a scratch.

"Teh… pathetic…"

"What the?! Alright, Arcanine use head butt!"

Again, Arcanine charged onto Vulpix just as it did with the other ten or twenty Pokemons he's been dealing with but alas… it too had was easily dodged by Vulpix.

"Use flame thrower…" said the boy.

The battle went on for thirty minutes. Gary was down on his knees when the white haired boy sent his Vulpix into his Pokeball. "Well that was… entertaining" he said with a grin. All of Gary's Pokemons were unconscious… Umbreon, Nidoking, Arcanine and Nidoqueen who he had for back up. "H… how is it possible?" Gary said to himself. "Am I not strong enough?!"

The white haired boy returns his Pokemon then begins to walk away towards the exit with his jacket still on.

(…)

"No… these Pokemons are too weak. They barely put up a fight"

(…)

"I see… so I guess we must move quickly before his majesty's condition worsens"

(…)

"No… the competition here is barely worth for his majesty's eyes… just remember one thing: the traitors will be punished!"

(…)

"Hahahaha… You're still worried? Don't be… I just need a few more Pokemons before we head off. There's has got to be at least one that's more worthy than these… knaves"

(…)

"Him? (Gary) Oh I don't think he's a threat… our master will have little problems dealing with him when he arrives"

Gary finally stood up and yelled out, "Hey wait a minute!" the silver haired boy turned around to face his defeated opponent, "What…?" he said.

"I want a rematch!"

"Why…?" the WHB (White haired boy) asked in a playful tone

"Why? To beat you of course! Come back here tomorrow and I'll fight you again!"

"…………… No…"

With that single word the boy vanished into thin air… never to be seen… nor to be noticed. Gary looked around and saw the training hall he was in was already emptied by both audience and trainers. With nothing else better to do… he summoned all his Pokemons back and head towards the Pokemon center.

**(Back on the road… near the entrance of Fortree town)**

"We're here everyone!" May declared to her companions who were probably dead tired from all that non-stop walking.

"Finally!" Max and Brock dropped on their knees and lay on each other's backs. Their little forced march (which Ash insisted upon) came with a major price of fatigued. No one could continue walking after four straight hours of running through the dirt road.

Sure, the athletic people could probably run for days but these guys are just kids! Their body wasn't built for this kind of endurance and it was definitely affecting their health. Max and Drew already caught the colds and decided to stay warm for a little while.

The gang looked for the nearest hotel after dropping the wounded Bulbasaur and some other Pokemons they found injured in the wilds in the Pokemon center.

The town was a mess! Even though businesses were still running, the buildings that serviced them were not in tip top condition. The earth quake did a good number of damages to Hoenn and its surrounding cities. There has never been an earth quake before on this island and this would count as a first.

The city was undergoing a huge amount of repairs. Hammers knocking, saws cutting, machines of all sorts were lifting debris from the road to clear a path.

The mayor was doing his best to get the town back on track, but with very little funding and workers, there was little he could do but to wait for volunteers to come through his doors. But such luck is so hard to find nowadays.

The gang entered a three stars hotel… well half a star more like it. The earth quake had torn the building into three sections but with areas still livable. Drew decided to ask for some rooms but sadly… they were booked full until next week. Wow… business does boom no matter what happens. I guess that's what you call… dedication.

"Well guys, it looks like we'll be staying at the Pokemon center for today" Drew announced to his friends.

"I guess we can't blame them. The quake really did a number on this town" Brock said with his arms crossed.

"Well, the bus won't be leaving here until tomorrow, I guess we'll just have to make the best of it" Richie added.

Just as the journey back to the Pokemon center was coming to an end… Pikachu popped its head out of Ash's empty luggage gasping for air. Just when the gang was making their way though broken roads and narrow alleyways, a wooden plank tied with a thick rope carrying a pile of bricks broke loose over a girl! The bricks flung down from the air towards her.

"Hey look out!" Ash, without hesitation quickly rushes in and tackled the shocked girl. The rest of the gang couldn't do anything but watch their friend do something heroic.

If Ash hadn't moved in a few more seconds that girl would've been badly hurt.

Max, who's a kid that wasn't as fit as the rest tripped over a rock on his way which made him break his glasses. "Oh man, not again!" Luckily, a smart boy like Max always remembers to bring a spare.

"Ash, are you ok?" Misty quickl rushed in but the fog was blocking her view

"I think their ok from here!" shouted Brock

"Oh are you ok th---… Dawn?!" Ash took a closer look at the girl he just bumped onto. He wasn't quite sure at first if that was girl who he traveled with in Shinou, but after a quick brush of dirt her face was reveled. It was definitely that girl in Shinou!

Dawn was a thirteen year old girl who traveled with Ash during his last trip. She had a Piplup, a Buneary and a Beyleef that Ash gave to her as a token of friendship. She hides her beautiful blue hair under a white cotton hat but lets the rest of her hair stay down just behind her back below her shoulders. She wore a red scarf that covered her neck entirely and a sleeveless jacket that hung over an black and blue T-shirt. She wore a pink skirt that was above knee level which attracted some of the boys around her. This was the same fashion she wore during her adventures with Ash.

"Thank you mister you sav… Ash?!" said the girl known as Dawn

"Dawn? What are you doing here?!"

"Dawn? Who's Dawn?" Misty asked confused

Brock then decided to clear up her question, "I guess we forgot to tell you. When Ash and I went to Shinou region, we met her along the way. She's kind of like May but has a better sense of directions"

"And she's prettier too… " Max began to drool

The two boys quickly ate dirt as two lumps appeared on their heads. "And what's THAT supposed to mean!?" May clenched her fist as steam was visibly coming out of her head. Brock and Max knew that keeping their comments to themselves was best for their health.

Ash recovered and helped Dawn up with a hand. She dusted herself but staying so close to Ash made her blush slightly. She had a slight crush on Ash but couldn't really admit it.

A few minutes later the gang returned to the Pokemon center. The Pokemons Ash and his friends rescued in the wilds were all sent back into the woods.

Brock had requested five rooms and gave each group their respective keys. The Pokemon center guest rooms were always a traveling trainer's choice. It was comfortable, serviceable, and of course… affordable. The rooms in the Notilus were much better of course but at these rooms were much more in Ash's style. He didn't like expensive vases or any other fancy decorations. He just wanted a bed, a table and a TV to watch Pokemon news daily. Drew, Richie will stay in one room. Max and Brock in another. Misty, May and Hikari will stay in a three bedded room, the Pokemon Gym leaders also had a three bedded room while Ash had the strangely one bed room.

"Since we'll be staying here for awhile, we might as well make the best of it. I'll go get us something to eat" Drew recommended to his fellow compadres, but May wasn't gonna let him have his way, "Oh no you don't! I'm not gonna let you pick the food! looks at Ash Hey Ash, do you want your usual burger or something else?"

"Oooo, can I have a steak?" asked Max

"Why don't we just order pizza and we can all share off it?" Richie recommended

The idea of pizza was a marvelous one. Everyone quickly agreed and had Drew making the orders. After all that has happened, the gang decided to take a break at the Pokemons center lobby. They were reminiscing about old times and perhaps even embarrassing times for that matter.

Since the conversation was getting far, Ash decided to pop a question to Dawn, "So Dawn, what brings you here all the way from Shinou?"

"Oh I'm going to Valmarian city!" she replied without hesitation.

Everyone thought that she was going to observe how the trainers there battle out, after all she was still a rookie, but when she held a letter of invitation… they were all in shock! "I'm going to participate in the league!" Richie, Drew and May turned as pale as a piece of paper. They couldn't believe that an amateur coordinator like Dawn was able to get a letter of recommendation from her home town back in Shinou! This came as a surprise even for Ash, but it changed nothing from his plans.

Just as the gang ran through some details of Dawn's letter, a sudden yell came from behind which would freeze the blood in Jasmine's veins. "JASMINE!!!!!! IT'S YOU!!!!!!" the sound wave nearly blasted away May's bandana off her head. Jasmine slowly turned her head towards the sound with her eyes twitching and her face paler than a paper as if she was hoping that it wasn't who she thought it was. "OH MY GOD I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!!!" said the girl once again.

A red headed girl with blossoming hair wearing a black T-shirt with a fire symbol and long pants came running through the doors of the Pokemon center and tightly hugged Jasmine with great strength. Jasmine was now paler than a piece of paper since she could barely breathe under the girl's tight grip. "Oh no… this isn't happening…" Jasmine muttered out these words before passing out. Whitney quickly came by her friend's side and splashed water on her face.

"Flannery!" the gang said in unison. Yep… it's the girl from Lavaridge town but not just any girl… she's the Pokemon gym leader of the town as well! Her energetic attitude and fire sign T-shirt obviously tells everyone that she was a fire Pokemon trainer. "Oh hey! I can't believe everyone's here!" she was still screaming with excitement and surprise. It was amazing her lounges were able to hold all those shouting and yelling ever since she got here!

After a little while, Flannery calmed down after almost losing her voice to the last few shouts she made. She was lucky when Nurse Joy came by and whack her just to get that red head to pipe down! "I'm sorry Ms. this might not be a hospital or a library but the Pokemons could really use a bit of peace and quiet!!!!!"

Finally calming down and having an ice pack on her head, Flannery took a sip from her soda can and breathed normally like a good person should. Jasmine was still unconscious, and she hoped to stay that way until Flannery leaves.

After their introductions and explaining the situation to their newly found friend, Ash decided to invite her over for dinner with the rest of the gang. Flannery agreed whole heartedly.

"(exhaled) So Ash, I heard that you were invited to the Valmarian league! Is it true?" asked the long red head girl

"Yup! I even got my letter right here! (shows her the letter of invitation)"

"Careful Ash or you might lose that form before you get to the stadium" Misty shrugged

"Oh come on Misty. It's not like something bad could happen after that earth quake"

The others laughed while Flannery nearly spat on her drink, "Wait… you Misty? As in THE Misty Waterflower? (Misty nods in confusion) I'm sorry about what happened to your gym…"

"Sorry about my gym…? Why?"

In moments she immediately called her sister Violet, who was supposed to be in charge of the gym while she was gone. By the time she got the whole story from her sister, she let out a huge roar of anger and sadness.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY'RE GONE!!!" Misty yelled out to the top of her lunges

"I'm not even sure myself Misty. By the time we got home everything was a complete mess! All our Pokemons were stolen!" it was Violet who was on the other line talking to her.

"What about my Starmie and Goldeen?"

"Gone… Even Gyrados, Horsea, Caserin and Politoed are gone too along with all of our Pokemons. We can't have any gym matches due to these circumstances!"

"This is terrible! What happened?!"

"I don't know. The only thing Daisy could remember was a kid with white hair dressed like Ash (with some difference) and had a lot of Pokemons with him. She also said that her Pokemons came out on their own will!"

"What?! Did you report this to the authorities? Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"

"Sorry Misty but we didn't want to worry you about things back at home. Officer Jenny is already looking into it"

"Wait! You're not gonna give the trainers their badges immediately are you?!"

"Of course not silly… I borrowed some Pokemons from professor Oak. He lend me Ash's little Kingler and he's doing fine with Lily and me"

"Well that's a relief. Call me when you hear about the thief ok? Good bye…"

Misty was silent for a long time. The gang couldn't even imagine how the girl was feeling right now. Losing one Pokemon was tough but losing all her friends to a complete stranger must be truly devastating. She held her tears within her eyes trying to make herself strong. This was a clear sign of immaturity but they all knew that she had her reasons.

Ash slowly placed his hands on her should to give her even the slightest of comfort. After awhile, Misty turned around and gave a smile to everyone. She didn't want to make them worry. However her smile made Ash worry even more than his friends ever could. Since he was her best friend for such a long time, she could tell that kind of smile anywhere. A mixed emotion hiding behind a mask covered with smiles.

No one said anything about it. The room was now quiet but it wasn't the peace that Nurse Joy wanted.

"How long have these thefts been going on?" Drew asked the fire gym trainer

"Probably a few weeks from what I've heard. The only things they all had in common is that they were all gym leaders. Why just recently I heard that all of Kanto had just been robbed of all their Pokemons!"

With the glistening news, Brock immediately called his home town of Pewter City. His father Flint was on the monitor screen.

"Dad! Were any of my Pokemons stolen a few weeks ago?"

"……… So you found out huh… I'm sad to say Brock… all the Pokemons that were in my gym were taken away" Flint, Brock's father had a sad look on his face

"What?!! But how?! My Steelix! My friends!!"

"Calm down Brock! (sigh) How should I start this… well it happened just about a week ago"

**(Flashback, Flint's POV)**

I was out training with my Golem when it happened. The kids were all asleep already so they couldn't hear a thing… A young boy probably about Ash's age dressed just like him too, he walked into the gym without hesitation.

He had white hair more of a silver lining. He had Pokeballs strapped all around his body from stomach to arms to legs. He challenged me to a battle and I did. He used a Raichu… a lightning Pokemon against my Golem. We fought for an hour I think before my Golem became weak. I then decided to use your Steelix instead. He kept on using his Raichu until it looked exhausted. I knew this battle was mine for sure but then… he surprised me.

The Raichu was only acting tired to trick my Steelix into getting overconfident. Just when Steelix rushed in for the finishing blow, Raichu electrocuted him with a small blast of thunder shock.

I was surprised almost even amazed by his skills. I was just about to hand him a badge until he said, "Idiot! I am not here for your jewelry, I am here to claim my prize! Come my servant, it is time to rise once more!"

With a wave of his hand, all my Pokemons were popping out of my Pokeballs and into his. It was like watching magic! I raised my hand against the boy until Golem knocked me out. I couldn't believe what was happening and so I thought that it was just a dream. The last thing I remembered was his unmatched grin that would freeze the whole region. I felt my bones chilling and before I knew it… I was asleep.

I woke up later the next morning in my room with a major headache. Forrest called the police and had Officer Jenny took over the investigation. I was hoping for that nightmare to be just a dream but I'm sad to say… it wasn't.

Even though they told us to cancel our gym matches I refused. I managed to borrow a Pokemon from a friend of mine and he's been doing fine ever since. I knew that Brock was gonna kill me when he hears about this so I decided not to call him.

**(End of Flashback and Normal POV)**

To Flint's surprise, Brock was calm and collective. He showed no signs of anger but relief instead. He was worried about his family more than his Pokemons but was still sad to lose all of his friends. "Ok dad…" he said with a saddened tone, "I'll check up on you when we get to Petalburg City ok? Bye…"

Brock hung the phone gently but in his mind he wanted to smack it till it breaks into pieces! "So… your gym got robbed too Brock?" he heard Ash from behind.

"Yeah, but don't worry about it. My dad and the police are working around the clock to find them!" his face lit up with a defining smile. He let out a single tear drop rolled down his eyes. It was barely visible to the naked. Besides… his squinty eyes are probably holding it all down.

This wasn't exactly the day the gang was expecting. It was bad enough with the earthquake and all but to lose their Pokemons was truly a down turn for Brock and Misty. Some of them thought of this to be one of Team Rocket's devious plan but it was too skeptic. A single team going around taking Pokemons from gym leaders? It was an impossible task even for Giovanni.

Later that day, the pizza delivery boy arrived with two large size pizzas on his hand. Drew paid with his own money. He wasn't usually bossed around by May but having three girls in the gang with one thing in common (They all had magical mallets) he wasn't really in a position to negotiate. Drew also added a tip just in case.

Just as the gang bulge into their plates of pizzas, Brock (who had finally recovered from his dilemma) was asking several girl trainers for a date. No one bothered to pull his ears anymore, but then suddenly… WHAM! Brock felt numb in his stomach.

A Gregguru appeared from one of Brock's Pokeball and used its fist to smack his stomach. He was still popping its cheeks like a frog and that annoying smirk on its face.

Ash and Dawn laughed at the oh-so-familiar scene they would always see when Brock would try to hit on a girl. If the girls won't stop him… they can always count on Gregguru to do the works. His punches may be strong but nothing can stop Brock from going on hitting on the ladies.

Jasmine, after having gained conscious after Flannery's recent shockwave tried to avoid the red head at all cost. She hid behind Whitney the whole evening watching Flannery's every move. It was then May got the courage to ask her, "What's wrong Jasmine, you look like you just saw a ghost or something…"

"Oh she's just worried about last time hehehehe" Flannery interrupted, "It started out a few months back when we were still in Olivine city. I uh… accidentally NEARLY killed her Magnemite during a battle match. I rushed it to the Pokemon Center and the doctor said that it was gonna be fine. She never forgave me after that. But after awhile we became friends again"

"So why is she still angry at you?" said Dawn

"Well after we became friends again I blew up her gym because I gave my Pokemons chili for lunch. She had a meeting with the mayor. After that I also burned the Pokemon center ACCIDENTALLY! When I thought the temperature was too cold. After that I burned her house… but that was HER fault, not mine! I swear!" Flannery switched back to her adorable side and took another sip of her soda.

It was then Jasmine had enough. "Yeah, that's when I nearly got fired from being a gym leader! You caused me a lot of trouble and I had to pay all the damages your Magu caused during your visit!"

Flannery then stood her ground, "Well it wasn't my fault for burning your house! You just had to give them Tacos didn't you!"

"How was I supposed to know your Pokemons were vegetarian?!!"

Just as the two gym leaders argued over what happened a long time ago, Brock felt this to be some sort of a memorable scene. _"I guess adults now are no different than kids before"_ he thought. _"Man I wish they were fighting over me rather than money"_

In moments after the argument was getting the two gym leaders nowhere. Whitney decided to pull their hairs to keep them from talking any further. "Well Flannery if your not going anywhere you might as well just stay with us, we have an extra bed"

The red head jump with joy and smiled, "Sure, I'd love to!"

As the first plate of pizza was finished Ash realized that Misty still hasn't return. "Hey guys I'll go look for Misty" with that he left the gate and head to the place only Misty would go at a time like this. Since Fortree town was close to the ocean… she'd probably went to the closest place near the shore lines.

Misty was sitting on a giant boulder just a few blocks away from the city. There was a clear view of the ocean and the moon reflected beautifully on the water. It gave out a sort of romantic atmosphere and this place would've been a great spot for new couples to court each other.

Misty quickly shook the thought off her head! She didn't have a boy friend or boy 'friends'… like her sisters. She wasn't in to that romantic stuff. She was more of a tomboy girl who hasn't had a date since birth. She then sighed heavily on herself. She placed her heads between her knees and thought of the Pokemons she left behind with her sisters. Staryu was the son of Starmie and her Gyrados and Goldeen were her companions for a very long time and for them to be taken away from her was like taking a piece of her soul from her. She sat there for awhile as Togepi played along the seashore with several Krabbys. She constantly looks at her egg like Pokemon just in case it would run away like last time in Varidian forest. Varidian forest…… the name echoed through her mind like a bad memory returning.

A dark Pokemon attacking her. Ash jumping in to the rescue and she couldn't do anything but to run and hide like a coward. The images of that dark dog like Pokemon still haunts her whenever she remembers it. The blood shot eyes and teeth sharper than a sword and perhaps even stronger than steel. She could clearly picture the face but it was hazy and dark. Small drips of blood dropped from its mouth like it just had its main course and now it was looking at the desert.

"I knew I'd find you here!" Misty quickly turned her head around and saw that ridiculous boy who she just can't help but to smile at. "How did you know I'd be here?"

"Well for a girl who loves the ocean more than anything it can be pretty obvious"

"So are you calling me transparent?"

"What? No no no no not at all! What I meant is…"

"A cat fish?"

"No! I would never say that!"

"Then what? If you're here to insult then get it over with!"

"Why I ought to… (sigh) Listen, I didn't come here to argue ok? Everyone got worried so I came to bring you back to the Pokemon center. Besides, we have to wake up early tomorrow if we want to catch the bus to Mauville city"

Misty was surprised that Ash ended the argument with his negotiating skills that she never even knew he had. But even though she was caught off guard… he was right. It was late and she doesn't want to be a burden in the group. "Yeah… you're probably right" she said finally. Ash was relieved to see her calm smiling face again.

Just as she raised his hand to help her up, Misty noticed a strange tattoo mark on his right arm. _"When did Ash get those? They're probably fake, but why would Ash want tattoos? Is he trying to act tough?"_ Misty thought but then ignored it. Its not like she hasn't seen people with tattoos before but for Ash to have one so long… was quite disturbing.

"Do you mind… if we stay for a little while longer?" she asked with a little pouting facing.

"Uh… I guess we could but we shouldn't stay out too long… you wouldn't want to get a cold before we reach Valamrain hehehehe" Ash sat right next to her with his legs cross.

There were no conversations between them nor charades to act… just pure silence. They didn't need any words for that particular night, because for that particular moonlit night… they just wanted to enjoy each others company. The sounds of the city were far away and all that were left that were to make sounds was the sea and the night walking Pokemons.

The moment of silence went on without any disturbance. Ash usually gave Misty several glances hoping that she would consider going indoors before the temperature gets any lower. He took a small glance at Misty and noticed that she was more beautiful than Ash had realized. Without the usual rambling of his friends or the distraction of his Pokemons or the thought of getting the next badge, he was now able to focus more on the finer things in life. He could feel the wind touching his face, the sounds of the leaves shaking and how Misty looked so pretty in the moon.

"_Wow… I didn't know that she was that… pretty"_ Ash looked at her for a very long time. He could not move his head to any other direction. It was as if his face was glued to that position and it seemed like he wouldn't mind it at all. He would love to see that face for eternity.

Misty had her eyes closed the whole time ever since Ash came by. She felt a strange warmth in her heart that some how fills the hole that had been made by the recent incident. She felt safe… secure and perhaps even comfort around her friend. After awhile she slowly lifted her eye lids and quickly noticed Ash unremovable stare. This made the blush on her cheeks grew brighter than Rudolph's nose (Christmas Joke if you can get it) She couldn't say anything but to stare back at him.

Ash knew Misty was looking back at him and he really wanted to turn his head around but it seems that his neck wouldn't cooperate for some reason.

Misty was getting restless. If neither of them say anything real soon, something bad might just happen. The orange haired girl quickly thought of a phrase that her sister's used all the time, "Is there something on my face?" she said.

Ash blushed and finally turned his head around with his face turning completely red. "Uh... no! I mean… I was… I was just looking at the…"

"At the what?..."

"Umm… the… the STARS! Yeah… I was looking at the stars!"

"The stars? I don't see any stars…"

"Umm… yeah cuz I can uh… see through the clouds!"

"See through the clouds? Ok Ash you're getting ridiculous"

"Well… ok let's change the subject. So… what are you doing here?" _"Darn it Ash she's still sulking about losing her Pokemons duh! Why else would she be here?"_

"Well… I was thinking"

"About your Pokemons?"

"Yeah… they were my friends for a long time"

"Don't worry Misty! Whoever did this would probably be caught tomorrow. I mean who else would be traveling with more than six Pokemons?"

"_Hmm… he's got a point there"_ "Yeah I guess you're right"

"Of course I'm right! I'm Ash Ketchum, I'm always right!"

"On getting us lost?"

"Ok that doesn't count!"

"Not to mention getting us into trouble all around Johto and Kanto!"

"Hey, I may have made some mistakes…"

"Try thousands! Not to mention you haven't paid for my bike yet!"

"Oh man! I promised you, I'll get you a new one when I become Pokemon master ok!?"

"And if you fail?"

"I won't fail! That's because I'm…"

Just before he could continue another voice came from the woods behind them, "Hey Ash, Misty… are you guys there?" Misty cursed whoever interrupted their little moment around the beach. If it wasn't a friend she would've whacked him/her to oblivion.

Brock was the one making all the rackets. He was worried that Ash and Misty were gone for so long he came after them. Even though May and Drew tried to stop him he was still like a big brother to those two. He would always be there for them but for once… they wish he didn't.

They met up with Brock a few minutes later when he was entangled by a whole bunch of vines. The two of them couldn't help but burst into laughs. To be able to see Brock in that kind of situation was truly a moment to die for. "Help" he muttered out.

Ash gave out a few chuckles before helping Brock out of nature's grasp. After untangling through large piles of thick vines, they were able to free their friend in a matter minutes.

The trio made their way back to town with little effort. For once, Ash's instincts were correct. He just followed the sparks of blinking lights that gave out different colors.

After passing through the road back to the Pokemon center, Misty decided to take a little stroll down her mind just to get away from reality for a mere moment. She was thinking about her Pokemons that were stolen. With most of them gone she only had Psyduck, Togepi, Corsola, Azurill and Staryu. They were a good team, but still not a strong one. They were all water type Pokemons and they can defeat many Pokemons on their own, but the skills she gave them leave a lot to be desired.

Misty then began training in her head on Pokemon tactics. It was like playing a video game but without any controllers. But as much as she tried, she couldn't get the feeling of lost out of her heart. She was quietly walking down the road as if she isolated herself from the rest of the world.

While being in her own state of mind, Misty wasn't able to see the car that was heading right for her. The lights shifted brightly upon her eyes. She wanted to scream but the shock prevented the voice from coming out.

In mere seconds before impact, Ash lunge out of the sidewalk and managed to tackle Misty, making her dodge the car without any serious injuries. Luckily for them, Officer Jenny was around and saw the whole thing.

The driver came out to see if anyone got hurt. He managed to park his car a few meters away before coming to a complete stop.

"Are you two ok?" said Jenny with a frown on here face.

"Yeah I'm fine, I guess I wasn't looking" Misty replied forcing out a little smile off her face.

The driver came by with a worried expression, "Are you ok? I'm terribly sorry about that ma'am!"

"Well I'm glad that no one was hurt but I'm still giving you a ticket for speeding!"

"Yes… that's fine with me" the driver agreed

"And I'm afraid I also have to give you one young lady"

Ash was confused, "What? Why? She didn't do anything wrong"

"I'm sorry young man, but she was crossing the street with the green light and she knows better than to cross the road without looking" Jenny tore out a ticket from her slip

"Oh… I see" Ash said in defeat. He knew that Jenny was right. Misty was completely dozed off when she jay walked through the road. This wasn't like her at all. She was usually focused on everything around her and usually more concentrated.

"Just take the ticket Ash, its way better than getting crashed by a car" Brock said with relief

The police officer and the driver stood in shock with the mere sound of that name. The driver was just about to wet his pants while Jenny was shaking her pen and ticket. "A… Ash? Ash Ketchum?" she said finally. Jenny immediately ripped both tickets and smiled softly with a little chuckle, "Well I guess I could let you go with a warning this once"

"Really?" Ash's eyes widened with surprise.

"But under one condition!" said Jenny with one finger up

"Uh… what's that?"

Brock immediately leaps in with a bushel of Roses, courtesy of Drew and limitless supply of these flowers. "Don't worry about it Ash! (goes to Officer Jenny) I would gladly date you for a pardon of my friend!" WHAM!!! Misty once again slammed Brock to the ground with her magical mallet, "Keep that up and you'll be the one who'll get run over by a car!"

"Ahehehe… well I just wanted your autograph Mr. Ketchum"

"My… autograph? Uh… sure!" he scribbled down his name on an autograph book with great ease. "Wow… this is probably my first autograph ever!"

Jenny was now jumping with joy to hear that, "HA!!!! I can finally gloat something against my sisters that I was the first to get Ash Ketchum's autograph!!!!" Ash gave out the mother of all sweatdrops with a soft smile. He felt like a celebrity who just got into his first act or something.

After a little while they went back into the Pokemon center probably around 12:30 AM. After realizing how late it was they decided to turn themselves in for the night.

Brock went into his room where Max was already sleeping, Misty entered her room and discovered that her room mates were still awake but Ash's room was a strange one. Ash's room… was the janitor's closet! It was an extremely small room which barely had anything in it. There was a bed, a table, a pocket size TV with antennas and a night light. Right now he thought that staying in the open fields… wasn't such a bad idea.

Ash immediately returned his key and told Nurse Joy that he would find another place. The garden behind the Pokemon center was the perfect place to set up his lonesome camp but heck, it was way better than staying in the janitor's closet! He let out his Pokemons to come and keep him company. Even though he was already fourteen, he still needed the extra company to put his mind at ease.

Back inside the Pokemon center, Misty joined in the conversation and placed her sleeping Togepi on her bed right next to the pillow. She joined in the two girls who seemed to be having the good time chatting with each other.

"Hey Misty, where've you been?" May asked the girl who just came in

"Oh I was just out thinking that's all" was her reply

"About your Pokemons?"

"Yeah…"

"I know how you feel… when my Piplup was stolen by Team Rocket… I felt like something was missing" Dawn tried to cheer her up.

"You lost your Piplup? And you got a new one?" Misty asked

"NO!... Ash… rescued him from them…"

"Wow, really?! How did he do it?!" May's expression was a mixture of confusion and surprise

"It's a long story…"

"I guess your Piplupmust be really strong to be able to win the Pokemon contest"

"He's strong… but that wasn't how I won. (May and Misty looked confused) Ah… hehehehe. Well I guess you could call it luck"

"Ok So Misty, where did you go to?" May turned to the orange haired girl

"Huh? Oh I went to the beach… why?"

"(sigh) I guess I owe Ash another burger…"

Dawn let out a soft giggle to her expression (Misty looked even more confused) (chuckles) "Ash knew that you were going to the beach. I guess he knows more about you than you know about him hee hee hee"

"Anyway, you guys were gone for a while, you weren't doing anything… unusual… were you?" May loomed over the girl in question

Dawn nearly choked on the pretzels she was having with Buneary. She pounded her chest a few times before letting out a gasp for air.

Misty's face was turning a little red. _"What the heck?! She's barely thirteen and she's acting sixteen year old questions!"_ her face was still blushing brightly but before May could continue, Dawn and Misty shouted out in unison, "NO WAY! HE WOULD NEVER DO THAT!!!!" May backed away from the two enraged teens before stumbling onto the floor. "Sheesh it was only a joke, you didn't have to get angry about it"

To avoid anymore misunderstandings, May decided to take a shower before heading for bed, leaving Misty and Dawn to chat about random things. As Misty was getting to know the blue haired girl a little better, she decided to pop in a question, "So you were with Ash in Shinou huh?" Dawn nodded dumbly in reply. "Yeah, he helped me against Team Rocket (who I've never heard of) when they tried to steal my Piplup (several times)" Dawn inhaled again before letting out a sigh. Ash was not just her role model… he was her first love. It was easy to admit it since they barely argued like Misty or May. Whenever she was sad, Ash would be there to listen to her, when she was in trouble, he was there to help her at anytime. Ash played in an important role in her journey to become a Pokemon coordinator, if he didn't show her the ropes, she would've been lost forever in the small region of Shinou. When Ash left her to compete against the Elite four and their champion, she nearly broke down to pieces. If it wasn't for Ash's Beyleef, she would never remember have won the Pokemon contest.

After a quick trip through her trains of memories, she clicked as Misty just sat there playing with her Buneary.

**(Dawn's POV)**

So this is the Misty that Ash's been talking about. I thought that she was supposed to be pretty after what Ash has been saying about her.

**(Flash back)**

Ash, Brock and Dawn were having dinner near the road by the woods. Brock slept immediately after eating bad ham he bought from the Pokemart. Ash and Dawn immediately dropped their plates and chow down on some rice balls instead. They were eating peacefully until Ash had a funny thought popped into his head. He let out a giggle before taking another bite.

"I guess Misty was right, rice balls are better when they're warm hahahaha"

"Who's this Misty you keep saying all the time? You saying her name like it was some sort of tradition or something"

"Huh? Do I say her name that often?"

"Duh! Before every match you would say something like 'What would Misty say?' or 'What would Misty do right now?" and many more! You always say her name during your sleep!"

"Oh… well I guess it helps me focus (Dawn tilts her head a little to the side) You see, she was… no… she IS my best friend and every time I battled she would always say something to make me mad or sometimes even make me feel even worst"

"That's not right! She should be cheering you up not tearing you down!"

"There are times when she cheers me up but there was something different when she tries to insults me. (Dawn was now even more confused) You see… when she makes me mad, it makes me want to improve my skills. I felt like I wanted to prove her wrong and become even stronger than before. You could say she was using reverse psychology or something like that"

"So what you're saying is that when she makes you mad, it makes you happy?"

"No it makes me feel sad… but… Argggg! I can't explain it!"

"Ok Now you got me confused! Ok, what does she look like anyway?"

Ash blushed for awhile before he begins. He tried getting Misty's images through his mind but after awhile he remembers her aqua blue eyes, yellow outfit and orange-red hair. He could remember the very details of her attitude to the emotional tack of Pokemons. Ash described her like a mermaid who loved the sea more than anything else. He left out the bad parts and made her sound like a saint who would do not evil to anyone and to Ash's surprised… Dawn actually bought the whole story.

**(End of Flash back, Dawn's POV)**

This girl is nothing like he said! She likes the sea and she's pretty that much is true… but something tells me that there's more to her than meets the eye. She was more transparent than Ash could ever know.

That was really strange. This girl had been around Ash longer than I have but she doesn't even have the slightest clue about him. Ash knows her from head to toe, but she barely even knows his agenda. How could Ash like this girl so much?

She claims to know Ash better than any of us but the only things she knows about Ash was his bad side. She never says anything nice about him let alone insult him!

**(Normal POV)**

The two girls chat on without any reminiscence, but little did they know that another girl was eaves dropping on the whole conversation about the young trainer. May also bear a crush on Ash, but was too afraid to admit it. She closed the faucet and dressed up in her PJs before heading out.

One by one the girls lay on their beds and went straight to perspective dreams. It wasn't hard seeing how tired they were after everything that had just happened today. First the boring road trip, then the earth quake, then the news of the Pokemon thief, everything was going crazy! No one knew what to say or how to react to all of this. Official news says that Team Rocket denies the theft since their activities were ceased by Ash and his friends.

**(Back in Pallet Town, Professor Oak's place)**

Two officer Jennys arrived at the laboratory of Samuel Oak. They wanted to know if any of his Pokemons were stolen during the past few weeks. The first Jenny knocked on the door, Delia answered the knock, "Mrs. Ketchum? I didn't realize you were here…" said Jenny. "Oh I'm just staying with the professor for awhile. I'm helping him out with some of his chores. So what can I do for you today officers?" Delia gave out her usual sunny side up smile and invited them over in the living room. "Professor you have visitors!" she yelled out, "Oh is that the delivery of the new satellite? Just tell him to put it in the living room!" said the voice on the other side of the house. "No professor it's the president of research department!" "THE WHAT!!!!" an old man quickly ran down from the second floor to the first. "That gets him all the time hee hee hee" Delia chuckled as the two Jennys sweatdropped heavily.

After explaining the situation to the professor over a cup of tea, Sam was now more worried about his ranch than his own safety. "So professor, we were wondering if there were any Pokemons missing in your ranch" the professor shook his head in reply. He had made sure that all of his Pokemons were still in their shelters earlier this morning. He would always include the newly bred Pokemons along with their parents. The professor and Delia have heard about the Pokemon thefts that have been happening recently. They were even prepared if such thing should happen.

"Well if you're not having any Pokemon thefts then that's a good sign" asked the first Jenny on the left

"Our next question: Do you know Team Rocket?" said the Jenny on th right

"Why of course! They were the ones who attacked Cerulean gym a month ago weren't they?" the professor crossed his arm as he wasn't sure what these questions were all about.

"That's right" said the first Jenny, "We thought you might have encountered this person"

She held out a picture from her wallet that showed a boy with bright silver white hair dressed almost identical to Ash something was far off. The face was covered by his cap but he clearly had more than twenty Pokeballs around himself. The boy had a noble figure, like some sort of majestic royalty or something.

The second Jenny decided to explain, "This photo was captured by one of the surveillance camera in Varidian city. It match the description of the thief and reports say that he was last seen heading to this town"

"Oh my… he looks so young" Delia stated

"I'm sorry but I haven't seen anyone who has white hair… well except me of course. But if I see him I promise I'll tell you right away" said the professor

"Thank you profe… (radio static) Excuse me… This is Jenny, what is it?" the second Jenny picked up her radio from her pocket

"Officer Jenny, some travelers said that they spotted the Pokemon thief on the outskirts of Pallet town! He should be there in ten minutes of so!" the voice was somewhat static but they were able to get the words out.

The two Jennies quickly stiffened, "WHAT!!! Alright, send backup right now! I want all exits around Pallet town well guarded at all times! Come on sister let's go!"

"Coming! Umm… thank you for your time citizen" she saluted to the two odd couples and followed her cousin through the town

The two Jennys quickly rode on their scooters and left for the outskirts of town of town. Professor Oak who was surprisingly curious even in his old age, took his car and drove towards the direction of where the police were gathering.

There were at least two dozen police officers (not including the Jennys) at the local guard station. It was raining all over Kanto that evening and it has been going on for a few days now. Just when the police were setting up an ambush, one of the officers spotted a lone figure slowly walking towards them, "H… Hey, it's him! Over there!"

The boy immediately stopped a few paces from the guard who was shouting. The professor got out of his car and took out his binoculars to get a closer look. He maybe old but he really liked to see some action once in awhile.

"Alright mister! You're under arrest!" said the first Jenny

"Oh really? And under what charges am I presented?" the boy asked in a joking tone

"For being a Pokemon thieft, assaults on several Pokemon gym leaders, the abuse of Pokemon abilities and carrying more than six Pokemons without a license!" the second younger Jenny stated out his list of crimes

"Oh… did you memorize that or do you have a script?" the boy let out a small laugh

"Don't play with us, return the Pokemons you stole and we might go easy on you!"

"Stole?" he said followed by a slight giggle, "If you steal from a thief, does that make you a thief?"

"Wha…?"

The boy continued, "I'm merely taking back what rightfully belongs to his majesty, and you call me a thief? HA!"

"Grrrr… Stop talking riddles now surrender yourself or we will use force!" the older Jenny was really getting irritated by the boy's noble like talk

"Force huh… well let's see what your human strength can do against my allies!"

Three large Pokemons popped out of their Pokeballs from the boy's belt. A Charizard, Blastoise and a Venusaur appeared in front of the Jennys with rage in their eyes.

"Now… I'm giving you one minute to leave. Go now and I promise you won't get hurt… too much hehehehe"

"You can't scare us!" (On the contrare, the police force around her were nearly wetting their pants with the mere sight of the three giant Pokemons) "Go Gastly!"

"Go Growlithe!"

The boy was visibly surprised by the Jennies's actions, "Pokemons? I see you hide behind the strength of your slaves and not of your own. Hmm… they might just make worthy opponents. These two are well trained and extremely loyal. But we shall soon find out where their true loyalty stands"

"Just because your Pokemons are bigger doesn't really make them better!" said the younger Jenny

"I have no intentions on fighting you… but… it would be more interesting if your own allies turn against you. (chuckles) Come Gastly, Glowlithe. It's time for us to go. His majesty awaits you…"

The two Pokemons froze with the mere mention of the word 'majesty'. They quickly understood what the boy was saying. They looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"Good… I see your faith have not been broken. Let us leave… oh but before that… get rid of these pests for me"

The two Pokemons of the Jennys immediately drop their fighting stance and face their masters with rage in their eyes. "Growlithe?" said one of the Jennys. But before she or anyone could move a muscle, the two Pokemons unleashed their powers. First Gastly let out mist attack which blinded everyone around then Growlithe used his ember attack to torch anything that moves.

When the professor saw what was happening he couldn't believe his eyes. The entire police force ran in all directions with their tails between their legs but the Jennys refused to go anywhere. "This isn't good!" he said before getting back into his car. He immediately drove into the fire fight and told the Jennys to get it. The twins (not really) jumped in without hesitation and escaped certain firery doom.

Growlithe and Gastly were about to pursue the humans but the boy halted them, "Enough, both of you! We've wasted enough time here and his majesty is not getting better with the passing days. Let us go before we attract more attention to our side" the three Pokemons he just summoned out to scare the police went back in their Pokeballs without question. Growlithe spat out a small fire ball before heading in. The boy smiled before walking back into the forest. "Gast…" said the ghost Pokemon.

"What is it Gastly?" "Gastly gastly!" the Pokemon floated around and pointed at the direction of professor Oak's lab. "I see… so there are Pokemons there as well?" Gastly nodded, "I only wished I could go and free them my friend, but time is of the essence. I only need those who are strong, not an army. Consider yourself lucky to be chosen, I only need a few more before we move in to the second phase of our plan" the boy took out two Pokeballs which Growlithe and Gastly entered without hesitation. "Just a little longer… just a little longer" the words flew through his mouth like a whisper.

The professor's car stopped just right outside of his house. The back of the car was melted by Growlithe's last fire ball. The moment they got out, the car crumbled into pieces and was washed away by the rain. _"Oh great! I knew I should've put insurance on that car!"_ the professor shouted in his head as he helped carry one of the injured Jennys to his house.

**(Back in Fortree town, at the Pokemon center)**

Brock, Richie, Max, Drew, Misty, May, Dawn and the gym leaders woke up all together at the same time as they were awaken by the sound of stampeding footsteps. Nurse Joy, the police force and many other trainers were running around the Pokemon center like an ant colony that just lost its queen. "What's going on? Can't a guy get some sleep around here?" said Brock who was still half asleep. Richie was still carrying his pillow on his face when a trainer bumped into him, "Oh I'm sorry!" he said before dashing off again.

Richie got up before the crowd of trainers could trample all over him. "What's going on!" the gang got together at the main lobby. Nurse Joy came by with fear and worry written all over her face. "Excuse me…" Misty started but Nurse Joy burst out into anger,

"YES I KNOW THAT YOU'RE WORRIED ABOUT THIS BUT PLEASE REMAIN CALM!!!!!!!!" the entire gang took a leap back as she collected herself. May hid behind Brock who was hiding behind Dawn who was hiding behind Richie who was hiding behind the rest of the group. Poor Misty had to take the yell at full force.

"Oh I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else" said the pink haired nurse as she finally calmed down.

"Nurse Joy, can you please tell us what's happening?" Misty said hesitantly. Tears began to flow down the nurse's eyes. Brock immediately got his handkerchief and gave it to her with a smile.

"I'm terribly sorry everyone, but it seems like every Pokemon that were in the center have disappeared!" everyone shouted together "WHATTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!" they checked their bags and see if any of theirs were missing as well. They all sighed with relief.

"When did this happen?" Max asked a few meters away from the nurse,

"I'm not sure myself. When I went to take a little nap I must've dozed off during my job. Then when I woke up this morning to do my usual check up, everyone was gone!" suddenly Officer Jenny came with a steady look on her face.

"We found the Pokemons everyone! Follow me!" the gang and the entire crowd dashed through the hall. They were ready to pound the living day lights out of the thief who tried to get away with their Pokemons!

Ash was having a nice dream again. He was with Chu again in a giant field full of Pokemons. This became his little paradise. Although there wasn't much to do but play catch and tag, Ash was still surprised on how the Pokemons were able to do to entertain him. The Sunfloras were dancing around in rhythm with the Bonslys as they jump with glee. They were pleased to entertain Ash and Chu. After eating a small bundle of fruits that the Chikoritas gathered for them Ash and Chu took a break under the giant oak tree near the lake once again.

"So Ash, what do you do for a living?" Chu asked smiling with his ears pointing up.

"Oh me, I'm a Pokemon trainer!" Ash did his heroic pose, "I'm gonna become the greatest Pokemon Master this world has ever seen!" Chu and some of the Pokemons gave his friend an applause as he smile widened. Ash blushed slightly and placed his hand behind his head.

"Wow!... What's a Pokemon trainer?"

"You don't know what a Pokemon trainer is?" Chu shook his head in reply, "Well they're people who go around the world catching all kids of Pokemon and battle them in the arena" Chu froze by those words. "What's wrong Chu?"

"Th… that's horrible!" Ash was confused, "Why do they let Pokemons battle?!"

"Well I guess it's just for fun…"

"FUN?! Fun?! They take a Pokemon from its home and train it to fight just for… FUN?! That's the worst thing a person could do to a Pokemon!"

"Well it's kind of what I do…"

"NO! Ash, how could you?! Look around you! The Pokemons are happy and they're having fun even without fighting! Did you ever considered their feelings too?"

"Of course I have! They're my friends and I would never do anything to hurt them!"

"Then why do you let these… trainers capture them?"

I… I never really thought of that"

"You have Pokemons too right?" Ash didn't say anything so he just nodded dumbly, "When you catch a Pokemon… how does it feel?" The young trainer couldn't reply to that question. He thought about it and ran a train of thoughts through his mind. Whenever he captures a Pokemon he would feel proud and excited about it. He would be happy that he was able to get a new companion for his journey. But he never thought of how the Pokemon would feel.

How would you feel if you were taken away from your home and trained to become nothing more but a machine bent on fighting and doing his/her master's every biddings? He would feel abused that's what! Ash ran a memory train over and over until his mind suddenly clicked. He would be devastated it he was taken from his family and friends just to be sent to an arena.

Ash couldn't believe this. He thought his actions were just for mere entertainment but after replaying the thoughts of how a Pokemon feels after being captured he would see the smile of his Pikachu.

"But they all look so happy around me…" he said finally

"Are you sure they're happy? Or are they just pretending to be happy?"

"No! They are happy around me!"

"How do you know?!" the Pokemons began to back away from the two. They cower in fear as if a storm was about to burst out. The sky darkened with a defining sound of lighting rumble.

"I don't… I just know they're happy"

"You… you mean you can feel them?"

"Yeah that's it! I can feel them. It feels like…"

"A connection…"

"No… more like… a telepathic emotion"

Chu was silenced by Ash's words. He could see in his eyes that he was telling the truth, besides he didn't have any reason to lie.

There were no words in exchanged for a long time. The two of them went into a state of mute.

"You're just like him…" it was Chu who broke the silence

Ash gave a questioned look. "Huh?" "You're just like him…"

"Just like who?"

"A friend I had a long time ago…"

"Well, whoever this person was, he must've been a great person to know you"

"You think so?" the smile returned to Chu's face. The Pokemons also began to feel safe and secure. Ash nodded his head proudly.

"What was his name?" Ash took another bite on an apple that was left on the leaf plate.

"His name was… his name was…" Chu searched his mind for awhile to find the name of his friend, "I… I forgot… It was a long time ago since I last saw him"

"I see. Well, I'm sure you'll see him again someday!" Ash gave Chu hope with an encouraging smile.

"Hey Ash… can you promise me something? (Ash looked confused) Promise me that you'll come back again… ok?"

"Hehehe… sure Chu, I'll come back, but I'm not sure when"

"That's ok… but promise me" Chu held out his pinky finger out, "Pinky swear!"

Ash laughed at his friend's child like attitude and crossed his pinky with Chu's, "Pinky swear…" when Ash muttered out those words, a great white light streamed down the land making him go almost completely blind. The last thing he saw was Chu… smiling back at him with happiness. "I'll see you again… Ash……" Ash closed his eyes knowing that he going to wake up very soon from this little paradise. He was expecting a warm welcome by his friends but instead all he got was a shout that could pop out his ears "THERE THEY ARE! OVER THERE!"


	13. Why is Everyone going to Valmarian?

**Chapter 13: Why is Everyone Going To Valmarian?!**

"THERE THEY ARE OVER THERE!!!" said Officer Jenny to the crowd behind her. She was pointing at the garden behind the Pokemon center where Ash was sleeping.

Ash slowly opened his eyelids and yawned out with a smile. He had a nice dream and he felt more revitalized than he was before. He woke his little Pikachu who was sleeping next to his Espeon. Ash then looked around with his eyes still blurry from sleep. There were colors everywhere, different colors each with different shapes and sizes. Ash rubbed the sand out of his eyes until they were focused enough to see what was around him. Ash was shocked on what he saw around him! Pokemons of different species were sleeping around the young trainer. There were about more than a hundred Pokemons laying next to him. They snored peacefully until the shout of officer Jenny woke them up.

"What the? Am I dreaming again?" Ash could barely believe his own eyes. He pinched himself so hard it left a red mark on his cheek. "Ouch! Ok this isn't a dream!... Wait… if this isn't a dream then this must be…"

"Real…?" Misty cut him off with a suspicious glare.

"Mr. Ketchum?" said Nurse Joy, "What's going on here?"

"I wished I knew. Am I still dreaming?"

Pinch

That was the sound of Misty pinching on his red cheek. "No, I don't think so…"

After the Pokemons were taken back into the center and Ash and the others changed into their normal clothing, Officer Jenny came back with an irritated look on her eyes.

"Alright Mr. Ketchum, would you mind explaining on how you got all those Pokemons outside?" said Jenny with a annoyed face. One of her hand was on her hip while the other was holding her police club. "I wish I knew Officer Jenny" the accused boy said plainly, "But the truth is: I don't have a clue" It was then Joy decided to come in and give a report

"I've checked on all the Pokemons and it looks like they're all accounted for" she sighed

May and the other girls sighed as well, "That's a relief, for a minute there I thought the Pokemon thief stole them""

"But why would all the Pokemons would go to Ash? It's not like he attractive or anything… unless… You're using some sort of perfume to attract Pokemons!" said Max pointing at Ash

"I doubt it..." Dawn started, "Ash doesn't use perfume. A quick sniff and he'd go to a sneezing session for an hour at least. I should know, I gave him a dose of my apple scent perfume"

"Wow Ash you must have allergies against perfume!" Richie laughed at him

"Not really, my nose is just sensitive that's all. I've had this for a long time already… Haaa… haaa… haaa!... HATCHOO!!"

"Ga-sun-tyte…" Drew replied

"Well it looks like the bus is here gu… (sniff sniff)" before Brock could finish his sentence, he began sniffing the air like some sort of dog or something. There was something wrong in the air. Annoyed by the boy's strange attempt to sniff the oxygen, Misty decided to ask, "What is it Brock?"

The future breeder simply continued to sniff as he replied, "(Sniff sniff) I know that smell… (sniff sniff) AHA! You're an imposter! (points at Nurse Joy)"

"Brock what are you talking about? That's Nurse Joy!" May stated which her brother agreed, "Yeah, if you've seen one Joy you've seen them all"

"That maybe true for you guys" said Brock "But I know that no Nurse Joy would ever wear a Conier Cologne! That is against the code of the Nurse Joy to never wear such a smell ever!"

Ash waved his hand over to him in defense, "Easy Brock, maybe this Nurse Joy is different"

"Yeah it's like you said before, all Nurse Joys are different right?" said Misty holding her Togepi in her arms

"Hee hee hee, I guess I can't hide anything from you Brock" the whole gang turned their heads to the Nurse Joy who was snickering like an evil villain. She then immediately spins around and quickly her disguise fell off to reveal an emerald haired girl with slightly thicker eye brows. Ash, Misty and Brock shouted her name all together, "Duplica!?" the rest of the gang stood at awe as the Chansey slowly morphed into a Ditto. "Hi guys, long time no see!"

Flannery some how managed to recognize that name some how, "Duplica?... Hmm… Duplica… Oh I remember now! You're that imitator from Johto! Oh my I love your shows! Can you sign my autograph book?"

"Uh… sure no problem"

"So Duplica, what brings you to this neck of the woods?" Brock asked their newly founded friend, "Ahee hee hee! I'm going to Patleburg city to catch a boat ride to Valmarian city!" was her reply

"So you're going to watch the tournament?" Ash asked

"Of course not silly" she quickly picked out a letter of recommendation from her pocket and unfolded it with one hand motion, "I'm participating in it!"

"WHAT!!!!" everyone was amazed on this little discovery. Not only have they discovered another one of Ash's friends, but another challenger of the Valmarian league! Ash quickly recovered from his shock and held out his hand in congratulations. "Wow Duplica, congratulation! I guess we'll be fighting each other in the league!"

"You bet we will! And don't even think for a second you're going to win cuz I'm gonna give you everything I've got!"

"HA! I don't expect anything less from a person who knows her Dittos! Oh by the way where are your other Dittos?"

Duplica smiled and pulled out two Pokeballs. Two more Dittos appeared with different shapes. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Dit, mini Dit, Daddy Dit, Mommy Dit, Uncle Dit, and the newest member of our family, Dit junior. They'll be my Pokemons for the battle!"

Brock stood next to her, "All your Pokemons are going to be Dittos?"

"Yup that's right, and they're all well trained for any kind of situations!"

Max gave a quick thought on what Dittos could do, "Hmm… Dittos are morpher Pokemons that means they can imitate all of their opponents attack!"

"I'm impressed Duplica. I have a feeling that your Dittos would make a great challenge in the Valmarian league!" Duplica blushed brightly at Ash's comment. She felt embarrassed but kept the emotion hidden behind her smile. "Th… thanks Ash!" she forced out the words like they were stuck in her throat.

"Hey since you're going to Valmarian, why don't you come with us? We're heading there ourselves! If we travel together it might be more fun!"

"Really?! Sure I'd love to! Just let me grab my things from my room and we can go!"

Even Duplica had a crush on Ash. Though she had never traveled with him before, she thought of this as her chance to finally get to know the boy a little better

"Well I guess that's more stomachs for Brock to cook for" Misty joked with a giggle

Brock simply let out a soft laugh, "I guess your right, I may as well stock up on supplies before we head out"

"Wait for me Brock I want to get something too!" Max followed the boy out of the place

Pikachu grabbed Ash's face and whispered 'Pikapi pikapichu!' no one could understand it, but by the little mouse's reaction, Ash knew immediately what he wanted. "Oh that's right, I need to get more ketchup for Pikachu. Hey Brock wait up!"

With the three boys gone to fetch food and supplies for their journey Drew and Richie followed out, leaving the girls behind to… well you know… do girl stuff.

Jasmine and Flannery were at it again. Whitney was barely able to hold the two bickering gym leaders from hammering each other with their mallets.

Misty fed her Togepi with little pieces of pokechow. May and Dawn were playing a game of cards while Duplica observed them. So… all in all… it wasn't much fun…

**LET'S GO TO THE BOYS!!.**

Ash stretched out his arms and legs with his Pikachu as they walked through the Pokemart grocery store. Richie and Max were picking out the best snacks and comics while Brock was looking for ingredients for his recipes. Drew was out buying some hair care products and some breath mints.

The morning nearly passed by until Brock looked at his watch. "Oh no! Come on everyone, the bus's leaving in an hour!" everyone immediately gathered all the groceries and left the store with a huge dash behind them. The traffic was bad but somehow they were able to make it to the bus before it left.

All the boys panted heavily as the door swooshed closed. May was the first to congratulate them, "Well it looks like you made it in time" they all smiled back at her. Misty didn't even bothered to look at them. She just stared out of the window and gaze into the half destroyed town. But then a single figure caught her eye. It was Ash! He was still running around the corner with three heavy looking plastic bags. "Hey isn't that Ash?!" the rest shouted in unison, "WHAT!"

"Guys! Wait for me!" Ash was running as fast as he could, but with Pikachu on his shoulders and not to mention three bags, it wasn't exactly making him go any faster.

"Brock, tell the driver to stop!" Dawn yelled out to him.

Brock went to the front of the bus to inform the driver of the situation but when he got to the driver's seat… his body froze. Richie ran next to him with Sparky, "Brock, what's wrong you look like you just saw a ghost" and he did! Brock pointed at the driver's seat.

"Th… th… th… th… the driver is…!" Brock was stuttering as the gears, paddle and handle moved on their own. Richie looked in amazement and fear, "There's no driver!" he squealed out in shock. The gang tried to get out but the door bus suddenly locked itself tight! It clearly spelled doom for our heroes!

Ash quickly caught sight of his friends in peril so he immediately dropped his bags and let out Bulbasaur. "Now Bulbasaur, use vine whip to hold the bus!" the bus screeched its tires against the road as it slowly pulled away.

Dawn immediately saw the situation they were in and sent out her Beyleef out the window. "Beyleef, use vine whip and hold the bus as long as you can!" even with a Beyleef and a Bulbasaur holding it… it wasn't enough. Suddenly Duplica called in her Pokemons as well. "Dit, turn into Beyleef, Dit junior, turn into Bulbasaur!" the two Dittos morphed into exact duplicates of Ash and Dawn's Pokemons except that Dit junior turned into a large version of Bulbasaur. "Now you two, use vine whip as well!"

Just as the bus came to a halt with its tires still running, the bus quickly changed into the next gear and moved even faster. "Oh no, we're doomed!" Max was holding himself together as Drew tried to calm him down.

Misty, Brock and the gym leaders tried to break the door with a crow bar but still it wouldn't budge. "This isn't working we need to try something else! Everyone, try climbing out of the windows!" but it was too late. The windows closed by themselves automatically. It felt like someone or something didn't want them to leave this bus alive.

It was then, Ash had a brilliant idea! "This isn't getting us anywhere… Cyndaquil I choose you! Cyndaquil pops out of the Pokeball Cyndaquil use flame thrower on the tires now!" the little mole Pokemon breathed its flame on the bus tires and melted it to tars. The wheels couldn't move and all the grass Pokemons finally released their grip.

Just as soon as the bus came to a halt, everything went back to place. The door suddenly opened, the windows were unlocked and the bus engines shutdown.

"Are you guys alright!?" Ash rushed to his friends with a worried face

Drew was the first who managed to reply with a slight stutter, "I'm f…fine"

"I almost wet… my pants…" said Max as his eye glass was tilted

Brock however was quick to recover from the blast, "That was some quick thinking Ash, you saved us"

Ash simply rubbed the back of his head in embarassment, "Aww it was nothing, you guys would've done the same"

"That's it… that's the last time I'm taking public transportation…" that was May who was nearly as green as a goblin

It wasn't long until the driver of the bus came, "Hey! Is everybody alright?"

"We're fine sir, but I can't say the same for the bus" Richie replied

"Well that's good to hear, but driving my bus is completely out of the order!"

"It wasn't us sir, HONEST! The bus was moving on its own like it had a mind of its own!" Brock protested as he pointed at the bus which was smoking badly.

The others (except Ash) nodded in agreement.

After reconciling with the station manager about what just happened the gang had a feeling that they were going to be in a lot of trouble, but with Ash's fortunate fame and a recommendation from the town's gym leader, Winona, they were able to get out of trouble with ease.

Hoping not to make that sort of mistake ever again, Ash decided that they should travel the old fashion way… hiking! Everyone raised their hands in agreement.

Without taking out more time from their tight schedule the gang decided to split the supplies they bought and make their way through route 119.

click, click

The sound of a single camera taking photos. Everyone turned their heads towards the camera man. The boy chuckled before revealing his face. Ash, Brock and Misty shouted his name together, "Todd!"

"That's right! Todd, ace photographer from Kanto at your service!" he took a few more pictures of Pikachu and Sparky as they drank up their bottles of ketchup. "That's perfect! Smile you two… (pikachu! x 2) That's great!

"So Todd, what are you doing here?" Ash wondered, "Believe it or not, I'm heading to Valmarian city!"

"To participate?!" they all said together

"Of course not, I'm not a trainer! I know that all trainers from around the world are going to Valmarian. And where there's trainers, there's bound to be a rare Pokemon for me to take photos of!" fire began glowing through his eyes with determination.

"Well if that's the case, you can come with us too! We're going to Petalburg city to catch the next boat"

Todd's face sparked out with joy, "Ya mean it?! (they all nodded) Well who could say no to the famous Ash Ketchum?! I'll meet you guys at the exit in ten minutes! I still need a few photos for Hoenn weekly newspaper. That earthquake did more damage than I thought"

"Earthquake? Where did it hit?" May jumped off her seat, hoping that it didn't hit her hometown.

"Well from the latest reports I've heard of was that it started at the city of Rustboro, then it moved on to Fallabor town and after that I heard it stopped here in Fortree town. Luckily, Lavaridge town only got a scratch" May and Flannery exhaled with relief. "Oh and one more thing. I heard that route 111-115 are closed off for repairs"

"That's ok, we're heading through route 119 to Mauville city and… (Pikapi pika!) Huh? Oh yeah, and we need to find Tracey too!"

"Tracey?... Tracey… Tracey… hmm… is he that guy with a strange hairstyle, wears a head band and likes to sketch all the time?" the group nodded dumbly in reply, "I've only heard of him on TV with professor Oak but never really met him in person"

"He was supposed to be in some sort of ruin in the woods between route 111 and 119" said Brock.

"Ruin? This is great! I might get a close look on a very rare and very old Pokemon!"

"So that means you go with us?" Brock smiled evilly

"You bet I will! Forget Hoenn weekly, this might get me a bigger prize!"

"Great! You can help with the bags!" Brock throws a heavy backpack to Todd which weights almost a ton!

"Gwahh!" Todd fell on his back unconscious with swirly eyes

The gang burst out a laugh with Brock's little joke… it was a joke right?

**(Somewhere along route 103)**

Two white haired figures stood near the river as if they were waiting for something.

"Do you feel it yet?" said the WHB. The boy that looked like Chu simply replied answered him with silence, "I see… then I guess we'll…" just when he was about to head off back into the forest shade, Chu let out a small yell which caught his entire attention.

"Wait!" I can feel something but it's not a Red Gyrados…"

"Then we have no use for it…" he replied

"It's much stronger!" Chu yelled at him as he tried to remain in telepathic communication with the Pokemon in his mind.

"A Whaillord?" WHB asked

"No…" Chu replied back shaking his head, "It's a… a Regirock!"

"A Regirock you say? Well this might be interesting… call it"

"Yes…" with a simple whistle to the air, the slight sound pierce through the strongest of winds and echoed through the land till it finally reaches its target, "…… it's coming!" Just as the whistle sound echoed through the silent forest, a huge rumble began occur which scared away the nearby Pokemons. Just by the river, a red Regirock appeared with its eyes locked on to the sound of the whistle.

WHB gave out a slight smile on his face. "Ah… Regirock: Soldiers of his majesty" he began observing the Pokemon's body but then he realized that it was still a young and weak one, "We have no need for a weak one like her"

Chu was about to protest but then he realized that he was right, "But she's… I understand… come here rocky" just when Chu was petting the rock Pokemon, a deep voice echoed from behind with a slight hint of sleepiness in the tone.

"Don't play with the beast, boy… a young one can be very dangerous at some point when not tamed"

Another boy, older than Chu but younger than WHB appeared. He was wearing matching outfits with theirs. They do this so when they past by town to town they'd look like regular Ash fans.

"Oh… it's you Chaucer. What have you been doing?" WHB asked

"I've been keeping an eye out for his majesty, but I lost track of him during earth quake"

"What about his condition?"

"(sigh) I'm afraid it continues to worsen as we speak. His body won't last against the power when it arrives" this caught the attention of Chu who stopped playing with the rock Pokemon.

"So… you mean he'll…"

"Yes… he will die"

"NO! We have to help him!"

WHB had to agree with Chu, "The boy is right. We must do something about this… hmm…let me think… hmm… looks at Regirock I think we might have some use for this Regirock after all Hey you! (the Pokemon turn its attention to him) Are you still loyal…?"

The Regirock lowered its head to listen at the plan of the 'white hair'. What are they planning to do? And who is this majesty they keep calling? Find out more after these messages!

**(On Route 119)**

The gang (now including Todd, Dawn and Duplica) slowly hiked down the road towards Mauville city but before they can get there, they must go to the ruins deep within the forest, where their friend awaits to be rescued.

Brock was now leading the way (with Misty's insistence) through the dirt road. Everyone was still recovering from the mysterious bus accident but after a long walk, it seemed just like a dream to everybody now.

"Hey Brock are we there yet?" Ash complained with a boorish tone. They had been walking for hours without a single break and some were already sweating buckets.

"Hmm… from the map that professor Oak sent us, the ruins that Tracey was exploring on should be right about… here!" he said pointing towards a bunch of trees. May disagreed to this, "Very perceptive Brock, but how exactly are we gonna find this ruin?"

"Well if it's a ruin then it must be pretty old looking…" Max stated out the obvious

"Well it could be a cave, a building covered with vines or old temple or something" said Flannery

"Or it could be a huge damp castle with bugs infesting around its every corner" Todd said with excitement filling his mind.

'bugs' that simple word already froze Misty on her feet. She wasn't gonna take another step unless the place they're going was either a hotel, Pokemon center or a swimming pool. "Umm… why don't I just stay here and you guys can go on ahead" it was already obvious that she was afraid of bugs. It was written all over her face. Ash knew of her phobia against bug types so he let out a small sigh

"Come on Misty, Todd was just joking around. Besides, we're doing this for the professor. The faster we get Tracey out of there, the faster we get to Valmarian city. We might also find a rare Pokemon in there too!"

"I was hoping 'the faster we finish this the faster we can get to a hot spring' (sigh) (everyone was already leaving) Hey… hey guys don't leave me behind!"

As the team journeyed through the forest to find their lost friend, a pair of undeserving villains entered the scene with evil grins on their faces.

"Did you hear that?" that was Butch the partner in crime of the criminal Cassidy

"You bet I did… rare…"

"And old Pokemons"

"Yes! Our boss is going to be so pleased when he sees what we bring him"

"Whatever it must be, it's going to make us rich!" said Butch raising a fist to the air

But Cassidy was having a bigger dream, "Not just rich but filthy rich! Let's go Butch! It's time we… huh?" they were so caught up with their dream of becoming sorrounded by gold that they didnt't even realize that they were standing on top of a simple pot hole trap. "WHAA!!!! Ouch! Who put that pot hole there!?"

"Well well well, what da ya know? That pot hole trap actually worked" that was the voice of none other than Oakley, the famous agent of Team Rocket.

"Oakley! You get us out of here this instant!" Cassidy demanded as she raised herself from the bottom.

"What's the word I'm looking for? Oh that's right… **NO!** This trap was supposed to be for those kids and their Pokemons but I guess you'll have to suffice. Now tell us where are they heading to?"

"Yeah right, as if we'll tell"

Butch then decided to add, "Yeah, you'll never know that they're going to the ruins to find a rare and ancient Pokemon"

"Sometimes Butch I wonder how you ever became my partner" Cassidy hung her head down below the ground

"Oooooo… did he just say a rare and really old Pokemon?" Annie decided to pop her head out of the bush and faced the two unlucky criminal who were caught in their simple trap.

Oakley let out an evil snicker, "Well well, I just so happen to love antiques and rarities. Let's go Annie!"

"Hey wait! What about us!?" Cassidy pleaded, which was only returned with an empty sound of silence, "Grrrrr! This means war! Come on Butch we need to get to those kids before our chance of fame slips away!"

Back in the forest the gang continues to search for any signs of Tracey and the ruin he was exploring but after a few hours of search there were still no sign of him.

The group decided to take a break and set up camp on a small opening near a giant boulder that seemed to have been there for ages. Brock hoped that Tracey would be drawn to the smell and come to them instead. Everyone did their task to the letter: Jasmine and Whitney would help with the firewoord, Ash, Drew and May set up the sleeping bags, Misty, Dawn, Brock and Todd help set up the campfire and food, while Flannery, Max and Duplica helped gather some natural fruits that were abundant in the area.

Everyone was amazed by Brock's cooking. Some were used to the taste but for those who just had their first sip/bite were instantly asking for seconds. The gang laughed for awhile and before they knew it, Brock's special stew was completely gone! Every last drop of sauce and bits of pieces of meat vanished into their stomachs. The gang sat on their own spot near the fire as it slowly dimmed down. Drew threw in another small piece of wood to keep it burning. It was relatively hard to say anything since none of them ever traveled in such a big group. Brock was still glaring at the gym leaders as he tried to decide which to choose! Gregguru stood by just in case the desperate lover boy would make a stupid move. The Pokemons had their fill of Pokechows and were stuffed already.

The sound of silence would've made Ash bored to death if it could. He decided that his precious time would be a waste without some training. He announced a training session with the gym leaders, coordinators and trainers which they all agreed to go for.

Ash and Drew unleashed their Pokemons (all of them) and begun training with the gym leaders! Whitney was amazed that Ash's Pokemons were still in their first stage of evolution and they were already so strong! Her Miltank was easily taken out by Bulbasaur's razor leaf and tackle attack, Flannery's Magu was exhausted before May's Blaziken could even break a sweat and Jasmine's Magnemite was taken out with one fell swoop of Drew's Roselia's tackle.

The gym leaders were impressed, but also sad to see that the younger generations were now better than them. When Ash came into their gyms they knew he was different from the others. His determination to become the greatest and perhaps youngest Pokemon master in the world was incomparable to any trainers they've met. As they gaze onto him they couldn't help but smile.

Whitney walked on to Ash with a challenge in mind, "Hey Ash, why don't we see how tough you really are!" Ash smiled with excitement as he listens to her challenge offer, "Jasmine, Flannery and me against you!" No one was dumb enough to take on three gym leaders at once, but for Ash, who was known to have never back down on a fight agreed without second thoughts,

"You're on Whitney! Pikachu, let's show them how strong you've grown!" 'Pi-ka-chu!' the little mouse let out a few sparks with a smirk.

The entire field grew silent as they awaited the battle to commence. Brock refereed, "This match will be ah… well… the first three on one match! Flannery from Lavaridge town, Whitney from Goldenrod city and Jasmine from Olivine city versus Ash Ketchum from Pallet town!" They all took battle positions. May, Dawn, Max and Richie watch anxiously as soon as Brock let out the starting signal.

Whitney chose Nidorina, Flannery chose Torkoal while Jasmine summoned out her Steelix.

"Wait a minute, are you guys gonna attack me all at once?" Ash was now having second thoughts on the battle ground.

Jasmine gave out a grin, "If you want to be Pokemon master, then show us what you got Ash Ketchum!" the battle was now getting more tense than ever. There were even some who thought that Ash would back down, but to their surprise, the young trainer stood his ground with Pikachu's assurance. "Alright Pikachu, let's show them one of our new attack moves!" with those words the battle began…

Jasmine shouted, "Steelix, use wrap attack!"

Whitney commanded, "Nidorina, use headbutt!"

Flannery barked, "Torkoal, show him some fire power!"

The three Pokemons put all their efforts into attacking Pikachu, but Ash was confident… no… he believed in Pikachu, he believed that their journey together made them into who they are now and there's no way he would be beaten now! "Pikachu, use boomerang tail!" in an instant the mouse began spinning in mid-air and countered Steelix and Nidorina's attack. Pikachu didn't stop spinning though. He spin right into Torkoal's fire attack but came out unharmed. Everyone stood in shock as they saw how Pikachu easily countered three attack moves all at once.

"It may be strong but let's see how far it can go! Torkoal, use heat wave!" Flannery raised her arm and let out her trade mark shout

"Well it's your choice. Pikachu, let's deal with Torkoal first (Pika!) Ok… one two… NOW dodge it Pikachu!"

Pikachu immediately leaped away from the fire as it slammed again Steelix. Jasmine was once again cursing Flannery "Alright Pikachu now use thunder shock!" immediately the mouse surge up electricity and sent it towards Torkoal, "Torkoal, use iron defense!" the turtle like Pokemon immediately bounce off the attack and remained unharmed.

Jasmine saw an opening and decided to take it, "Alright Steelix let's take him out! Use tackle attack!"

Whitney also saw the exposed area and followed Jasmine, "Nidorina, poison sting attack now!"

"Alright Pikachu, use agility and use thunder bolt while you're at it! (Pikachu!)"

Pikachu evaded each sting with great speed as it shoots out lightning towards Nidorita.

"Flannery, NOW!" Whitney commanded

"I got it! Torkoal, use smoke screen!"

As a thick smoke engulfs the entire battlefield, everyone knew that this was trouble for Ash.

"Alright Nidorina, use your ears and find Pikachu!"

"That won't work against me! Pikachu, lighting burst now!"

After the order was given out, Pikachu immediately let out a strong wave of static electricity which damaged all of the gym trainers Pokemons.

The smoke cleared out and to everyone's surprise, Pikachu was still standing but it also looked exhausted. On the other side, Nidorina, Torkoal and Steelix were tired too but they were still conscious. The gym leaders couldn't believe what was happening. If Ash's Pikachu could hold himself off against the three of them, there was a good chance for him to actually win. Jasmine shook away the thought and continued the fight!

Jasmine saw that Pikachu was getting tired so she decided to give Ash a chance to give up, "You might as well give up Ash. You might be strong but you're still no match for three Pokemons at once"

But the boy wasn't the type of person who would pull out on a match, "Don't count your Goldeen until they hatch Jasmine. I have faith in my Pikachu and I believe that we can win this. Am I right buddy? (Pika!) It's time we take this seriously!"

With a quick move of his hand, Ash flipped his hat backwards and gave out a grin that would've knocked the Pokemons off their feet. Richie and the others watch in amazement. That was Ash's signature move! Every time he did that he would always win! And I mean all the time!

May, Duplica and Hikari were rooting for Ash alright. They were cheering him with all their hearts. As Brock looked at the 'cheer leaders' and was jealous of Ash. _"Why don't girls do that for me?!"_ he thought.

The gym leaders knew of this hat technique as well. They've seen Ash do that on TV and it seemed to have an effect on them and their Pokemons as well.

But wait… where's Misty?

Secretly on the otherside of the camp, Misty wasn't really awed by Ash's new moves. She had already seen those moves a few times during their travels in Kanto Battle Frontier. On her face… she looked like she was bored but in her heart she was rooting for him with everything she's got! She held her Togepi tighter whenever the battle gets too tense. She would begin to sweat every second as the battle wages on. She'd panic whenever Ash loses a round.

"_Come on Ash, you can do it! I know you can!"_ she was mentally cheering inside her head, "Go Ash go! Show them what you're made of!" May squealed out beside Misty. Richie and Drew were already intimidated from Ash's signature move and they weren't even battling him yet! Ash's Espeon purred under Duplica's feet as it watch her new master battles it out.

Todd took a few pictures of Ash's face and the battle itself. He wasted an entire roll of films on that battle since he just couldn't get enough. It wasn't until then… that he realized that his hands were shaking on his camera.

"Let's do it!... Pikachu, absorb!"

Pikachu began draining electricity that was in the air to itself. No one ever knew that Pikachu could do that so they were a bit surprised.

Jasmine saw this as a weakpoint so she considered about exploiting it, "Alright girls, let's finish it before it does anything else!"

The three Pokemons leaped towards Pikachu as it prepares for a blow even Ash would be afraid of. Just before the three Pokemons were mere inches away Ash smiled and gave out the order, "Pikachu, use Lighting Storm!" the electrical Pokemon jumped into the air and gave out a giant flash.

Hundreds, perhaps thousands of lighting bolts slammed on the battlefield. Nidorina was blinded by the light and couldn't see anything. Steelix, though it was made entirely of steel, still fell from the multiple blasts it was given. Torkoal hid inside its shell but a few bolts of electricity snuck its way inside, causing him faint.

The attack went on for a good twenty seconds before finally stopping. Pikachu landed on the ground without a scratch. Even when let out so much energy the little mouse looked like it could still fight. Everyone in the camp had only one expression, _"What happened?!"_

Brock was awed by this little light show that he couldn't even speak. His jaw would've drop below sea level if it could. He took his time before announcing the battle, "Uh… uh… um… Huh? Oh! Steelix, Nidorina and Torkoal are unable to battle! The match goes to Ash and his Pikachu!"

"Alright, we did it Pikachu, we beat'em!" Ash was jumping with joy with his Pikachu on his shoulder.

The three summoned back their Pokemons to their Pokeball in defeat but were still proud of them. However… even in defeat… the three couldn't help but let out a few tears to fall down their faces. Ash began to wonder if he had hurt their feelings. "Hey… are you three ok?" they all didn't say a word. They were now openly crying in front of Ash. The boy felt guilt piling up on his chest.

Jasmine was the first to recover from the little dramatic emotion, "No Ash… it's just… how can I say this… (sob)" Suddenly, Ash's Pokemons jumped onto his side with smiles on their faces. The three gym leaders burst with pride as they watched the boy react with his Pokemons. Brock was also proud of Ash when he realized how strong he had become. Duplica was happy for Ash but soon felt disappointed with herself as she had no part in his growth. She wished she'd traveled with Ash when she had a chance.

After the three gym leaders wiped their faces from the tears they had let out Whitney walked up to Ash and handed him a small prize for his hard work. It was a small bag of Pokechow. Ash thanked Whitney and gave it to Pikachu for him to eat since he did deserve it.

With his spirit lifted up, Brock decided to cook again for Ash's victory celebration. The tense battle that had just erupted made everyone hungry (heck even I'm hungry!) in fact, they were anxious to see what Brock was gonna cook next!

The gang digs in to their plates without hesitation. The food tasted twice as good after such a wonderful match. Pikachu gobbled down the Pokechow with his friends in almost an instant. As the young trainer looked around the camp fire he thought everything was perfect. His friends were having a blast, he was happy and not a care in the world. Yup… this was indeed the best meal he ever had in his life.

By the next morning, everyone was still asleep since they did stay up all night. Ash, who now seemed to have unusal stamina and strength, was the first to get up. He wasn't that tired at all though. His companions and friends were sleeping like logs while he was fully energized in an instant.

Since there was nothing to do Ash decided to take a little stroll not far from the camp. He walked through small weed covered area and rusty mushroom filled meadows. The boy was now enjoying the scene that he had miss during his entire journey. He watched as the clouds slowly changed shape and how the trees made a beautiful sound that was almost similar to the seas. A quiet hushing sound that comes and goes in an instant. Ash laid on the ground and felt the wind blowing through his hair. It felt great…

After a few minutes of looking around and sight seeing, the boy came upon a somewhat familiar path. It was indeed just like his dream except that it was in the morning not at night.

Standing under a single tree surrounded by a forest. He gazed into the sky but only saw the sun. "There were supposed to be two moons" he muttered out. He pointed out his flashlight even though it was still morning. He followed what he did during that dream he had a few weeks ago.

After a few minutes of walking aimlessly through the empty grass area, Ash found the dirt path that was also in his dreams. "Chu…" he whispered to himself. He began walking slowly through the darkned path. The trees were so close together that not even a spark of sunlight could get through. Ash turned on his flashlight and made his way through the dirt road path. He was getting really excited about this road. If it was just like his dreams, then he would be in an open field with thousands of Pokemons of all species gathered together. The mere image of the dream he had was enough to get his blood pumping. From that point on he began to sprinting and then… just like in his dream, his flashlight ran out of energy. "Yup… this is just exatly how my dream went!" he stated out. At this point he would've been panicking in the dark but this just made him more excited. If all this part came true then the place he was looking for must've been just around the corner.

He sprint soon became like a run for his life! He ran through the darkness for a whole minute before finally seeing light through a small opening. He let out a wide smile. Just when the light smashed upon his face his eyes squinted. After adjusting his eyes to the sun light he quickly opened up his eye lids to see the field of Pokemons. His smile however… soon faded after what he saw.

A lush green open field was gone. All that stood was a desolate place that appeared to have been scorched by fire. The lake that was supposed to be so clean and pure that you could see the bottom was now a murky toxic swamp area. The tree that Chu and him used to sit under was replaced by a strange old crummy building with strange markings on it. This was a complete nightmare…

"This isn't it…" Ash muttered out the words before squeezing his nose. The stench of the swamp was terrible. He walked around the field looking at several land marks in his dream. On the east part of the field stood four giant rocks that the Pichus would hang about. The small packs of apple trees were ruined as if they were burned just yesterday. It was a sight that would really turn anyone down.

"Where are the Pokemons? The meadow… the lake… Chu…" Ash wasn't feeling any better until he heard a soft moan from the old ruin in front of him. It sounded human…

He entered the structure cautiously, hoping not to find any dangerous Pokemons in there. "Hello? Anyone here?" he called out to the hallowed room. He listened for an answer but there was no reply. While scurrying through the room, he was amazed by the tapestries that were carved in on the wall. There were pictures of Pokemons, humans and the world. He couldn't really make any sense out of it but he knew it meant something important.

Just as he took a closer look at the carvings, a hand tap his shoulder with a soft, scary moan. Ash slowly turned his head hoping to find either his friends or his Pokemons. He pointed his flashlight (now with new batteries) towards the face and saw a wrinkled zombie like person!

Ash was pertrified. He couldn't move or speak since his mind was scared to heck! The zombie looked familiar to him, but right now… he didn't really care. Just when he got control over his mouth again, he yelled out to the top of his lunges like there was no tomorrow.

"**AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" **

Back at the camp site, Misty had awoken from a strange feeling. Ash's yell couldn't be heard from her distance but she could feel something wrong. "Ash? Ash!? ASH!!?" she panicked around the camp site. Her Togepi was still lying on the ground sleeping peacefully next to Pikachu. The feeling of uneasiness crawled through her skin like a Caterpie. She had a feeling that Ash was in trouble so she decided to wake the person who would under stand her the most… Brock.

"Brock, wake up!" she yelled at him. The squinty eyed man turned his head to the side with a perverted smile on his face. "Hmm… Nurse Joy… you look so pretty today… heh heh heh" he was drooling over his sleeping bag. Misty couldn't believe this! Even in his sleeps he still thinks of this stuff! "Wake up you idiot!" she used her trusty mallet to wake him up.

"Come on Brock we need to find Ash!" she wasn't even hiding her screams anymore. Brock had little choice since the moment he woke up he was already being dragged by the orange haired girl.

They spent the last few hours searching for the boy. Misty was preparing herself for the worst. She thought that Ash was either lost or being chased by a pack of angry Beedrills. She shook away the thought hoping neither of them were true and hoped that Ash was just sleeping somewhere else.

Back in the ruins, the near zombie like person was gulping down on Ash's water canteen. He practically ate everything he had on him. From the tiniest gum to the biggest chocolate bar, he ate it all. "Ah…" he let out a satisfied sound, "Thank you Ash… you saved my life…" Ash starred at the boy a little older than him and sighed with relief that it was a brain eating zombie, "Geeze… Tracey, you scared the pants off me" "Ahe he he… Sorry, I didn't know that I looked that bad. I haven't really eating anything for the past few days"

"The professor was worried about you Tracey, the least you could do is call once in awhile" said Ash whonearly wet his pants

"Well it's a funny story really… (sigh) How should I start this?"

**(Flashback, Tracey's POV)**

Right after I got the message from professor Birch, I quickly hop into the next boat leaving for Hoenn and found myself at the professor's lab in three days. He immediately told me that the source of the strange psychic readings came from the nearby woods in this region.

After a quick trip through Littleroot town, I joined the expedition team and made my way here. At first I thought there would be some sort of a new and rare Pokemon here… but all we got was an empty room and a message that I could barely understand. The archeologists that came with me had very little interest in the ruins. They expected something more, but I guess what you see is what you get.

After a few days of decrypting the tapestries on the wall, the acheologists left, leaving me behind to do the rest of the work. I spent three weeks decoding the messages left on the wall and was finally able to get it right! I would've celebrated if I could, but it was then I realized that I was famished. The last of my food supplies were gone and I barely had the energy to even move. I tried to call for help, but then my radio got destroyed when a wild Masquerin thought of it as a toy. I wasn't able to get out of the ruin because I was afraid that a wild Pokemon would attack me if I did.

**(End of Flashback, Normal POV)**

Just before Tracey could continue his story, a familiar voice rang out from behind. Ash turned around and listened carefully. "Gah! I knew we should've taken the dirt road!" said the first female voice, "Hey it wasn't my idea to chase after the brat in the first place!" said the other female voice. Ash took a peek off the hole on the wall and saw two girls wearing black suits with a big 'R' on it. "It's Team Rockey!" he stated out to Tracey. This wasn't the best timing for them to appear. Annie and Oakley are tougher than the previous Team Rocket.

"Come on Ash we can handle a few Team Rocket on our own!"

"I'm not sure Tracey. Jesse and James were annoying but these two are tougher than they look. They have an Espeon and an Ariados that are tough"

"Then our best hope is for them to leave"

"Hey sis, isn't that like the ruin Butch was talking about?" that was abviously the voice of the older yet snobby sister Annie

"So much for the 'them to leave' plan" Ash muttered under his breath, "Quick Tracey, what Pokemons do you have with you!?"

"Well, I still have my Scyther, Marill and Venonat with me, but that's all I've got. I left the others with professor Oak so he could study them"

It was clearly going to be a losing battle for Ash, but he had determination. "Alright Tracey, I'll lure Team Rocket away while you make a break for it. Misty and Brock should be on the otherside of the forest with the others. If you move fast enough you can get help!" Tracey was surprised by Ash's noble act. "Alright Ash but be careful, who knows what they might do" "Don't worry, I've faced a hundred of them back in Cerulean city, I think I can handle two" Ash gave out a reassuring smile but his mind was saying, _"Oh man Ash, you're soooo gonna get it now!"_

As the two Team Rocket members slowly approach the ruins, Ash took out an empty Pokeball and whispered Tracey the plan, "Alright, just give me one minute to lure them out then you break for it" Tracey nodded to the plan. He was still hungry and tired from all the work he had done.

In a blink of an eye Ash jumped out of the ruined building and yelled out to the air, "Ha ha! I did it! I caught a Lugia!" Oakley and Annie watched as the boy held out a Pokeball in front of them just beyond their reach. "Huh? Oh no, Team Rockey!" the boy quickly sprints away hoping that they would give chase.

"Did he just say… Lugia?" said Oakley

"I think so Oakley…" replied her sister

They both look at each other in confusion. They were trying to process the information in their heads and then… BOOM! They finally understood.

"Hey! Come back here you little brat!" Oakley quickly jumped out of her calm stance and began chasing the boy through the woods. Her sister Annie wasn't far behind

The two Team Rocket members quickly pick up the pace and chased after the boy who had nothing but empty Pokeballs. With them gone, Tracey decided to take his chance and ran towards the direction Ash gave him.

Ash was running for his life when he saw the two girls chasing him. Brock would've been jealous to see him in this situation. The two teens let out their Pokemons (Ariados and Espeon) and quickly use their attack abilities to stop Ash. Ariados let out a few web to ensnare Ash to the ground but the woods made him a difficult target to hit.

Everytime Ash thought he lost them, Annie's Espeon would use its powers to find him. It was a useless chase until he came upon another group.

"I got to… lose them… fast! (runs onto someone) Ooffff! Ouch… that hurts...!" Ash held his hand onto his head in pain

"My back hurts! Why don't you watch where you're going you little… huh?" it was Butch who Ash ran into. When their eyes made contact, a small silence went through the air before he decided to shout, "Ahh! It's you!"

"Forget about me, it's you!" shouted Ash pointing at him. It wasn't long until Cassidy's face appeared from the side of the tree

"Butch, what's the hold up? If we… huh? Ah! It's you! What are you waiting for Butch? Get HIM now!" she commanded her partner

But before the green haired man could react, Ash collected himself and sprinted away. Just right when the two of them could give chase, Annie and Oakley bumped on to them.

"What's the big idea?! Oh great, not you two again!" Cassidy grunted at the two sister which they met a few hours ago

"Oh great! Not the loser squad again…" Oakley moaned

"Come on Oakley, we need to get him or he'll run off with that Lugia!"

Butch & Cassidy heard that word and said in unison, "Lugia!!!!?"

"Sometimes I even wonder why we're even related Annie…"

Misty and Brock were now searching even harder this time. They left no stone unturned until their friend was found. Misty was getting more and more worried. What if something bad had happen to Ash? What if he was being chased by a Groudon, or maybe a pack of Beedrills or even a heard of Tauros? The thoughts were now forcing their way into her brain. She screamed on the top of her lunges and shouted out his name, "ASH!!" a single tear slipped down her eye.

Brock himself was worried to his gut, he summoned out his Crobat to search the area for Ash but the thick woods prevented much sight. "We'll never find him if we keep this up Misty" he groaned out.

"Don't give up Brock, he might be lost or even hurt somewhere. throws a Pokeball Come out Psyduck! (Psy?) Psyduck, I need you to help me look for Ash!" Misty walked around for a few more minutes until she heard a voice. "Hey, I hear someone! Brock over there!"

Brock leaped out onto the dirt road that was camouflaged by vines he looked at the figure that ran towards him but was unable to stop until he slammed onto him, "WHOA! Look out!" the man shouted.

"Ooohhh… my back"

"Brock, are you alright?"

"Yeah I'm fine… hey is that Tracey?"

"Brock? Misty?" the Pokemon watcher gasped, "Yougottohelpme! AshisbeingchasedbyTeamRocketandheneedshelp! Follow me!"

Brock waved his hand to stop the boy from speaking any further, "Whoa! Easy Tracey, tell us slowly. What's going one?"

Tracey calmed himself down after a drink of water. He explained the situation to them like he rehearsed the sentence in his mind. Misty took a quick note and faced Brock. "Brock, go get the others and tell them what's happening. Tracey, show me where Ash went!" the two of them followed her orders without question. Both of them were worried and nervous about the whole thing themselves. _"Hold on Ash, we're coming!"_ Misty returned her Psyduck and followed Tracey towards the open field.

Ash continued to sprint along the woods going deeper and deeper into the forest. He took a break under a small patch of bushes to hide from his persuers. "Man… I think I lost them!" he took a breather as he walked around the forest. "Now I'm really lost this time. Well at least I lost Team Roc…" his sentence was cut off when he heard a blast from a nearby tree. A giant net hovered around him, but since he had received quick reflexes from his body training, he was able to avoid the net before it got him.

"Dang it! I was so close!" said the girl carrying a rocket launcher.

Ash looked at the girl and recognized her immediately. It was Wendy, the Team Rocket communications and weapons expert. "Oh no, not her too!"

Wendy took off her cool techno glasses and starred at the boy with a deathly glare. "Well it looks like I found you ya little brat!" "Hey who are you calling little?!" Ash countered, "Be quiet! You're gonna pay for destroying my submarine! Do you know how much it cost me just to get paint on it?! You're so gonna pay!"

Ash began to think that she must've mistaken him for another person, "Submarine? What are you talking about?!" "Don't play dumb! Once I get you and that Lugia, the boss will give me all the money I need to build a bigger one! So get ready Ash Ketchum!"

"How did you know about Lugia?" Ash wasn't able to get a reply from her. Wendy was already shooting nets from her bazooka before she could even think of a reply. "Come back here, how can I be rich if you keep moving?!" "No way! I'm not giving you this Pokeball!" Ash's little lie was getting a little out of hand. He even began to think he really had a Lugia in his Pokeball.

Just as he got a good distance from the crazed girl, he bumped into the last person he wanted to. Butch… "Ahh!!! Not you again!" he turned around and once again sprints towards the deeper parts of the woods.

"Don't just stand there, get him!" Cassidy yelled again at her partner which was really getting inritating

"Come on Annie! Ariados, after him!" Oakley let out her Pokemon and chase the boy

While Ash ran through the forest chased by a large group of Team Rocket, it was now safe to say, "This just isn't my day!"

Wendy aimed her bazooka like weapon and gazed onto the scope, "Hee hee hee… I got you now ya little… (Raticate knocks her down) (shoots the rocket into the air) (the net covers her) Hey this isn't part of my plan!"

"Good work Raticate! (Ratica!)" said Butch to his mascot like Pokemon

"Get me out of here this instance! I'm a professional weapons designer, let me out now! Hey Oakley, Annie! We're partners right? You gotta help me!"

"Should we help her Oakley?" said Annie sarcastically

"And split the prize with another? I don't think so… bah bye Wendy… dearest… hehehehe"

Abandoned and humiliated by every famous Team Rocket member, Wendy's temper was just about to reach beyond her boiling point, "Grrrrr!!! Alright, no more nice Wendy! (picks up her radio)"

Ash was once again chased around by three… no… four members of Team Rocket. He couldn't believe this! All his Pokemons were back at the camp. If he had just one of them he would've blasted these guys away in a second by now!

He was panting heavily under pressure of exhaustion. He's been running and dodging from spider webs, psychic attacks and net traps for an hour already and he knew if he stop to take just one little breath, he'd be good as caught. As he felt his persuers drifting away behind, he came upon a corner of a very steep hill. "Oh great, I'll have to double back…" but before he knew it, he was trapped.

"Aha! We (pant) got you now (pant) you little twerp!" Oakley gloated as she breathes tirelessly along with her sister and the other Team Rocket. Cassidy then had a brilliant idea, "Hey Oakley, why don't we have a truce for now and we'll split the money fifty-fifty?" "But Cassidy, I thought we were going to use that money for retirement!" Butch finally caught up to them sweating like a hayena. Cassidy ignored him and awaited the other two's reply. The two sisters nodded in agreement. "Ok Cassidy, we'll take you on that offer!"

Ash was backed into a corner as Team Rocket began closing in, his memory cells then kicked in at the right time, "Stay back, or I'll bring out Lugia to blast you away!" he yelled out with a smirk. The four Team Rocket members took a step back since they know how powerful a Lugia can be. Ash tried to buy his time hoping that his friends would quickly come to save him. Just when he was about to make a break for it, his sweaty hand dropped the Pokeball but it didn't open. The Team Rockets leaped onto it the moment they had a chance, but Ash's quick thinking surely gave him room. He threw away all of his empty Pokeballs and messed up the whole place. As the bad guys/girls searched the Pokeballs one by one, Ash just randomly picked one of his Pokeballs and ran off.

The Butch and Cassidy moved out to go after Ash but before they could even move, their bodies felt stiff. They were paralyzed by something. "Cassidy… I… I can't move" "Shut up you idiot! I can't move either!"

"Well this is a surprise, two rats paralyzed by sting needles. Hahahahahaha! I guess we'll have to get that boy without you" the two sisters laughed at them and began leaving the area

"Wait! What about our fifty-fifty, deal!?" Cassidy pathetically attempted to get them into a small deal

Oakley simply let out a short chuckle, "Palease, like I would ever want to share my money with you losers (zap) Uh…" just then... a strange stiffness came to her shoulders. Before the two sisters even realized it, they were completely paralyzed by sting needles

"Hey… Oakley… I can't… I can't feel my legs!" Annie tried to move her feet and hand but they wouldn't comply. She then tried even harder but the attempt only rendered her to fall to the ground with face hitting the dirt first.

"Well well, thanks for the help you guys, I knew putting a tracker on your purse was a good idea… hehehehehe" everyone turned their attention to the source of the voice. At the top of the small hill was a blonde haired girl with a smaller R on her chest. She looked younger than all of them but her skills were way beyond theirs.

"Domino!?" Cassidy quickly recognized the girl as one of Giovanni's elite agents, "What are you doing here?! I thought the boss was taking a vacation"

The girl now known as Domino simply shrugged and laughed, "I got bored so I decided to catch up with you guys. After I heard that the boy has a Lugia, I thought it might be a good present for the boss. (radio static) Yeah? (radio chatter) Yeah, I got them. You can pick them up later. (radio chatter) So you found him? Good, I'll be right there! Later losers!"

"Wait Domino come back here!" Oakley tried to stop the so called top agent of Team Rocket but she simply fell to the ground next to butch and Cassidy, who were starring at her with an expression that clearly stated, 'When I can feel my legs again, you're so getting it! "Ahehe you know… I was only kidding what I said earlier… hehehehehe"

Ash was once again running off to… well… anywhere. He wouldn't stop he couldn't stop! He could only hear his heartbeat and the sound of his breath. He went a good distance between him and Team Rocket... until.

'Whoose!'

Ash dodged two rocket nets that nearly got to him. "Dang it! I nearly had him!" Wendy cursed her misfortune, "Oh, it doesn't matter… GET HIM!" five Team Rocket goons rushed out and persued Ash. He felt like the whole world was after him. "How many of you are there?!" he yelled out in panic. His feet were getting sore and the only he had in his arsenal was an empty Pokeball that was supposed to have a Lugia. As the thugs got closer, he forced whatever energy he had left and made his way towards the curve point of the plains. Since he couldn't stop he tumbled down the slopes hurting every second of the way. He reached the bottom of the hill with every part of his body in deep pain. He heard foot steps behind him. _"Oh great, this is it for you Ash Ketchum!"_ he yelled out in his mind as he tried to crawl away. "Ash are you alright?!" yelled the feminine voice.

Ash turned around and was happy to see a friendly face. "Mis…ty?" Misty came up to him with her canteen and let the tired boy take a few 'gluck'. Ash was a mess. There were cuts and bruises all over him, he breathing was unatually fast and his eye lids were on the verge of closing. "Ash don't you dare sleep on a time like this!" Misty yelled out holding her tears back. Tracey took out his first aid kit but before he could do anything to help his friend, another group of Team Rocket goons (now wearing white with a red 'R') appeared from behind. "Let's get out of here!" Tracey put Ash on his back and carried him away.

Domino saw this as an opportunity to catch three with one Pokeball. She immediately gave chase with her band of thugs.

Tracey and Misty ran as far as they could towards the place where all this mess started. The ruins…

Just when Domino thought he had them cornered for the taking, Wendy appeared with her goons, followed by Butch and Cassidy along with Annie and Oakley. "Grrrr! I should've knocked you guys out when I had the chance!" Domino was grtting her teeth as she prepared to clean house. However, Ash wasn't going down without a fight! He asked one of Tracey's Pokemon (Venonat) and planned to stage a battle!

"Alright Team Rocket, if it's a fight you want then it's a fight you'll get! Venonat I choose you! (a furry bug like Pokemon appears)"

"Alright then Staryu, I choose you!" Misty called out her younger star Pokemon

"Go Scyther!" even Tracey wasn't going down without a battle. He called out an insect Pokemon who was famed for its razor sharp claws

Domino was glad that they were gonna battle, "Well well, at least this pray knows how to fight when in a corner…"

"Let's get him Cassidy! That Lugia is as good as ours!" Butch reminded

Wendy huffed at them, "You idiot, he doesn't have a Lugia! It's just a bluff to scare us!"

"Really?" Annie asked hoping that it was just a lie-lie

"If he had a Lugia, don't you think he would've used it to fly away by now?!"

"Oh… she had a point there…" Cassidy pointed out

Oakley hung her head down in disappointment, "Oh I was so hoping to get a rare Pokemon today!"

"Who care?" Domino yelled out, "This kid's Pikachu is probably worth as much anyway! Minions, attack!"

Wendy followed not far behind, "Go everyone! Get those Pokemons!"

As the two groups of thugs charged in with nothing but their fists, they were easily knocked out by Venonat's stun spore attack. Oakley, Annie, Butch and Cassidy summoned out their Pokemons and began to battle.

It was a six on three battle with no sides backing down!

"Venonat, use tackle attack!"

"Staryu, use your watergun attack!"

"Scyther, use quick attack!"

The three Pokemons engaged Butch's Raticate and Cassidy's Houndour which knocked them out instantly. They both recalled their Pokemons and summoned out new ones (Sableye and Mightyena)

"That does it, Sableye use scary face!" Cassidy commanded her Pokemon

"That's not going to work on me. Staryu, use watergun again!"

While Sableye did its scary face on Staryu with its mouth wide open he began to take in water by force! It was knocked back pretty good but it wasn't out yet.

"My turn, Mightyena, use crushing bite on Scyther!"

"Dodge it Scyther!" Tracey ordered

Scyther tried to dodge its attacks but the canine like Pokemon bit its wings pretty hard. Scyther fell down but quickly regained balance and attacked Mightyena with its razor sharp arms.

While the other two were battling, Ash on the other hand was at a big disadvantage. He wasn't only facing two Pokemons, but he has no clue on what Venonat's attacks are. An Ariados and and Espeon against a Venonat… who will win?

"Well since those two are busy with your friends we might as well take you head on! Ariados, use life drain!"

"Espeon, use psychic attack!"

"This isn't good! Venonat, try to dodge them and use stun spores!"

The little furry bug dodged the attacks but was quickly caught off guard by a psychic wave of Espeon. "Vanonat, quickly… attack Espeon before it gets another chance to use its powers!" Just when Venonat was about to move in to strike, Ariados moved in to block the way. However, this was what Ash was hoping for. "Now Venonat, use stun spore!" Venonat let out its spores on Espeon and Ariados which made them drowsy for a little while, "It's now or never! Venonat, tackle Ariados onto Espeon!" with that small hit, Ash was victorious over the two mengling girls. Ash gave out his victory pose but it soon faded when he saw Misty and Tracey lost.

Sableye and Mightyena glared at Venonat evilly as they approached it. Ash knew he didn't stand a chance. Venonat just knocked out two strong Pokemons and now two more were on its way.

The battle went on for a few minutes, but Ash believed in Venonat. He even praised it and gave it hope. Ash soon felt a strange chill on his right arm, but he was too distracted by the battle to notice it. The mysterious aura that surrounded him during many tough battles once again returned. Venonat began to feel more powerful and let out an angry shreek that would engraved the word FEAR in the bravest of hearts.

In mere moments, Venonat used its powers to fight against Butch and Cassidy's Pokemons… and by some luck… it won. Domino and Wendy observed carefully at the battle and came to a conclusion. If a Venonat can take out four Pokemons on its own… then it must be really powerful… and if it's really powerful than the happier the boss would be!

As Ash hugged Venonat for its great victory it was cut short when another presence came to him.

"Very impressive Ash, I never imagined that a weak Pokemon like Venonat could actually take on four of our finest Pokemons" it was Domino, and she still had that evil smile on her face

"Then I guess you'll be leaving now… right?" Ash hoped that they would

"Oh on the contrare brat" said Wendy, "Domino and I had made a little agreement and we've decided to capture that Venonat!"

"Forget it! You're not getting your dirty hands on Venonat!"

Domino slapped her head for his stupidity, "DUH!! Does it look like we're asking? We're taking it weither you like it or not! (snaps her fingers) (a small group of Team Rocket trainers appears) Alright boys, get'em!"

The group unleashed all their Pokemons out on the battlefield. This time Ash was certain he couldn't win. Venonat was exhausted and Tracey didn't have enough Pokemons to even make a stand. Misty stood beside Ash as he cuddled the little bug like Pokemon. Just when Team Rocket was about to move in for the taking… a spark came down from the sky, "PI---KA---CHU!!!!!!" then a huge lighting bolt severed the ground, making a small dent on the ground.

"There they are! We found them!" Richie ran out with Sparky and Pikachu towards his friends. Drew, May, Dawn, Duplica. The gym leaders and all the other trainers rushed to Ash's side and let out their Pokemons for a fight that would've shake the very fabric of the world.

"Looks like we made it just in time!" Drew immediately took up a battle stance

"Grrrr… more annoyances!" Wendy gritted her teeth in anger, but Domino calmed her down

"Well… it certainly looks like an even fight… you know what this means Wendy!"

"Alright... plan B!"

The entire gang braced themselves for whatever to come. There was a long pause. No one said a word for a full minute until Wendy broke the silence. "RETREAT!!!!!!" she yeeled out as the entire Team Rocket ran away.

"Come back and face us you coward!" May yelled at them

"Yeah, it was a fair fight!" Max added but it was only replied with a 'bleh' from Domino

"Team Rocket never fights a fair fight! Later twerps! whistles (a helicopter appears) jumps on the ladder and stick out her tongue at the gang I'll be seeing you guys… very soon!"

"A dramatic exit… I'm impressed…" Drew complimented even the bad guys for their escape

Dawn immediately rushed to Ash and checked his wounds, "Ash, are you ok?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine… great work Vanonat! Return!"

"That was some fight. If we didn't get here in time you would've been in big trouble Ash" Dawn continued as she picked out her bandages from her bag

"Actually… a few minutes earlier would've been nice" said Misty who was exhausted

Brock yawned and streched his arms into the air, "Man, what a morning wake up call (Pikapi!)"

"Hey buddy, thanks for the help. I thought I was done for, hehehehe"

The entire group smiled with relief to see their friends safe and sound but with Team Rocket attacking them in such large numbers… they could only let them believe that they were gonna see them again… very soon.

"So… you're Tracey Sketchit?" Jasmine asked the starving Pokemon watcher

"Yes ma'am and you are?"

"My name is Jasmine. These are my friends Whitney and Flannery. We're gym leaders hired by Dr. Birch to look for you. He was worried that something bad happened"

"Well hehehehe it's a long story really"

"Well we might as well start breakfast. I vote for ham and egg sandwich!" Duplica yelled out to the gang

"I want jelly sandwich please!" Max asked with his hand raised up in the air

Brock calmed the hungry group down with a small laugh, "Alright everyone, but you all gotta help!"

And so another exciting week had finally come to a dramatic end. With only two more months to go before the Valmarian league, our heroes will have to keep up their steady pace or they might not make it in time for the competition. Only the future knows what will happen next…


	14. The Cold Calamity

**Chapter 14: The Cold Calamity**

Time went by like wind in the air. Morning soon turned to noon before anyone could even notice.

While Brock was making his special brunch meal (everything he makes is special) Ash lay down on the soft grass as his wounds were being treated. "Yeowww!!!" Well… I didn't say he had the best treatment now did I?

Ash was yelling out like a cry baby as May cleaned up his wounds. The cuts and bruises he got from the big chase were deep. "Oh stop crying, it's only a small wound for crying out loud!" May gave the wounds a few more disinfectants before putting band-aid over it. "There, all done!"

Just as Ash got up, Duplica came by and placed one more band aid on Ash's face. "That's for luck!" she said with a smile. Ash blushed slightly to her child like attitude. His left arm was patched up quite well by May but that was all he wanted. He didn't want to be a burden to the group so he pretended to be fine by doing some streches. Dawn warned him not to take things too far or his wounds will open up again. After a reassuring smile by the young boy they all went back to camp which was a little far from the ruins. Brock just finished cooking his stew.

Tracey burst into tears as he took the entire plate and stuffed it in his face. For the past three weeks he's been eating nothing but scraps while working in the ruins. Brock's stew was the first real food he had in a long time. The gang laughed at him but Tracey ignored them as he was enjoying every last bit of his food. Just then, Todd came by and took a picture of Brock's lovely stew. He was gonna recommend it to the restaurants back in Kanto. Brock blushed at all of his friend's compliments.

"Hey Tracey, you were researching on a message left by some legend right?" Todd was now getting excited. Tracey nodded dumbly in return, "Well, do you mind if I took a picture of some of the tapestries there? I want to print an article about it!" the idea of publishing a story was a fantastic idea. The others agreed to his plan. Tracey was impressed of himself and agreed to show them what he had found out in the ruins which he calls, 'The Relic'.

While the humans chit chat over breakfast, Pikachu, with his highly powerful ears, detected something near him. He looked around but saw no one that looked suspicious. "Pika?" (What was that?)

"Pikpika?" (What was what?) Sparky added. Pikachu just rubbed its ears, thinking that it was just the wind.

Just when he was about to return to eating, he saw something sparkle on his bowl. A pendant that seemed to be part of a bigger set was strangely placed on his bowl. It had the image of a Moltres on it and not only that, it was even made of silver!

Pikachu grabbed the mysterious pendant with his mouth and gave it to Ash. "Hey buddy, what ya got there?" he saw the pendant dangling on his Pikachu's mouth and took it.

"What is that Ash?" Max said still half way through with his sandwich, "Dunno, but it looks cool!" May glared at the beautiful pendant with amazement. Her eyes were clearly saying, _'I want it!' _Ash noticed May's undivided attention on the pendant and smiled. He took it off his wrist and handed it to her with a smirk. "Here May, you can have it" the brown haired girl blushed with excitement,

"Huh? No Ash, your Pokemon gave it to you so it should be yours" she said those words hesitantly but Ash knew her better than that,

"That's true, and now I'm giving it to you. Besides, take it as thanks for fixing me up hehehehehe" May couldn't possibly get any redder than how she was now. She gracefully accepts the pendant and gave a stare to everyone that screamed, "**NO ONE TOUCHES THIS! THIS IS MINE AND MINE ALONE, AND IF YOU DO I'M GONNA HURT YOU SO BAD NO ONE IN THE WORLD WOULD EVEN RECOGNIZED YOU!"**

Just beyond their sight… a single figure chuckles with glee as it disappears into the darkness of the forest.

After breakfast, Tracey decided to give them a tour around The Relic for a closer observation. Todd took several photos of rock patterns and wall carvings. Tracey handed them flu masks to cover up the smell from the old ruins. It was damp and it looked like the place hasn't been used for over centuries. "Alright guys, this is the thing I wanted you to see" he pointed his flashlight onto the west wall where the tapestries were a bit different from the others. The whole gang looked at it with awe but none of them were like Ash's. "This is the work I've been translating for the past three weeks. And so finally! I was able to know what the people of the old were trying to say!" just before Tracey could begin his translation, Ash cut him off.

"**May the people who read this spread the words of this message. I leave this world with a heavy heart and I will not find peace. So long as humans shall remain impure … I will return. I will be their judge, their jury and their executioner if need be. I shall be the darkness of man and their darkness shall be their downfall. For when they are gone… the others shall be free… Hsa…"**

Tracey's face twitched with humiliation. "Th… that's… that's right! Ha… how did you do that?" Ash didn't reply, he just stood there… shock on what he just said. Pikachu stood on his shoulders trying to get a response but Ash wasn't there. His body was, but his soul was gone to another dimension.

Ash floated down on the wide open field once again. The Pokemons came back and everything was beautiful. Even Chu was there! "Hey Chu, how's it been?" Chu looked up to him and smiled he ran towards Ash to give out a big hug but then… he just passed through him. Ash was a ghost… more of a spirit to be exact. He turned around and saw Chu hugging one of his friends. He was about Ash's height and age. He was wearing a crown and a royal gown that made him look like a prince in king's clothing.

The moment Chu let go, the boy lifted up his head. Ash nearly had a heart attack when he looked at the boy. It was like looking at a mirror except it had a hologram ability that would make you see yourself in the clothes you want. "Come one Hsa, the water is great!" said Chu with a giant smile on his face.

"Don't worry Pallet, the world isn't gonna run away hehehehe" the king who is now known as Hsa said to Chu/Pallet.

"But the sooner we play the more time we'll have!" the kid yelled out jumping up and down like a kindergarten student out on recess, "Come on I'll show you the new Pokemon babies! (pulls Hsa to a nearby meadow) See? Look look over there! (sees a lot of newly born Pokemons playing with each other) Aren't they cute?"

"Yes they are" Hsa agreed with him almost instantly. The newly born Pokemons were sleeping peacefully on the meadow scratching each other like brothers and sisters, "Come on let's go play already!"

As the two childhood friends played tag with each other, Ash felt a warmth that was coming from inside of him. Like he could feel what the other Ash look-alike was feeling. He couldn't help but be happy for Chu. He gave out a smile that would've lasted him a life time.

Just as the two played around on the field another figure approached the two friends. A man twice as tall as Hsa with a cape that flowed freely through his back approached them with eyes that could cause even the Gyrados to keep quiet. "I told you not to disturb us!" Hsa shouted out to the man, he bowed slightly with an evil grin,

"I'm sorry your majesty, but the council requests your presence immediately…"

"Then they can wait, I'm currently enjoying myself right now. Now leave us!" the man took the words hard but kept his pose,

"The council says that it is of utmost importance…"

Hsa was clearly getting irritated by the man's presence. Pallet/Chu was also scared of him. "Very well… tell the council I'm coming" the man walked away still keeping his grin up. Hsa approached Pallet with a sad look in his eyes, "I'm sorry Pallet, but we have to cut our game short for today"

Pallet was on the verge of crying, "But why?! You said you were gonna play with me all day!"

"I know I did, but I also have my duties. Please don't cry on me" but Pallet already had tears falling down his cheeks. He sniffed three times before facing his friend,

"Then promise me!" Hsa tilted his head in confusion, "Promise me that you'll come back and play with me!" Hsa smiled back and nodded in reply, "Pinky swear!"

Ash looked at the two best of friends as Hsa departed. In a few moments Ash grew blind by the bright light that suddenly appeared. He covered his eyes and looked away as the room and scene around him slowly changed. He was now in a room with a giant round table with four old men sitting on their respective chairs. Ash's eyes focused on the current events and was taken by surprised when he saw Hsa slammed his fist on the table, "I WILL NOT ALLOW THAT!!" said the young king to the elders.

The council members were not surprised to see the boy react so furiously, "This meeting has no point, no matter what you say I will never allow it!" Hsa was angered… then one of the council members spoke up,

"Your highness, if I may be so bold. If we do this, then our chance of survival will greatly increase…"

"So you're saying that us humans deserve the chance to live while the Pokemons suffer?! Never! This meeting is over!" Hsa began walking towards the door with four Lucarios following him.

He was suddenly blocked by the hooded red eyed man. One of the Lucarios took up fighting stance immediately until he was interrupted, "So are you saying that you are going to abandon the human race?" said another councilor.

"I did not say that… councilor" Hsa countered back at him. He then walked around the hooded man and left the room without another word.

"I knew he would never approve…" said the other councilor,

"How are we going to deal with this? The kingdom will surely be destroyed if we do nothing!"

"The king is unreasonable! He cares more about the Pokemons than his own kind!" the room went silent for a short while until the hooded man decided to speak.

"Perhaps… I could make a suggestion…" they all turned their attentions to the hooded man as he gave out an evil grin, "What plans do you have this time… councilor?

Just before he could speak, the hooded man turned his attention to Ash. The young trainer could feel his eyes gazing right through his soul. Ash took a few steps back before the scene flashed again with a bright light. Ash once again tightly closed his eyes and waited.

The boy soon found himself standing on a hill top over looking an ancient city. A dark and powerful storm shadowed the city, making it impossible to travel. Ash soon found himself to be surrounded by a greater numbers of Pokemons. Thousands… perhaps even millions of Pokemons looked at the direction of the city. The four Lucarios stood side by side. These four were different from the other Lucarios. They wore armors and had blades attached to their arms.

"We have failed…" said Lucario Y.

"Do not blame yourself… it was his majesty's wishes" the green Lucario tried to cheer him up but failed

The pink one was the one taking it the hardest, "Still… we have failed on our duties"

The three of them began to draw out tears. The White Lucario who seemed to be the eldest of the three came up front. He had a scar on his left eye and katar blades on both of his upper paws. "We must go my friends…" the others nodded in reply, he took from his back a large bundle of amulets (12 pieces) then place it in a wooden box and gave it to the large bird like Pokemon, "Take these with you… and we shall wait for his return" the Ho-oh gladly accepted the box and flew into the distance. "Go… great bird of life. Find our king and we shall be ready!" in just one blink of an eye the Pokemons disappeared along with the next flash of lightning. Ash looked around but saw no one. He walked around the open plains aimlessly until he saw… Chu.

The boy was crying openly under his arm with his head between his legs. He didn't say anything… he just sat there crying over and over. Ash tried to comfort him but he forgot that he wasn't able to touch anything. Chu stood up and wiped away the tears from his face. He yelled out in an intelligible language in anger and sadness. He yelled as loud as he could to the dark sky and raised his arms against it. Once he finished, the lightning struck down directly at the boy. Ash covered his eyes and yelled out in panic, "CHU!!!!" in a mere instance he was back… back to the ruins where it all began.

Ash felt an unbearable embarrassment when he saw his friends starring at him confusingly. He placed his hand behind his head and smiled, "Uh… so what did I miss?" it seemed he was gone for hours but in reality he was only standing there for one minute.

Dawn sighed, _"Well that's Ash for ya"_ she thought. She had known Ash to be quite a day dreamer during her travels with him back in Shinou region. _"Well I guess he hasn't changed much ever since that day he left. But who woulda thought that he'd be such a great trainer. He's so cute and cuddily when he's sleeping and so handso… WHOA! What am I thinking?! I gotta shake this off or he'll know! Or worst yet… maybe they'll know!"_

Just when Ash recovered from the unnatural trauma, he decided to shake the feeling away and just thought of those visions were just his minds playing tricks on him. If people knew about this they would really have a reason to call him dense!

**(Back in Pallet town, Professor Oaks place)**

Delia stared out into the distance, watching every Pokemons Ash had caught in the past four years of his life. He was able to catch the smallest of bugs to the biggest of birds. Delia looked beyond the ranch where a storm cloud had gathered. It didn't look like to be heading towards Pallet town but it was still unnerving. She worried constantly about her son the moment he left the house but this time… it was different. A cold chill on her skin, the constant sweating and the increase of heat beats. This was all clear signs that something bad was going to happen to her little boy.

The professor hung up the telephone after he had talked to the two Jennies. They have been staying at his lab for a few days ever since their encounter with the Pokemon thief. One of them had a sprained ankle and the other had a twisted arm. They help around the house and dress up as normal regular people. Delia helped them change their hair style so they would look different and the professor wouldn't get mixed up all the time. One had a ponytail and the other had it pigtailed.

"Well I finally got it Delia" said the professor, "I managed to book four tickets for Valmarian city by next month! You wouldn't believe how much people would pay just to get th…" he soon noticed that the woman wasn't even lisening to a thing he was saying, "Delia?"

"Huh? Oh professor, were you saying something? I was just thinking hehehe" she forced out a smile from her heart but Sam could read her like a book.

"You're worried about Ash again aren't you?" Delia nodded in defeat, "I wouldn't worry too much about him, he's faced danger many times and has managed to overcome even the greatest of obstacles this world had to offer"

Delia pouted her lips with a slight irritation, "You know… that isn't exactly making me feel better professor!"

Sam laughed at her comment, "Well worrying about him won't exactly make you feel any better now would it? Besides, I think Ash would also be worried if he saw you like that"

Delia was surprised by the old man's last statement. She knew what he was saying is true. If Ash saw her like this he would quit the league without second thought and come back to see her right away. After realizing this, Delia pulled herself together and let out her sunny side take over, "You're right professor, I should be more spirited just like my Ash should be!"

Sam was happy to see Delia's smiling face again, "See that wasn't so hard now was it. Anyway, I managed to book us four tickets for Valmarian city"

"Four?" Delia stopped herself and looked at the professor with a quizzled look,

"Yes, the Jennies are also coming with us. No one would want to miss this opportunity to see the league that only comes one in five years"

"Besides, we haven't had a vacation ever since the Pokemon thief came" said the first Jenny who came from the back door

"I hope we won't cause too much trouble" followed the second younger Jenny

Delia let out a soft smile in agreement, "Oh not at all, you two have been helping me and Mr. Mime with the house so I think it's appropriate"

"That's great! Because we're gonna have a family reunion there!" said the second Jenny. When they said family reuonion, Delia and Sam thought it was gonna be a few Jennies but when she held out a picture of the her entire family lineage, the professor's jaw dropped to the ground with a huge thunk sound.

"Family… reunion?" he managed to stutter out. Delia simply took the picture and squeeled in delight

The older Jenny smiled and nodded her head, "Yes, all our sisters will be there to guard the stadium and we wouldn't to miss this kind of opportunity now would we sis?"

"You bet Jenny!"

Sam gave out a large sweatdrop from his head. In his life time, he had only seen one or two Jennies at a time. Delia chuckled at the two police officers as she couldn't wait to see the entire family.

**(Somewhere along the road to Mauville city)**

"Come on everyone, there's a Pokemons center just ahead!" Brock shouted at the rest of the gang who were falling behind. A freak storm suddenly appeared during their stay in The Relic. The rain poured down on their camp site and the nasty wind blew most of their supplies away. Drew used his purple jacket to cover him and Max as the storm grew stronger.

Misty could've sworn she saw the clouds forming a face of a person with and evil grin. She was terrified by it. Togepi cried to Misty, telling her to move but she couldn't. It was as if she was hypnotized by one of Alakazam's amnesia attacks. Suddenly a branch broke off from a tree and flew right towards her. Ash quickly saw the branch and WHAM! he used his back pack as a shield and covered Misty from the impact. The branch flung right over and crashed onto a sign post,

"Come on Misty wake up! Let's get to the Pokemon center before things get worst!" the water Pokemon trainer was snapped right back into reality. Ash quickly took her hand and pulled her against the wind.

The entire group arrived at the Pokemon center wet but safe and unharmed… well not exactly. Ash's arms were in severe pain from the impact from the branch. Even though the stuff in his bag were enough to suppress the branch from hitting him but the force it gave out a made his hands a little numb. Brock massaged his arms a little bit with a little technique he learned from his dad. Ash felt Goosebumps coming out as he heard the cracks Brock made. He felt like his arm was now just a play toy for a Pokemon to chew on but after a few cracks… boom the pain was gone.

"There ya go, feel any better?" Brock stated out. Ash twisted his arms a few times and nodded with amazement. "Wow Brock, my arm feels like new! How'd ya do that?!"

"Just something I learned back when I was in pre-school Ash takes off his jacket (sees Ash's unusal tattoo) Hey Ash, where did you get that mark on your arm?" the boy also stared at the tattoo, seeing that it some how grown into onto his arm.

Ash was freaked out but kept his face calm and collected. He didn't want to put himself in an awkward position. "I don't know either, I've had it for a long time now"

"Well why don't you remove it, tattoos doesn't really suites a guy like you" Brock crossed his arm raising one eye brow at his friend,

"I tried Brock! I used a whole bar of soap and it still won't come off!" Ash tried to defend himself.

"Why don't we see Nurse Joy, maybe it's some kind of infection"

"Don't be silly Brock if this was an infection I would know"

"Oh no you don't mister! (Drags Ash to the counter) Nurse Joy can you do a little check up on my friend Ash? He has this strange infection on his right arm"

"I told you it's nothing!" the boy protested but failed

Nurse Joy took a look at the infection and analyzed it with her own two eyes, "Well I never actually treated people but I believe I can give him a check up. Just let me finish changing and I'll be right with you"

"Oh when you're done maybe you and I could (Gregguru punches him) Oh… my stomach feels numb… (falls to the floor)"

Nurse Joy gasped at the poor man's misfortune, "Oh dear… Ash do you mind if I treat this man first?"

"Sure no problem Nurse Joy, just take your time"

The Chanseys took Brock into the treatment room where they used their special abilities to heal him.

While Nurse Joy was busy with the squinty eyed boy Ash took a relief sigh. He's been blasted by powers that could destroy cities, turned into stone, bashed by a horde of Tauros and even drowned in the ocean but he was always afraid of doctors and nurses. He could already imagine the shots he received when he was still a kid he never liked to go to hospitals ever since.

Just when he was on a short road trip on his memories, a hand tapped his shoulders. "Hey Ash, wanna talk for awhile?" it was Duplica. She was still holding one of her Dittos on her arms like Misty holding her Togepi like a baby. They walked onto the second floor balcony where the atmosphere was breath taking. There was a roof over the balcony so they didn't have to worry about getting wet. Well… they were already wet when they got there anyway.

"So Ash… are you excited about the Valmarian league?" she spoke out with her usual smile. What kind of a question was that?

"Of course I'm excited! Who wouldn't be? This league comes only once every five years, and if I win this I will…" he stopped like he didn't want to finish his sentence, "I'll… I'll become a Pokemon master!" he said it out loud.

Duplica looked at the boy as he did his heroic pose. Pikachu jumped on his head (Pika pikachu!) The little mouse wanted to remind Ash not to get too careless like he did the last time. When he fought the Elite Four at the Indigo Plateau he was bursting with pride after beating the first two. Agatha and Blaine were his first competitors. Agatha was the first of the Elite Four that Ash fought back in Varidian city. He remembered the fight very well and remembered how her Gengar was able to withstand so many attacks. He lost at first but after two years of non-stop training he was able to beat her with ease.

Ash could also remember when he offered to be also one of the Elite Four. Some of them were already grand parents and were ready to give up their title for a nice retirement home. Ash honestly refused to them. Being an Elite Four would give him all the luxury and fame he wanted but Ash wanted more. It was like a thirst of power that couldn't be quenched by mere titles. He needed to prove himself to the world that he was the best of the best and the only way to prove that was to win the Valmarian league and finally earn that title.

Ash looked at Duplica with the determination flaming up again. Duplica could see the seriousness of Ash. When she looked at the trainers that she passed by she could see their determination burning like a torch but Ash was not like them. His determination wasn't like any torch. It was burning… burning brighter than a thousand suns put together. Duplica couldn't help but blush brightly. She traveled with him to get to know the boy a little better before moving on, but she didn't need to interrogate him. Every answer was right there in his golden eyes.

"Umm… Ash…" she said quietly, "Do you want to uh…" just before she could ask her question Max popped in from behind,

"Hey Ash, do you mind helping me with May's Eevee? She's loose again and we can't find her!" Duplica cursed the boy in her mind. She was just about to ask Ash for a date and this guy pops in from nowhere!

"Sure thing Max, where did it go this time?" Ash rushed in with Max and searched the lobby. Drew was chasing the little furry Pokemon along with Richie but they didn't get close to it. The Eevee jumped onto a cabinet and started barking at them.

"Eevee, come here come to mama. No one's gonna hurt you" May tapped her legs as a gesture of good will to the little Eevee but it didn't work. It just kept barking louder and louder.

In a few seconds, Ash and Max arrived on scene, "Hey May what's wrong with Eevee?" "I don't know I let it out of its Pokeball with the others but then it began acting strange on me" the little Pokemon growled at both of them like it was preparing to attack.

"Whoa ok… Hey May, why don't you try calling it back to its Pokeball" May slapped herself mentally, it would've been so much easier if she'd known that earlier, "Oh yeah, that's right! Eevee return!" but the little Pokemon refused to give up. It dodged the beam of light and jumped off the cabinet. It quickly ran out of the door and before anyone noticed Ash, May and Drew ran after it,

"You guys (pant) go on… (pant) without me…" Richie was exhausted after chasing the little critter through the entire building. He sat on the nearby bench and waited for his friends to return.

Eevee ran a few kilometers away from the Pokemon center with Ash right on its tail. On May's mind she could only think on what she had done to make her Eevee run for its life. She didn't do anything wrong, she just let it out of the Pokeball to get some fresh air like everyday. While dozing off into dream land, the entire group stopped as the Eevee was backed into a corner. Drew took a little step closer to it but that was a wrong move. Eevee kicked a pebble on his face leaving a red mark right between his eyes. "Why you little…! I'm gonna…"

"Drew stop it! You're only going to make it more scared!" Ash took out a tone he didn't even realized he had. He took a few steps near the enraged Eevee and slowly held out an empty Pokeball. "Hey come on there little pal, no one's gonna hurt ya"

Just when he was about to put it back in a Pokeball, the little Eevee jumped onto his arms after the thunder struck. It was shaking dangerously and soon Ash knew why it was so afraid. He could actually feel what the Pokemon was feeling. It was like all the information was going through his head with a strange rhythm. After what Ash just felt, he quickly put the scared Eevee in his Pokeball.

After that strange incident Ash and the other two returned to the Pokemon center soaked and wet, "Where have you three gone to?" Misty stared at them with worried eyes. "We went to get a little pest…" said Drew who quickly took out his towel from his back pack and placed it on his head.

"Hey May, I think I know what's wrong with Eevee" Ash said to her with a calm look, "I think it's afraid of the storm…"

May: "How do you know?"

Ash: "I don't… I just have a feeling that it doesn't like the sound of thunder very much (Pika pikapi!) Hehehe… of course it's not afraid of you Pikachu. I just think it doesn't like the dark clouds and haaa… haaa… haaa…. HAAACHOOO!"

"Are you alright Ash?" Misty walked up beside him

"I'mff… fine Mifty sniff Itf's notfthing… haaa haaa haaa HACHOO!!!" the Pokemon trainer had a cold

"That's clearly not 'nothing'. You got a cold mister!"

"Ouch! Yu don't haft to shout yu know"

"Are you calling me big mouth!?"

"No… sniff not at all I wazz… haaa… HACHOO!!"

"Ash, we're ready for your check up!" announced Nurse Joy

Misty looked at the boy confused, "Check up? What check up?"

"Oh, Bwok is making me haft a check upf with Nurse Joy so I coul… haaa… haaa… HAACHHOO!!!"

Nurse Joy quickly noticed the boy's cold, "Looks like you have a little cold there Ash. Come to the treatment room and I'll give you some medicine that might help"

"Oky Nurse Joy, I'm coming…"

The boy entered the room that smelled like medicine. Brock was lying on the hospital bed surrounded by three Chanceys who were still using their abilities to help his aching stomach. Joy was still searching through her cabinet when Ash walked in with a red nose.

The moment his feet touched the inner part of the room the Chanceys stopped their healing process and looked at the boy. Ash looked at them in return with a confusing look and to his surprised they bowed to him with a polite 'chancy' Ash didn't know how to react to that so he just bowed his head dumbly like a mime doing air push ups. When Nurse Joy turned around to give Ash his medicine, the Chanceys returned to their duties and continued to heal Brock.

"Here you go Ash, take one every six hours and you'll get better in no time. Oh and I think Brock will be back on his feet in an hour or so"

"Thaft's good to hear. (takes one tablet) Ahhh…"

"Ok, now let's have a look at that mark on your arm. Just sit there while I do some tests"

'Tests' Ash began to quiver slightly on that last word. He began thinking that Nurse Joy would pull out a giant needle and begins putting in strange chemicles into his body, or perhaps even a giant mechanical device that would make him scream like a baby again. Ash tried to calm himself down but was losing greatly. In a few moments he would've ran as fast and far as he could to get out of here.

Just when the young trainer was in a deep and terrible thought he heard a voice sneak up from behind him, "All done…" said Nurse Joy with a smile. Ash couldn't believe it… he didn't even know that the test even began. Nurse Joy pulled out the results of the x ray and hung it over to the light. Ash waited on what she had to say.

"Hmm… that's strange…" Nurse Joy began, Ash knew that this could only mean terror, "Wh… what is it Nurse Joy?"

"Huh? Oh nothing I was just reading the latest news on the Pokemon weekly" Ash dropped on the ground heavily with a sweat drop, "Nurse Joy!" the boy was beginning to feel impatient but the nurse only let out a small chuckle,

"Don't worry Ash, I'm having your x rays covered in just a minute (the screen pops up) Oh here it is! Now let's see… hmm" there was a long pause at the moment. Joy shuffled through a few papers of the test results and looked back and forth on the x rays and the documents she held.

Ash was now becoming restless on her actions but before he could speak, Nurse Joy interrupted him, "Well mister Ketchum I don't find anything wrong with your arm"

"Really? That's great!" then the nurse took out one paper from the documents, "Hmm? What's this? reads carefully at the paper Now that can't be right!"

"What is it Nurse Joy?"

"Oh sorry I was just reading the news paper. It says here that there's a trainer in Valmarian who challenging anyone that's strong enough to fight him"

"So what's wrong with that?"

"Well according to rules, no one is allowed to battle outside of the arena, but the court seemed to allow this one to slip (shows him the picture)"

Ash was startled as he looked at the head lines of this week's news. 'Challenger of The League!' was the title of the story. The challenger was none other than Gary Oak himself. He was posing on the picture with all of his Pokemons smiling. "Gary is in Valmarian? Already?!! I got to tell the others!"

"Well your test results are done and it looks like those things are just stain marks but just to be sure please go to the hospital as soon as possible" Ash departed with the newspaper after he had said his thanks.

The boy called all of his friend's attention and showed them the article. They were not surprised that Gary was already in Valmarian city. Since the gang had been taking several side trips and being attacked by Team Rocket stronger than before, their trip had been delayed more times then they could remember. Ash was in deep inner rage, he knew the moment he got there Gary would laugh at his face and rub it in for life. Everyone knew that Ash was really not happy about this it was already showing through face.

"Alright everyone, let's go!" he stated out but Misty blocked his way, "Oh no you don't Ash! The storm out there will kill you before you even reach Petalburg city, and with Brock still out and with you having colds, you're not taking a single step out of here!" the gym leaders nodded in agreement. Ash tried to control his emotions but he really wanted to get to Valmarian as fast as possible. A hand held his shoulders, "She's right Ash. Besides, Valmarian isn't going anywhere" Dawn tried to calm the love of her life.

Ash then noticed that everyone had a worried expression on their faces. If he had walked out of the Pokemon right there his friends would've followed him. Heck they would even follow him through the longest desert of the world if they had the chance.

Ash quickly admitted to the error of his way, "Ok… I understand. I guess we could use a little sleep" he said with a smile. After what had just happened they all picked out a room from Nurse Joy and quickly went to deep sleep. Ash however wasn't getting much of it. He was still awake and starring off into the moon through the second floor balcony. The storm had past and the sky was clear letting the stars twinkle at the darkness above. The boy was in deep thought. He was thinking of the strange things that had been going on around him lately.

First were those strange dreams that he'd been having but it seemed to have stopped for some reason. A few days later he's been getting a short term memory lost. He couldn't remember any of those great accomplishments he did back in the Cerulean gym, Goldenrod city or on the board the Notilus. After that he made a new friend in his dreams. A boy named Chu… He tried to shake it all off but the memories kept pouring back in. "Ash?"

Misty called out to him. The boy nearly fell off by the surprise. He was in the moment and that girl just had to ruin it for him.

"Oh hey Misty, I thought you would be asleep by now"

"No, I'm not really that tired. I just wanted to walk around to pass the time"

She lied she was actually dead tired to the bones. She just made up an excuse to talk with him… alone. Misty took her place a few meters beside Ash leaning her elbows on the balcony. "So what were you thinking Ash?"

"Nothing much…" Misty smirked at him "About Pokemons again?" Ash just nodded dumbly at her statement. It wasn't entirely true but it wasn't entirely wrong either. He was just thinking of the past.

Dawn walked out of her room feeling a little thirsty. May and her waited for Misty to return so they could sleep. Duplica was staying with them and Todd was with Max and Brock. As she walked down the hall to the water dispenser she heard a slight rumble coming from the main gate. She turned around and was shock to see what was starring back at her!

Ash and Misty were still enjoying each others company on the balcony. They let out a few laughs and traded jokes at each other. They giggled for a few good minutes and then they both stayed silent. There was a long pause between them. Misty felt the strange sensation around her once more. The same feeling she had when they were both alone in Goldenrod city. Without even realizing it she was starring at Ash for almost a complete minute. Ash stared back in to her aqua blue eyes with his heart rate slowly rising. Ash really wanted to say something but then he couldn't. They just stood there starring at each other for a really long time until Ash could finally move his lips, "Uh… why are you starring at me like that?" _"Nice going Ash!"_

Misty looked away with a slight blush. The scene was perfect for a courting date. The moon was up and everything was so quiet you couldn't even hear the sound of silence. Just when she was about to reply to that question the boy just had to ruin the moment, "HACHOO!!" he sneezed out a spray of his germs into the air. "Oh… I'mf sforry, I guessf my colfd ish back… hehehehe" Misty sighed but later found herself trembling after an explosion came from down stairs.

Dawn let out a scream before ducking away from the hyper beam that Regirock unleashed. Nurse Joy and the other trainers that were traveling with Ash got out of their rooms in their PJs to see what had happened. They were all struck with awe when they saw the reception table completely destroyed. Ash helped Dawn get on her feet and noticed the giant Regirock roaring (the sound of a Regirock is really inteligible) at them. Everyone was terrified by this sight. What could a Regicrock be doing here?

Pokemons attacking humans has been heard of for sometimes but Pokemons that assault homes and building was never even thought of. None of them could have a chance against this Pokemon unless they had another Pokemon to counter it.

The beast tore through the gates and broke the wall that lead to the Pokemon center's infirmary. The Regirock prepared to break into that room until Ash and Richie stepped forth to block its path. "I won't let you through!" Richie yelled out as he summoned Sparky to fight, "Sparky, use thunder shock and drive Regirock away!" Sparky charged up and let out a few good jolts that made the stone Pokemon take a few steps back but it also made her (yes the Regirock is a she) angrier.

"Watch out everyone it's gonna use some kind of attack!" Brock ordered everyone to back down to more protective positions but Ash and Richie stayed put to protect the injured Pokemons that were still in the infirmary.

"Alright that does it, Dit, morph into Regirock now!" the Ditto quickly changed in a beam of light into the Pokemon that Duplica ordered and tugged with it in a battle.

"Good thinking Duplica!" Drew commented, "But now it's my turn. Come out Absol! (a wolf like Pokemon appears) Absol use your Razor wind attack!" Absol quickly hurled its head and threw several gush of sharp winds which damaged the intruding Pokemon. By the time the smoke cleared up everyone in the room had only one thing to say, "Oh o…"

With the smoke gone now none of them could figure out which is the Regirock and which is the Ditto. Duplica could've easily ordered it to drop its morphing abilities but with the Regirock so close she couldn't risk it getting hurt.

The battle now took place outside the Pokemon center. Brock was glad since now the injured ones can finally get some peace and quiet. While the two Regirocks fight for victory Ash and the others could do nothing but wait until one falls.

**From here I'll tell you guys the Ditto and Regirock battle…**

Ditto (who was still in the form of Regirock) fought against Regirock using its near equal strength. Ditto decided to use its head (literally) to break the grip. Regirock took a few steps back before recovering from the headache. It charged up to Ditto and tackled it with its body. Ditto fell to the ground but got back up quickly and let out a little roar. They glared at each other for awhile before charging at again.

Ditto jumped over and let out a hyper beam on Regirock's back but the creature didn't even flinch. It grinned and let out a more powerful hyper beam attack which missed Ditto by just a centimeter. Ash and the others looked at the action carefully but were still very afraid. They just hope if the one that wins would be on their side.

Ditto was now getting nervous. If he didn't moved out of the way, the blast would've sent it back to Johto. Without second thought Ditto released a good old zap cannon. Regirock took it all head on and pushed itself forward. Ditto kept the fire up and made it even stronger but the Regirock just smirked at his effort. With Ditto still busy keeping up its fire power, Regirock began to glow and soon it became nearly twice as strong (technique: Ancient Power) before anyone could even begin to believe, Regirock knocked out Ditto with one punch making it turn back into its original form.

Duplica rushed towards Dit and held it in her arms. It was beaten and exhausted. Regirock began charging up its hyper beam and aimed for Duplica, "Duplica get out of there! It's gonna attack you!" Brock yelled out from behind but Duplica was too shocked to even listen. She was scared out of her conscious just like how Misty was when she was facing that strange Pokemon in Varidian city.

Regirock opened its mouth (if it had one) to release the beam but then a blur got between his eyes. Who would be stupid enough to stand against such a powerful attack so willingly? It was none other than the risk taker Ash Ketchum. He was ready to take on the full blow of the beam. "Stop it right now!" he yelled out. But it was too late… Regirick couldn't hold the beam back any longer and so she released it.

Misty nearly broke down when she saw Ash being caught in the line of fire. Everyone couldn't believe it. Was the great Ash Ketchum really gone? No one knows… only time will tell.


	15. The First Encounter

**Chapter 15: First Encounter**

The sun rose through the window of the room where Ash was sleeping. He blinked a few times before his eyes could focus on the ceiling fan above him. He could hear a slight sound of two Chanceys talking with each other. He was in a hospital room, still in his out doors cloths. He felt stiff like he hasn't been moving for a year.

It was then his memory cells kicked in. The last thing he could remember was seeing Regirock shooting the hyper beam at him. He thought he had died but after that everything was blank. "I must've past out after that…" he said to himself, "Oh no… Duplica!" he immediately took out the wires that were attached to his body and ran outside the room.

He dashed towards the reception desk where Nurse Joy was having a coffee break, "Nurse Joy! Where's Duplica and everyone else?!" Nurse Joy was still in shock to see the child that was so badly bruised to be up and recharged just like that

"Room B-22…" was all that she was able to mutter out. Ash quickly ran off towards the second floor to find the room. Nurse Joy quickly recovered from her shock and her brain finally turned on, "Oh wait, Ash, come back here!"

Ash ran like it was a race against the clock. He looked around above each door and saw signs _"B-22… B-22…"_ was all that he was thinking about as he looked for that one particular room.

'B-19'

'B-20'

'B-21'

'B-22!!!!'

He opened the door and flung himself into the room without hesitation. He scanned the room with his eyes and noticed that everyone was there. Pikachu was lying on Misty's lap along with Togepi. Brock, May, Dawn and Max were sleeping on the sofa. Richie brought his sleeping bag and slept on the floor. Drew slept leaning his back on the wall still standing (how could you sleep like that?!) Todd and Tracey were sleeping on chairs they got from the lobby. Ash looked around one more time and saw Duplica sleeping on the hospital room looking so peaceful. He took a closer look and smiled with relief, "I guess I worried for nothing hehehe…" the sound of his giggle woke Pikachu and Sparky up. Pikachu saw his master and jumped towards him with glee (Pikapi!) it shouted.

The others slowly awoke from their little naps as they heard the little mouse jump out with a static coming from its cheeks. "Hey buddy it good to see you too hahaha…" everyone was glad to see Ash up on his feet especially Duplica who now relieved to see him up in his hyperactive self.

"Ash, how do you feel?" asked Brock to his bandaged friend

"I feel great Brock, but how's Duplica doing?"

"She'll be fine but I think you'd better ask her yourself"

The boy tilted his head slightly to see Duplica up and awake with a bright sunny side up smile on her face, "Hi Ash!"

"Hey, so you're alright after all. I guess I really worried for nothing hehehehe"

"You should've seen her Ash. She was more worried about you than herself and… (WHAM!) argg…" Richie was cut off short when a magical mallet appeared out of nowhere and smacked him right on the back of his head.

"Oh don't listen to him, he needs his rest" Duplica let out a soft smile

"Anyway Ash that was some show you put last night!" Brock complimented

Max added, "Yeah how did you do that in the first place?" and as usual, Ash was completely dumb founded on what they were saying. The boy took a few steps back as he didn't know what those two were talking about, "Uh… do what?"

Drew sighed, "What else would they be talking about? You captured a Regirock and you don't even look excited about it…"

"WHAT?! A Regirock? Since when?"

Brock took out a Pokeball from his back pack. "Don't you remember Ash? You caught this Regirock last night when it attacked the Pokemon center" "I… did?"

"Don't tell me you forgot again Ash" Misty butted in from the back, everyone looked at her with confusion, "Oh don't worry, Ash has been having some short term memory lost for some reason"

Brock put his hand onto his chin, "Hmm that' weird, usually Ash could remember his victories from beginning to end"

"Maybe its just trauma, people usually forget about horrible things that had happen" Richie pointed out a good reason on how Ash could forget such a memorable moment.

"Well I guess he does forget things sometimes so I'm not surprised" Misty said with a little chuckle.

"Hey that's not true!"

Everyone knew where this was heading. Another fight… Brock and Tracey sighs and break up the little fight, "Alright come on you two this is a hospital and you're acting like eight year old kids"

Ash couldn't help but ask, "Please, can anyone please tell me what happened last night? My mind is kinda blur right now"

Brock and the others hesitated at first but then they figured that he had to find out sooner or later. "Well it started like this…" Tracey started.

**(Flash Back)**

The cursed storm that had been following the gang returned on top of their heads. Ash had once again been possessed by an unknown darkness. His eyes that were once pure and clear turned into blood shot color of bright red.

The smoke finally cleared out a bit after the stone golem like Pokemon fired its hyper beam. Misty was just about to break down into tears until she saw Ash unscathed. What Todd saw was nearly impossible. A point blank shot of a powerful attack would've torn anyone with skin and bones to pieces but Ash and Duplica were still there… unmoved and unharmed. The smoke dispersed to the air revealing the ground around Ash and Duplica. The others looked in awe and fear. The beam appeared to have been blocked by some sort of force field and split into two, going in different directions.

No one really noticed Ash's right arm was glowing blue. Regirock took a step back when the boy let out a smirk. "Come out now Weavile!" he shouted to no one particular. A few seconds later a small band of cat like Pokemons jumped out from the nearby bushes and stood in front of the young trainer. "Take down Regirock now!" without hesitation the four Weaviles looked at the Regirock with death stating out of their eyes.

Though outnumbered and outmatch the Regirock stood its ground and began its attack. Three Weaviles jumped out of its path and used scratch attack on the beast's back. The creature let out a painful roar before shooting out another hyper beam blast. The intense heat caused another smoke screen to appear, leaving only the humans to hear the action.

Ash rushed into the fight and gazed around for his enemy and temporary allies. There was something strange going on with Ash. The smoke was so thick but he could see right through them. He could see his friends near the gates to the Pokemon center and the fight that was taking place. Regirock took the full blow of four shadow balls whole heartedly and finally knelt on one knee. The Weaviles saw this as an opportunity to finish it off so they charged at it. It was then the Regirock had them fooled. The mighty Pokemon drew its fist to its face and knocked the Weaviles out cold in the rain.

Ash faced Regicrock alone. None of the humans could see through the smoke but the sound of battle only left them wondering.

Regicrock let out another shot of its hyper beam directly at Ash but it only split into two as if there was some kind of shield around the trainer. Ash clutched his hand and gave the creature one heck of a smack. Regirock could feel its stone hardened armor slowly cracking into pieces before it came to its senses. The Pokemon tried to punch Ash but he held it back with one hand. The Regirock was surprised and perhaps even shocked to see his great strength taken back by a little boy. It jumped back a few good meters away from Ash and began gathering another charged of hyper beam. Ash grinned and lifted his right arm. The beam smashed him directly but he was able to catch it with only his one arm. The tattoos on Ash's right arm began to glow brighter than ever. It was like holding the power of the sun in the palm of your hands.

A few seconds later Ash held the beam on his hand and finally he understood everything. Regirock gave a nodding gesture to him.

"Thank you… Regirock…" was all that Ash muttered out before putting the beast into a Pokeball.

It would be an hour before the smoke would begin to disperse but when it did the only thing everyone saw was a red beam shooting at Regirock and sucking it into the Pokeball.

**(End of Flashback)**

Ash stood in awe of Tracey's far fetched story but he had to believe him. Drew handed the Pokeball to Ash. He clearly didn't want to hold that Pokemon in his hand since he might accidentally release it and cause another disaster.

Just before the gang left the Pokemon center, Ash gave professor Oak a little call.

"(ring ring, ring ring,) Hello? Professor Oak, are you there?" Ash asked on his Pokedex/phone

"Ash! I've been trying to call your Pokedex for awhile now!" the screen showed an old man, "Where have you been? Your mother is really worried about you!"

"Sorry professor… we're kinda in the wilds right now so I guess you can't really call from here. But anyway I called because I have a Pokemon that you might be interested in researching…"

"Really? What Pokemon is it?" the professor's face lit up with great excitement as he never had that kind of conversation with the boy before.

"Well you wouldn't believe me if I told, so I'm sending in Regirock"

"Regirock? But that's nearly impossible to find now a days?" Samuel reminded himself

"I know, and I don't remember seeing any Regirock when I first came here. I wonder if it got lost"

"Well why don't you send it to me and I'll run an analysis. Your mother and I we'll be heading to Valmarian in a week or so, so I expect you to be there when we arrive ok Ash?"

"Sure thing professor we'll be there in a few weeks ourselves"

"That's good well good bye… AHH!" before the professor could hang up, a fist appeared just off screen and smacked him out of the monitor.

"Not yet professor, I haven't even talked to him yet! Hi honey, how's my little Ashy doing there? Are you having enough to eat? Did you meet any new friends lately? Please do tell all!"

"(sweatdrops) Uhh… mom, why don't I just tell you when we meet in Valmarian city. Besides I have to catch up with everyone if we're going to get the early trip to the island"

"I see… oh well. But remember to change you-know-what and please say hi to everyone in your group for me ok? Bye sweety! See you in a few weeks!" (the monitor screen shut down)

With a reassuring smile from his mother, Ash and the gang sets off for Mauville city, but before they left, another group has other plans to reach their destination.

"You're leaving?" said Misty to the gym leaders. They nodded in reply.

Jasmine said, "That's right, since our job was to get Tracey our mission is done!"

Whitney said, "As much as we love to travel with you guys, I need to head back to Goldenrod city to resume my gym. My friend won't be happy if I arrive too late"

Flannery said, "This little journey with you was great and all but we need to get back to our duties"

"I guess we won't be seeing you guys at the competition then huh…" said Ash with a disappointed face. "Don't worry Ash. We promise to go and see our greatest achievement bear fruit hehehehe" Jasmine giggled at her proverbs. She got it from a book she was reading last night.

And so our heroes depart for Mauville city where they would catch a bus to Petalburg city and hopefully this time they won't encounter anymore accidents along the way. But as they move through the long road of Hoenn, they had to say good bye to the gym leaders who had helped Ash in his preparations to become the Valmarian league champion.

On the nearby woods Chu and Chaucer smiled as they watch Ash and his group walk away from the Pokemon center. But it soon disappeared when Chu noticed the orange haired girl walking along side Ash. "Chaucer…."

"Yes?"

"I want you to keep an eye on… points at Misty her…"

"Why? She isn't a threat is she?"

Chu was soon engulfed in a sea of memories. He tried to shake away the images flowing through his mind but no matter how hard he tried it seemed futile to resist. He set back his mind to a place long forgotten… to a place where nothing ever mattered. To a place he once called… his home.

**(Flashback)**

Chu… or should I say Pallet, was playing with Hsa at the garden along with his other Pokemons. It was an earlier time before whatever tragedy fell upon him. It was indeed a morning that he'd wish it would last for an eternity.

"Hey, your majesty…" Chu/Pallet said with a slight bow

"There's no need to call me that" Hsa waved his hand in a gesture motion

"But isn't that your name your majesty?"

Hsa let out a soft laugh, "Hahahaha No, that's not my name. It's just a title…"

"So what is your real name?" the boy asked hoping to get a full answer

"My real name is… Hsa… how about you? Don't you have a name?" he said pointing at him with some of his white hair falling on his face

"Umm… no. Mostly everyone calls me Pokeboy or Pokefreak"

"That's terrible!" Hsa yelled out and began thinking of a perfect name for him, "I know, why don't I name you… Pallet?"

"Pallet?"

"It's a nice name and I thought you might like it hehehehe"

"Hmm… Pallet… I like it! Hahahahaha! Hey everyone, my name is Pallet!" he shouted to his Pokemon friends.

The two best of friends continued their play time for as long as they could, but like all good things… it must always end somewhere… sometimes. Not long after they began playing, a female voice came up from behind which caught their attention

"Your majesty, I knew that you'd be here!"

"Oh it's you Freya… how has it been?" the girl who just approached the young king looked almost like one of Misty's ancestor's. Her orange hair was let down, she wore a cultural gown which ended at the tip of her ankles. She also wore two wrist bands on both of her wrists and no sleeves to cover her arms. She still had the trade mark blue eyes which glittered as pure as the blue ocean and the smile that would melt even the coldest Regice.

"Boring as usual" she replied, "You let me deal with the councilors while you're out here playing around with him… again"

"Hahaha… sorry, sorry. It's just when I'm here… I feel… complete"

"(sigh) There you go again, ranting your noble self. I can't believe that you're still younger than me"

"Hehehe… I guess appearances can be deceiving huh?"

Freya blushed slightly at Hsa's gracious look. It made her heart skip several beats before letting out a breath of relief. She was the king's personal advisor and perhaps a queen in waiting. The two of them loved each other deeply. Everyone in the kingdom noticed it but none would dare speak of this since it could just be a friendly mistake.

In this time and era, Pokemons and Humans live together in towns and cities as equals. There were no Pokemon battles or trainers at all. In fact, if a person or Pokemon keeps another all to themselves, that person or Pokemon would be dealt with severe punishment by the king himself.

--Chu began thinking of what had happened when he first saw Freya. His first thought about her that she was a good friend of the king and would do him no harm but after a few days when she appeared in their lives, Hsa has been visiting him less and less. During his time in town he would see the king and his 'advisor' taking a stroll down the streets. The Pokemons bowed in his presence but Hsa never liked the idea of older people lowering their heads in respect for him.--

A few weeks after Chu had met with Freya, he decided to pay Hsa a visit for a change. He wanted to show him the new born Pokemons that he was raising in his garden. The boy wanted to make a surprise visit that would leave him at awe. It would be the first time he visited the king and it was never easy to get into the palace without permission.

Chu arrived at the throne room door and slowly opened it just so he could take a peek without making a creek noise. He saw the king standing next to his throne with a note on his hand and a white Lucario who was his personal bodyguard right by his side.

"Surprise!" the little boy jumped out and yelled while holding a cute little Jigglypuff in his hands. The white Lucario saw him but the king barely moved an inch. It was like his entire mind was deeply focused on that particular piece of paper. Tears began running through Hsa's eyes. It was an emotion that was rarely seen by anyone in the entire kingdom especially from a royal family member.

Hsa quickly dropped the letter and ran… ran away from everything and everyone. Chu was dumbfounded by this reaction. How could a simple paper make a fearless and powerful king break into a crying lunatic? The White Lucario gave chase and was followed by the other three who wore full iron armor.

Chu was left alone to wander the halls of the throne room. He picked up the strange note that Hsa left on the ground and realized that it was a letter addressed to him. (I will not tell you the letter since I haven't written it yet)

Chu ran as fast as he could through the halls of the palace. It took him an hour just to get himself around without being spotted by the palace guards. After awhile, he arrived at the city docks where he could see a ship sailing away just beyond the row of fishing boats. Just by the piers, Hsa broke down onto his knees as tears flowed down his cheeks. The four Lucarios stood a few meters behind to leave the poor king alone for awhile. Chu could do nothing but watch as his best friend burst into tears alone on that faithful night.

A few days later after that unexplainable incident, Hsa resumed his visits to his garden more often. Chu was happy to see his friend all the time but even though he was there… it felt like his thoughts were somewhere else. Everyday Chu would pay him a little visit in his palace but it was always the same. The king would be crying on his bed like or gazing into the open sea, as if he was waiting for her to return. Even though the child was king… he was still a child. A kid who was simply not strong enough to fight against such powerful emotions that had concocted in him. A child whose knowledge is barely beyond the limits of the elders.

Every time Chu saw his friend in that state his emotions would surface. First was confusion, he was confused because he couldn't understand why Hsa was so broken down by just one human. Second was anger, angry at the person who hurt his friend so deeply. The king was a powerful person. He had the loyalty of the entire Pokemon race which had sworn fealty to him and lastly was sadness, sad because his friend would never be able to look at his friend the same ever again.

**(End of Flashback)**

"So… is she a threat?" Chaucer brought Chu back to reality with a flick of his fingers.

"No… It's just a feeling…" Chu said with a calm and collective voice, but he was deeply hiding the painful expression inside of him.

"(sigh) Very well, I'll have one of my Chosens watch out for her"

"Thank you Chaucer… that will keep my mind at peace…"

"We should head back to the others and give our report. I hope our leader has persuaded the others to follow us"

"Do you think he's gonna be alright?"

"Of course… I know his majesty too well… he should be strong enough to handle the second force" then Chaucer begins walking away into the forest but was halted by Chu.

"But what if he's not?" Chuacer stopped on his track and looked at the disturbed boy,

"Then he will die… and all the Pokemons will never be free again…" Chu was a little surprised by that sentence but he understood it… some how.

Chaucer disappeared into the darkenss of the woods. Chu took once last look at the gang and disappeared soon in the same manner.

**(Meanwhile, in Mauvile city)**

Jesse and James (and Meowth) had just exited the restaurant without paying. "Hahaha! Now wasn't that a brilliant plan boys?" said Jesse to her team mates. They both nodded in agreement with food stuffed in their mouths. They just made a complete scam of the restaurant by pretending to be famous celebrities. "I say Jesse this has got to be the most delicious plan you've made yet!" James took another bite off his food before departing with the rest of the team.

"Now that we're done relaxing and running with a full tank, let's go back to our usual routine!"

"To get that Pikachu!" they said in unison. But then, they sew a small group of beaten Team Rocket heading towards them

James quickly recognized them as none other than their rivals, "Hey… isn't that Butch and Cassidy?"

"What are they doing here?" stated Jessie

Meowth added "I don't know but they look kinda beat"

"Let's hide!"

The trio hid behind a bus stop and watched as the two Team Rocket and their Raticate sat down to slobber in defeat. "Well that plan went down the drain" said Cassidy in a sad and defeated tone, "We were beaten by a… a… Venonat and three kids" said Butch followed by a (Rati…) moan. After their major defeat against Ash and his friends in the forest they've been back track and decided to stop by the city to catch up with them.

Just as the two late teens and their Raticate sigh in defeat, they felt like things couldn't get any worst. But they were wrong… a few seconds after they settled their 'behinds' at the bus stop a car past by at an amazing speed which caused a puddle of water to splash at them.

"Hey wasn't that Butch and Cad?" said Annie,

"Who cares?! Let's just find the brats and capture his Pokemons. If Domino and Wendy are working together, there's a good chance they might actually beat us" said Oakley,

"By the way sis, don't forget we need to capture some Pokemons for Giovanni in a week or two" Annie pulled out a comb from the drawer and untangled her hair

"Don't worry Annie, by the time we get those kids evil giggle we'll have more than enough Pokemons to make that old goat to give us an early retirement hehehhe"

After both Team Rockets had left the scene, Jesse and James got into thinking.

"If those girls are here that could only mean that the twerps are heading this way!" said James

"It's gonna be a three way tug of war battle if we don't move fast!" said Meowth slapping his paws together

"I agree, let's go on and set up traps for them before they steal the spot light!" said Jessie

And with that, the trio of villains disappeared without a trace without knowing that the group they were looking for just happened to past by.

"We're finally here!" yelled Duplica as she crossed the entrance to the city with a giant smile. The rest of the gang followed behind. Usually the gang would've gone through the city right away without hesitation, but now that they were traveling in such a large group Brock had to restock his food supply through every town they crossed. It was one of the burdens he had to bear… well at least for now.

It was a difficult time for everyone. After days of traveling and adventure, the gang wanted to go here and there and maybe everywhere around the city. It was then Tracey decided, "Alright everyone, we'll split up and meet at the city Pokemon gym in three hours ok?" everyone nodded and scattered like little children in a play ground.

May, Max, Todd and Drew headed towards the mall, where they bought some new clothes and gadgets for the trip. Brock and Tracey spent their time at the Pokemart looking for food assortments. Ash, Misty, Richie, Dawn and Duplica went to the arcade to play a few games. After all, they haven't seen civilization for weeks and some entertaining culture would be hard to come by in the wilds.

As Max browse through the selection of goods in the mall with his sister. He noticed several young trainers rambling of becoming the greatest Pokemon master there is. Max giggled at their child like attempts. Sure, they maybe older than him but Max wasn't your usual eight year old. The kid is able to do dcypher codes and analyse Pokemons with just one look. He can outsmart a newbie trainer anyday.

"I captured a Flareon this morning, it's really strong" said the first boy who held a Pokeball to his friends faces

One of his friends glared in disbelief, "Wow, I've heard of Flareon. They're supposed to be really hard to catch. What Pokemon did you use to battle it?"

The older girl-friend jumped to a conclusion, "Probably a water type since Flareon is a fire Pokemon. I bet your Wartortle had some trouble fighting it huh?"

"Uh… yeah… But nothing was to tough for my Pokemons. I trained them night and day and we're almost unstoppable!"

"Ha, that's nothing. My Gyrados can knock you and your Pokemons back to training school"

"Is that a challenge?" the gloater sharpened his eyes

"Ha! You two dream on, my Electrabuzz is more than a match for any water Pokemon. You guys can bow down to me and call me the greatest Pokemon master!"

It was then that last sentence forced Max to let out a soft laugh, "You three can keep on dreaming. (the three kids look at Max) There's only one true Pokemon master in the world and his name is Ash Ketchum!"

The three young trainers looked at the boy who just popped out of nowhere.

"Who the heck are you?" the gloater asked

"The name's Max and I'm a Pokemon trainer in training. But that's not the point right now. I can already tell that you're lying on catching a Flareon. (the kid flinch a little) You're probably wondering how I know right? Well then I'll tell ya. One, you said you caught that Flareon this morning but its only 10:00 AM and I don't think Flareons come out earlier than ten AM. Two, if you did battle a Flareon then you would at least have small scorch mark on you. Flareons are very sensitive about their territories. Three, Flareon's can only be found on the East of Hoenn, there's no way one of them could've traveled all the way here. So this leaves me to only three conclusions: You either stole that Pokemon from someone else, traded it for another Pokemon or got it as a gift. Unless you could travel faster than the speed of light and back here before morning"

The kid would be sweating in buckets if he could, but right now he was more afraid of his two friends than his Flareon. He then immediately confessed that he didn't capture a Flareon. He got it as a gift from a family in Kanto.

Max smiled back in victory and left the trainers to battle it out for themselves. Just when he was about to return to May, he saw two brothers browsing the shops. The big brother was giving his little brother a piggyback ride as they laughed the entire time. Max was jealous of them. His sister never gave him a piggyback ride or played with him for that matter. She may have cared for him but ever since they let for Johto it has always been 'training, gym battles, Pokemons' and stuff.

Ash was like… no… he was a brother to Max. Ash protected him when Groudon attacked (see Jirachi the Wish Maker), Ash saved them when the Tree of Beginning turned them into atoms (see: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew) and stood at his side whenever he needed someone to cry, talk or just simply be with. This was Max's biggest wish. He didn't want just anyone to be his brother… he wanted Ash to be his brother more than anything.

The young boy projected a clear image in his mind. He could see it so clear that it was almost in his graps. He would see Ash giving him a piggyback ride, playing hide and seek with him or any other child like games. There would be time for him and Pokemons alike.

Just when Max was running through his little fantasy dreamland, a sudden irritating voice came up from behind, "Hey Max, come on, help me carry these bags, would you?" it was May.

"Man, if only I could trade her for Ash like a Pokemon" he muttered silently at himself as he went to help his sister in need.

At the arcade, Duplica played a few rounds of 'hit the Golem' and won many tickets to get the grand prize. She wanted that huge Teddiursa stuff toy that was being displayed on the grand prize table. After a few lucky winning streaks, she nearly had enough tickets to get it but soon she found herself lost in the arcade. She walked around with a huge pile of tickets in her hand and hoped that she would see a familiar face.

She wandered around in circles until she finally reached the prize table. "I want the Teddiursa grand prize please!" she said to the counter lady, "Oh I'm sorry Ms. but someone already got it just a few minutes ago"

"Don't you have any left?" Duplica hoped that the clerk would've hidden at least one for a poor desperate soul like her but alas there was none left. "Ok, I'll just have the second best prize please…" she said in a disappointed tone. She used up ¾ of her winning tickets to get a nice sleeveless jacket but she didn't plan on wearing it. She just didn't want all her efforts to go to waste. After getting the prize she didn't want, Duplica spotted Dawn who was playing 'free throw shots' near the east side of the arcade.

"Hey Dawn mind if I join you?" said Duplica with a friendly hand gesture. Dawn had never really talked to anyone in the group except for Ash, Brock, Misty and May. She had a good reason though. She was stranger in this region. She didn't know how to react when they approach her or when she approaches them. So to avoid any misunderstanding she just nodded with a smile. They shooted hoops for a little while until it became challenge.

Dawn gave a smirk when she won the first round scoring a new high score. Duplica smirked back at her giving away a challenging glance. Dawn accepted the challenge and soon they began shooting over and over that some of the crowd began to think that they were athletes. The first two rounds were mirculiously tied until Duplica managed to even up the score with a win. The two competitors glared at each other with determination to win. Since they both had one win each, this would be the tie breaker to end it all.

Ash, Misty and Richie played a few games too but soon noticed a large crowd. "Hey I wonder what's going on over there (walks to the nearest person out of the crowd) Excuse me sir but what's going on?" the man looked at Ash who seemed very familiar to him,

"Oh, they say some players came by and challenged each other to a shoot off and they're tied right now. Everyone here are making bets on who'll win. Hey… do I know you from somewhere before?" Ash just shook his head in return and tried to get to higher ground. His Pikachu and Espeon were the first to reach the balcony of the arcade building.

From there they saw Dawn and Duplica shooting hoops that would leave the pros at awe. "Oh wow, is that Duplica and Dawn?" he muttered out as he looked at the score board. The two of them were equal and quickly gaining points as the timer comes to the last ten seconds. The crowd echoed the timer as it counted down.

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!!!"

And the beep sounds it off with the end of the game. It was another tie… the crowd gave them an applause. Ash too was clapping his hands with Pikachu until his Espeon began twitching its ear.

"Hey is something wrong Espeon? (Espeon jumps away out of the arcade) Hey Espeon wait up!" Ash quickly gave chase to Pokemon. He jumped over fences and squeezed through back alleys just to get closer to his Espeon. Just when he was about to get hold of the cat like Pokemon, a garbage trucked accidentally dumps all of its cargo onto the poor boy. Pikachu avoided the dump by mere centimeters. Ash crawled his way out of the garbage through the top and saw the driver next to him, "Hey mister, are you ok?" but Ash didn't reply, he just took the banana peel off his head and ran after his Espeon.

A girl walked out of the fast food restaurant with a chubby man wearing sun glasses. The girl had purple hair and with matching eye color. She wore a long collar and long sleeve shirt with matching puffy pants. The man wore dark shade sun glasses and wore some sort of tourist attire. They were just about to enter the car when suddenly the purple haired girl stopped on her track with her eyes opened wide, "Is something wrong Anabel?" said the man, Anabel didn't reply. It looked as if she was in a trance.

Anabel dropped her bags and ran as fast as she could towards who-knows-where. She felt a presence that she never though that she would feel again. In her mind she kept rambling, _"No, it couldn't be… is it possible?"_ her mind was in a state of confusion. After a few minutes of running through the city she could feel the presence getting weaker and then stronger at the same time.

Ash chased his Espeon all the across the city before it finally came to a stop. Ash couldn't slow down in time and soon ran into a purple haired girl just about his age, "Oh my head… sorry about that, are you alright?" he clutched his head and then helped the girl up on her feet, "Oh I'm… fin-… Ash?"

"Hey… Anabel?!" the two of them stared at each other as Ash was still holding her hand. There was a short pause until Espeon purred below them.

Anabel quickly grabbed onto Espeon with tears slowly but clearly bursting out of her eyes. It was then Ash recalled the collar his Espeon had 'Anabel' he remembered.

"Hey Anabel, is this your Espeon?"

"That's right I thought I lost you Espeon! I'm so glad you're safe!"

"Wait a minute. If I remember correctly, I found Espeon in Johto… then how"

He wasn't able to finish his sentence when a fat figure came by panting with exhaustion. "Scott?" "Ash?" they both said each others name in reply.

**(1 Hour later)**

After the recent shock, Scott invited Ash for a cup of hot coco. "So Ash… I heard that you're invited to the Valmarian league" he said with hint of a proud tone in his voice. Ash just scratched his head and laughed with a nod, "I'm glad because you see… Anabel here is also participating in the league as well. I asked the mayor of Varidian city and they solemnly agreed"

Ash wasn't surprised by this he's been meeting a lot of people who were heading to Valmarian himself, in fact most of them were in his traveling group. Anabel saw this and was quite impressed as well as Scott. They chit chat about the things that had happened after Ash had beaten the Frontier Brain until Scott decided to pop in the usual offer. "So Ash, have you reconsidered the offer of being a Frontier Brain?" they both waited for the boy's reaction but what came to them was expected,

"Sorry but no… I haven't changed my mind" Ash shook his head along with his Pikachu.

Anabel expected no less from him. Ash didn't do it for the title or the fame, he did it because he wanted to... and besides, the title of Pokemon Master was so much better than a Frontier Brain. The girl smiled as she petted her Espeon. "Oh yeah, how did your Espeon get to Johto when you guys were in Hoenn?" the two of them hesitated for awhile until Anabel summoned up her courage to speak. "It's a long story Ash…" but heck he had the time.

**(Flashback)**

Anabel and Scott were driving in his car along the road from Mahogany town. The music on the radio was great and the atmosphere was wonderful. Just when they were taking the road towards Olivine city, a strange woman suddenly appeared in front of them. Scott was barely able step on the breaks when he turned the car around. The vehicle fell into the ditch but neither of them were harmed.

"Anabel are you ok?"

"I'm fine, just a little shaken that's all"

"Hey you there, are you ok?" he said to the person he was about to hit

The woman looked back with her cold deadly eyes. She had white hair just like those Pokemon thieves and wore Ash's attire. Scott quickly recognized her as one of those thieves that had been stealing Pokemons around the country. Scott took a few steps back trying not to make any sudden moves. Anabel got out of the car safely and took a few gasp of air to get herself out of shock.

"You have a Pokemon…" the woman started, "Give them to me… now"

Scott immediately yelled out, "Anabel, run! It's that Pokemon thief from Kanto!" by the time he ushered those words the white haired lady rushed onto him and whacked his face. Scott fell to the ground unconscious but with his sun glasses still on. Anabel's eyes widened by this unusal turn of events and quickly dashed towards the nearest village.

The woman gave chase with inhumane speed and quickly appeared right in front of Anabel, "If you will not give your Pokemons then I will take them from you by force!" the woman called out a Tauros which was slightly different. It had longer and sharper horns, as if it was trained only for battle!

Anabel summoned out her Alakazam and prepared for battle.

"Tauros, attack the traitors and bring them back into the light!"

"_Alakazam, use psychic attack now!"_ Anabel communicated with her Pokemon telepathically

Alakazam used its powers against Tauros but for some strange reason it didn't affect it at all. It was damaged but it didn't react to the pain. Tauros ramed its horn against Alakazam and plowed it through the ground like a mop.

"_Alakazam, return!"_ Anabel used one of her empty Pokeball and called back her Pokemon but then something happened. Alakazam refused to return to the Pokeball and shoved its master away. "Alakazam?" the white haired woman chuckled evilly and summoned another Pokemon… a Pidgeot wrap in full body armor. "Pidgeot, Alakazam, attack the traitor and give me her Pokemons now!" with her orders, the Pokemons acted to the letter and began bombarding Anabel with their attacks.

After taking advantage of Pidgeot's gust attack, Anabel took out another Pokeball and called out her powerhorse Pokemon, Metagross. "Metagross, deflect!" she now had to shout her attack moves to get them to do it. Metagross deflected Pidgeot's attack but was quickly taken by surprised by Alakazam's psychic attack. "Darn… what's wrong with Alakazam? I can't communicate with it anymore!" "Alakazam, use your confusion! Pidgeot, use your beak and destroy them both!" Without psychic protection Metagross lost its momentum against the invisible attack and was then harassed by Pidgeot. Anabel tried to shoo the bird like Pokemon away and cuddled her Metagross.

"Metagross, you have lost… now come… out master awaits us…" with those words from the woman Metagross tossed Anabel away and joined up with the WHG's (White Haired Girl) crew. Anabel struggled to get up. Two of her Pokemons were now against her and she couldn't risk losing another. She ran towards the forest and tossed her last Pokemon out of its Pokeball, Espeon. "Espeon, do exatly what I tell you. Run… run as far as you can and… ARGGG!!" she slipped to the ground and fell unconscious. The last thing she saw was her Espeon getting attacked by her Alakazam before slipping into darkness.

**(End of Flashback)**

"…And as they say, the rest is history" Anabel finishes her story and took a final sip from her soda bottle. Ash was sad for her but was now worried if he should encounter those thieves on the way. He first thought that there was only one thief but after the recent news that he's been hearing, there were at least three of them roaming around the countryside. This made Ash extremely worried about traveling.

"Oh my look at the time, I guess we have to go Anabel or we'll miss the next trip to Littleroot town" said Scott as he looked at his watch. Just before they got up on their seats Ash made a proposal that Anabel wouldn't dare dream to refuse,

"Hey wait a minute Scott! Don't you think it would be better if Anabel traveled with me instead?" they both looked at him with confusion, "Well don't you think it's better if we traveled in a bigger group? I have some of my friends in town and I'm going to meet them in a couple of hours and I think the Pokemon nappers won't be dumb enough to fight all of us right?" Ash made a good point there.

"Hmm… well I guess you have a point there…" Scott then suddenly noticed Anabel starring at the boy with a smile he hasn't seen for a long while after she lost her Pokemons to the thief. He begins to giggle then begins to laughs hysterically. The two trainers didn't know if his laugh was a yes or no answer.

The man slowly stops his laugh and adjusts his shades, "Aha… hahaha… I see now. Very well Ash, I guess it would be safer if two trainers travel together instead of one" Anabel was a bit surprise by her boss's reaction.

Scott glared at her with a cunning grin and whispered to her, "I hope you two get together soon hehehehe" she blushed brightly on her cheeks making her look like a tomato with steam coming out of her head. "Well Ash, as the owner of the Kanto Battle Frontier, I hand over Anabel's protection to your guiding hands" Scott made it sound like he was making Ash a knight or something. "Well I'd better be off, but before I go, let me treat you guys to some lunch"

"Sure!" was their reply.

After restocking on their rations, Brock and Tracey decided to head towards the meeting point where they would immediately head off to Petalburg city. On the way, they encountered Dawn, Misty, Richie and Duplica.

"Hey Girls… hey isn't Ash suppose to be with you?" Brock noticed that the young master wasn't there anymore

"I saw him ran off chasing his Espeon. He couldn't have gone that far now could he?" Richie pointed the last location he saw his friend ran off to

"Oh no, I hope he's ok" Dawn said worryingly

"I wouldn't worry too much about him. He's known to make the impossible, possible hehehehe" said Tracey as he tried to remind them of Ash's special talent of beating incredible odds

Brock then added, "Well if I know Ash, I think he'd be at the meeting point about now. Let's head over there!"

The gang immediately ran towards the southern exit of the city.

After a successful shopping spree at the mall, May, Max, Todd and Drew decided to also head towards the meeting point. They walked along the down town area of the city as the sun floated above them. "Come on you guys, we're supposed to meet Brock and the others in thirty minutes!" she yelled at the boys who were looking at the new movie posters.

"Don't worry sis, we still got plenty of time. Besides, how can you enjoy the city if you don't stop to smell the roses?" Max gave out one of his metaphors.

"That's right… besides, there's a lot of Pokemons I'd like to take pictures of. Oh that reminds me, I need to buy more films before we head out. I'll see you guys at the meeting spot later!" Todd quickly left the street and into the nearest filmstore

Just as the boys did their usual routine of hanging around May dropped her bags on the floor and sighed in admittance. They were right, the south exit was only a five minute walk and who knows… she might even see something interesting.

Just when May nested herself on an empty bench near the sidewalk a car moving at an incredible speed past by like it was being chased or something like that. Her eyes came into contact with a familiar blonde haired woman and that usual 'R' symbol on her chest. It was Annie and Oakley, speeding away at the speed of light indeed.

"Hey, weren't those the girls that attacked Ash?" May said to the boys. Tracey was the first to react, "Yeah, they were the ones I saw back at the ruins!"

"Come on! We gotta find Ash and tell him that Team Rocket is in town!" shouted Max as he pulled his sister's shirt. They all nodded in agreement and ran towards the meeting point.

Ash and Anabel were reminiscing about old times when they first met during his journey on the Kanto Battle Frontier. They laughed and giggled for awhile until they were at their last meal. Scott had given Ash a credit card which he was forced to accept. He wanted Anabel to have a time of her life and so he thought he'd leave the boy with some 'ka-ching' before leaving them. "So Ash, what Pokemons are you gonna use for the Valmarian league?" the young trainer thought of it for awhile. He knew Pikachu would be his first choice, but the other five would be tough to choose from. He knows that they had all their own strengths and weaknesses in battle but to balance his power equally on each element would be quite difficult.

"Well I guess I would pick Pikachu and then I'll…" his sentence was cut short when a chill ran through his bones. This was indeed a familiar feeling that Ash would always get when his other self was near by. He still wouldn't believe about his other self's existence but this time it was strangely colder than before.

Ash looked out the window and glared at the people that were walking around. Anabel was worried about Ash's strange behavior, "Hey Ash, is something wrong?" Pikachu was also worried about his master. He's been acting strange for quite sometime now and it's beginning to bug him. The boy just smiled in return and shook his head. Just when they both were about resume to their meals… a white haired figure past through their window… grinning slightly at them. Ash and Anabel immediately got up from their chairs and ran after the boy. "Hey you stop!" he shouted to him, but the boy just kept moving faster through the crowd. Ash and Anabel gave chase with their Pokemons.

"Ash, shouldn't we call the police?" Anabel stated out, but Ash wasn't much of a listener and so he just ignored it. He was much too angry about the WHK (White Haired Kids) using Pokemons for such evil actions. He was going to deliver the punishment himself and make sure no one would ever do that sort of crime ever again.

The two of them chased the boy through the familiar alleyways that Ash came across when he was chasing Espeon. He avoided most of the garbage and managed to grab the boy's jacket. It was indeed the same jacket he was wearing but with the colors a little bit off. After a few minutes of endless chasing the boy stopped on a wide open field in the park. "Ok you… we got you now!" Ash and Anabel panted heavily as they watch the boy just about their age grinning back at them.

"And so we meet at last… Ash Ketchum of Pallet town…"

"H… how did you know my name?"

At long last, Ash Ketchum finally meets a member of the Pokemon thieves in Mauville city. Will he be able to fight against these mysterious criminals and defeat them? Only time will tell…


	16. The Five Guardians

**Chapter 16: The Five Guardians**

When we last saw Ash and his Pikachu, they were about to go face to face against a Pokemon thief. "And so we meet at last… Ash Ketchum of Pallet town…"

Ash face grew much in anger and fear. The rumors about the white haired thieves was frightful and from what Anabel had told him, they were gonna be a big challenge. "Alright you, we know that you're one of the Pokemon thieves. Now surrender and give those Pokemons back!"

"So you've heard of me? I'm flattered… but I'm afraid that I'm going to have to take away your Pokemons now" Anabel backed away a few paces but was ready to fight if Ash was. "You're not gonna take my Pokemons that easily! Pikachu, show him what you're made of!" (Pika Pikachu!)

"So a battle between you and me were inevitable… I understand. En guard!"

He called out an Exeggutor equipped with four iron helmets and prepared it for battle.

"Pikachu, give him a little thunderbolt!"

"Exeggutor, dodge it and tackle it back!"

Pikachu let out a stream of electricity but the tree like Pokemon dodged it and rammed back at Pikachu.

"Pikachu, don't give up just yet! Show him your lightning burst attack!"

The electrical mouse let our several streams of thunder off its body which damaged Exeggutor a lot but it still wasn't ready to fall down. Chaucer was amazed that the little mouse was able witstand against his Pokemon.

"Very good, but you'll need more power if you're going to defeat me!" he complimented, "Exeggutor, use confusion on that Pikachu!"

"That won't work on my Pikachu!"

Exeggutor used it powerful psychic energy and stared at Pikachu's eyes but then suddenly Exeggutor started jumping idiotically throughout the park.

"I see… you've trained your Pikachu to resist psychic attacks. An impressive feature for such a small mouse (Pika!) Very well then, let's take this battle to the next level! Come out Politoed!"

While Ash was dazzled by this battle, he was able to recognize the Politoed quite clearly. It was Misty's Politoed! "So you're the one who attacked the Cerulean gym!"

Chaucer just shrugged away the words like it meant nothing to him. "So what if I did? I don't care… not as long as it takes me closer to my… our dreams I don't care how many of you should suffer"

Ash was a little surprise on the man's reply could be but he knew that this wasn't the best time to ask. Anabel saw this battle was becoming a little tilted so she decided to send out her Espeon. This was now a two on two battle.

"Espeon, use quick attack on Exeggutor!"

Ash was startled when Anabel came by to help him but this was not the time to be distracted, "Pikachu, follow Espeon with a thunder bolt attack!"

Chaucer knew that the battle was gonna get tougher so he finally got serious, "Politoed, block their attacks with your body. Exeggutor, tackle both of them back!"

The Politoed took the attacks head on without flinching even once. The armor it wore absorbed the impact quite well and a few moments later Exeggutor tackled both Espeon and Pikachu back. Even with its heavy load of iron, the creature was still able to move faster than they anticipated. "Grrr… alright here goes. Anabel, can you give Pikachu cover for awhile?" Ash was now planning to use his trump card a little earlier than usual but Anabel didn't know this so she just dumbly agreed. "Thanks… Pikachu, absorb!"

The electrical mouse began gathering static electricity around the air and prepared to use his ultimate attack. Chaucer was also a bit surprised on what Ash was going to do as well but he wasn't planning to wait and watch, "Exegutor, use solar beam!" but Anabel countered that, "Espeon, use psychic attack and give Pikachu some cover!" with Espeon's invisible attack slamming against Exeggutor and Politoed, Chaucer was unable to distract Pikachu until it was already too late.

Pikachu began to glow brightly and let out a good squeal. Ash waved his hand to get Anabel's Espeon to get out of the line of fire. "Alright Pikchu, show them what you can do! Lightning Storm!" (PI----KA----CHU!!!!) The little lightning mouse let out a huge surge of electricity out of its body and rained lightning onto his opponents. Both Anabel and Chaucer were struck with awe as Pikachu mercilessly fires upon the Pokemons. Lightning upon lightning smashed onto nearby trees and some even on the ground.

May and her group were just about to reach the meeting point when they saw a huge amount of electricity flowing on the other side of the city. "What in Hoenn's name is that?" Drew said with anticipation.

"I think that's Pikachu's lightning storm! Come on let's go you two!" May ordered them both and ran through the scared crowd.

Todd was just finished getting several new rolls of film when he saw the bolts of lightning in the distance, "My word! (he took several pictures of the bolts of lightning) That could only be… Ash!" he immediately ran through the streets of the city as everyone was still shocked by that big lightning bolt that appeared out of the sky.

Annie and Oakley were driving around the city looking for clean clothes when they saw the lightning popping out of the park. "Hey Oakley… do you know what that is?" Oakley immediately looked through her satellite via laptop and scanned the area in just a few seconds, "Well, well… looks like we're in luck sis. That's no ordinary amount of electricity… that's a Pikachu" they both grinned evilly and soon drove off towards the sight of the fight.

Jesse, James and Meowth were floating above the city on their balloon when a stray bolt of lightning nearly hit them.

"Gwa!! Jesse, what's going on?!"

"How should I know?! Maybe they're having a fire work show or something!"

Meowth growled at them, "In the middle of the day? That's just crazy (another bolt of lightning missed his face but it burnt his whiskers) WAAA! Let's get out of here before any of those things hit us!"

In moments they began shifting the balloon away from the battle ground.

Misty, Brock, Duplica, Richie and Dawn were waiting for the others at the meeting point until the electronical devices around them were beginning to malfunction. Streetlights began flickering on and off, broadcast on giant screen TVs were becoming nothing more but static and probably everything was now going haywire.

"Hey everone, look at that! Isn't that…" said Richie as he pointed at the large lightning bolt in the distance

"What could this mean?" Dawn gasped

"There's only one thing that I know that could make that kind of static electricity!" without another word Brock dropped his bag and head towards the source

"Come on everyone, Ash might be in trouble!" shouted Misty

With that they dashed through the city streets without second thoughts. _"Ash, please be safe"_ Misty rant these words through her mind over and over until they reach their destination.

Butch and Cassidy… well… they were still sleeping.

**(On a Zeppelin near Mauville City)**

Wendy and Domino had indeed teamed up to build one luxurious balloon above the clouds. They had about two hundred goons with them and about fifty of them were merely used as crew and butlers on this vessel.

If you managed to catch a glimps on the room on board the S.S Notilus then you would probably call it a servants room compared to the one they're in. The room was big enough to hold the crash party. It had bright lights on each corner of the room, air conditioner that can freeze the ice age ten times over (not literally) and sofas and TVs with cables.

"I must say Domino, when you're number one in the ranks of Team Rocket you really are treated as a number one" Wendy complimented her new 'partner' who grinned evilly. "Oh it's nothing really, just a zeplin I bought off the internet for a hefty price. I call it, The Scarlet… But we should be more focused on how to get that brat or Giovanni will totally kill me" their evil laugh was cut short when one of their minions entered the private room.

"Domino, ma'am! We've detected a huge amount of energy in Mauville city. Reports say that it's the boy and his Pikachu!"

Wendy politely placed her coffee cup on the table and spoke out, "Well, looks like our luck has finally caught up with those brats. Do you mind if I do the honors?"

"Be my guest…"

"Thank you… All hands to station! Full speed ahead! Destination: Mauville city!" the pilot saluted and began changing the coordinates

"Yes ma'am, setting course towards Mauville city!"

And with that, the crew of the Scarlet turned the big giant balloon around and flew towards the city.

**(Back on the Battleground in Mauville City)**

Pikachu was still letting out several bolts of electricity on Exeggutor and Politoed. It was incredible on how such a small body could hold so much power. After a few seconds later… it stopped. Anabel, Chaucer and Officer Jenny (who had just arrived in time) saw the whole thing unfold.

Chaucer was the first who recovered and he still had that grin on his face, "It looks like you made a huge progress… your majesty…" he whispered those last words to himself so no one could hear him. His Pokemons were knocked out cold but he still had plenty up his sleeves.

Jenny walked in with hand cuffs ready to snap on the boy's wrists. Several police cars soon arrived on scene and prepared to tackle Chaucer whenever they see an opening. Pikachu dropped down from the sky and to everyone's amazement… it was still ready to give another blast. Chaucer smiled and leaped from the ground in an impossible manner. "Fare well Ash Ketchum, I do believe we shall meet again!" but Ash wasn't finished yet, "You're not getting away from me! Noctowl, go! (an owl like Pokemon appears) use swift attack and get him!"

In a blink of an eye, Noctowl flew right towards Chaucer and snatched the Pokebelt off of him. The white haired boy was barely able to dodge it until it was too late. He fell to the ground and was quickly taken down by dozens of police officers and in a few moments… the cuffs were on his hands.

Misty, May, Brock and the others soon arrived on scene panting heavily with sweat coming down their faces. They saw the White haired kid being taken away by the police and Ash holding a belt full of Pokeballs. Misty was the first to get to him, "Hey Ash, are you ok? What happened?" Ash just did his heroic pose but before he could say anything, Officer Jenny cut him off, "Thank you Mr. Ketchum for assisting in the arrest of one of the Pokethives"

"Pokethieves?!" the entire gang said all together.

"Well we'll be sending him back to the station where we can interrogate him to find out the other members of this gang" Officer Jenny gave them a salute then walked away. It was amazing that Brock didn't even move when he saw her.

Just before the police put the white haired boy into one of their vehicles he had something to say to Ash. "Hey Ash (they all look at him) I'll be seeing you again real soon. Oh and by the way… the name's Chaucer" with that he willingly walked into the car and it drove off.

"Ehhhhh creepy" Dawn said in a scared tone.

Chaucer kept his evil grin on his face for as long as he possibly could, but when Ash and the rest of the gang were out of sight a single tear dropped from his cheeks. It was strange to see a child like him cry but he didn't care about the policemen. Let them see his tears, he wasn't ashamed on what he had done. As a matter of fact there were hints of happiness in the tears he let out. The drivers could hear him but decided to ignore him until they reach the station.

The crowd and media reporters were held back by a group of police officers and vehicles. They all wanted to interview Ash's recent success and perhaps get an autograph or two… or three… or four… thousand. _"Oh man, I gotta get out of here or I'll be giving autographs as a living"_ Ash thought of this as he let out a slight smile. The flashes of cameras were blinding and the media was pushing even harder just to get a little peek on the boy and his friends.

"Looks like you won't be getting out of this one Ash" Misty slapped her forehead which was only followed by Todd

"She's right, we're completely surrounded!" but luckily, Jenny was there to help them

"Oh don't worry about that (picks up her radio) Hey Al, can you give us a lift?"

"Sure thing Jenny" said the person on the other line, "I'm right on top of you. I'll be there in a minute!"

Everyone looked up and saw a chopper landing on an opening near by. Just when it landed on the ground safely, the media group broke through the police line like a herd of Tauros. Ash and the others quickly made their way towards the chopper without second thought. But Brock was too hypnotized by all the female reporters and so he ran the opposite way. "Oh, this is really a dream comin---" he was cut short when all the reporters slammed him to the ground. He was then run over by thousands of feet jumping up and down just to get a glimpse of Ash.

"Ouch now that's got to hurt in the morning?" May could already imagine the pain he was going through

Dawn surely had to agree with him, "Well, we can't leave him like that forever. Beyleef, I choose you. (Bayleef appears from the Pokeball) Beyleef, can you help Brock with your vine whip?"

As the chopper hovered over the rampaging crowd, Beyleef held Brock with his vines and pulled him in before anymore harm could come to him. Brock had shoe marks all over his face and body. The others couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Well I guess you guys won't be staying in Mauville city since they all recognize you now" said Jenny

"That's what they call the curse of fame" said Tracey

They all laugh in agreement to Tracey.

"Do you mind if I could drop you guys somewhere? It won't be safe in the station that's for sure"

Ash pointed out to the city just by the distance, "Can you drop us in Petalburg city? That's where we're headed right now"

"Well I can't exatly land you inside the city but I can drop you off at route 103. From there its a few days walk to Petalburg city. (sees Brock moaning) Are you sure your friend's alright? He doesn't look so good"

"Oh I wouldn't worry about him. He's been through worst… a lot worst" Max remembered the many beatings the man took back during his old adventures.

Just when they were about to go out to the distance, Dawn saw one of the most beautiful sight she could only see in a single day, "Hey guys look!" she pointed towards the sun which was setting beautifully into the sea, "What a beautiful sunset!"

Everyone looked through the window and saw the sun as it slowly sets under the sea. It was indeed a sight to behold. But a few kilometers behind them, the Scarlet closes in with… not-so-good-intentions.

"There they are" said Wendy as she closes the giant microscope, "Yup, it's them alright. So what's the plan Domino?" she looked to her blonde haired friend, who was leaning on the wall in a cool pose,

"Well, we can't exactly do anything while they're on the air. We'll just ambush them when they finally touch ground and then we'll have more than enough Pokemons to make Giovanni doing back flips hehehe" they both laughed hysterically as the zeppelin follows the chopper at a safe distance.

**(Time Skip 2 hours Somewhere along route 103)**

The chopper finally dropped Ash and his friends on the outskirts of Mauville city where they would make their way to Petalburg city. "Well, this is as far as we can take you. I wish you all luck in the Valmarian League! Ok Al, take us back" with a wave of good byes from Ash and his friends, the gang decided to make camp and since Brock was still unconscious from all the hard beatings, they would have to cook for themselves.

"Hey Ash, why don't you and I go look for firewood?" Anabel had more courage than the other girls. Rather than hiding behind a mask of shyness, she had the guts to talk to him directly.

"Sure thing Anabel. Oh guys, I forgot to introduce you. Everyone, this is Anabel. She's a member of the Frontier Brain in Kanto and she'll be traveling with us"

"It's a pleasure to meet you all" said Anabel with a polite bow. Everyone was happy for her to tag along but when she wrapped herself around Ash's arm, May's happy glance became a death stare.

Misty was forcing out a smile on her face as the two them walked into the darkness of the woods. Pikachu tagged along so he could light the way with his electrical powers.

**(Back in the Police Station in Mauville city)**

Chaucer sat in a room with his wrist still cuffed and a small ceiling light hanging over his head. The interrogators had been trying to talk with the kid for hours but he wouldn't speak. They confiscated all of his Pokeball and made sure he stayed there until they were done with him.

"Gentlemen, have you interrogated the suspect yet?" she asked the two guards who saluted at her in unison.

"Yes Officer Jenny we tried talking to the boy but it doesn't look like he's saying much. The only thing we were able to get was his name"

"His name?" she raised a brow in suspicion

"Yes, he says his name is Chaucer but that's all we got. It doesn't look like he's going to break anytime soon"

"Hmm… very well, I'll deal with him (the guard opens the door) Hello there… I'm Officer Jenny and you are… Chaucer, correct?"

Jenny tried to play the good cop and tried to smooth talk her way into his mind. Chaucer glared at her with cold heartless eyes and shrugged away her words. He placed his feet on the table and ignored whatever the woman had to say. Jenny was insulted by the boy's rude attitude but tried to stay calm.

"Ok Chaucer, we can either do this the hard way or the easy way. It's your choice (…) Ok let me start. Just tell us what we want to know and you can get off easily that I can promise you"

"Promise? You speak of promise, but I know you humans too well. Your promises are nothing but lies that is covered by your deceiving acts. Can you truly promise a person even when you are uncertain?"

Jenny was taken by surprised to hear the boy respond to her. He was now speaking in strange riddles that even she couldn't understand. Jenny tried to calm herself and continued playing good cop.

"I'm not really sure what you're talking about young man, but you can still answer my questions. My first question is: how many more of your gangs are there?" she began to raise her voice

"I am not here to answer your questions human! I am not here at all! In a matter of seconds I will be free!"

Before Jenny could even begin to make sense of his rambling, there was a sudden rumble around the station. Everyone thought of it to be just another earthquake, but they were surely wrong.

The wall of the interrogation room blasted into pieces. Jenny fell to the ground while two guards barge in to see what's happening. A Flygon hovered outside the broken wall with a young white haired woman riding on its back. "You're late… Rosa" said Chaucer with a smirk. The girl who was now known as Rosa didn't reply, she just smiled menacingly before giving Chaucer a hand gesture to hurry up. Four security guards entered the room with clubs on hand. They tried to bring the boy to his knees but the Flygon wasn't about to let them do as they please. The creature let out a burst of power off its mouth and burned the ground. The police withdrew and ran out of the room with their shields on.

Chaucer jumped off the fifth floor of the police station and clanged onto one of Flygon's foot as it flew away. Jenny, recovered from the impact began barking out orders. "Don't just stand there, go after him and someone call the fire department" she knew that even if they took the chopper they wouldn't be able to match against Flygon's speed but she still had to try. She gritted her teeth as the only suspect they were able to get after so long was now just beyond reach. "Get every one we can spare and go after that Flygon NOW!" the officers dashed away quickly to their vehicles and drove out of the parking lot.

Chaucer climbed onto the back of Flygon and let out a small sigh of relief, "What took you so long Rosa?" he said with a smirk, but Rosa wasn't too happy to see him,

"I should be the one asking the questions Chaucer! Our order was to attack the Pokemon trainer together, but you just couldn't wait to blow the opportunity!" she was openly shouting at his face without even looking at him.

"The human companions are still around him, we must get rid of them if we are to succeed" Chaucer punched both of his fists together to let go of some steam. "Can you drop me in the nearby woods? I lost my chosens to the trainer and I need to find ones that are more worthy than the ones I had"

Rosa listened to her companion's ramble and agreed in her head. It wasn't long until she spotted a bunch of red lights following them from the ground. "Oh it's those human guards again. Hang tight, we'll drive them away!" Flygon circled around and took a big dive from the sky. It let out several blast of beam out of its mouth. The police officers got out of their cars just in time before it burst into flames. After two rounds of fire, Rosa believed they had enough and decided to fly away.

Rosa dropped Chaucer in the nearby woods for him to get new Pokemons. She handed him a bag and without a word she flew away into the night sky. Chaucer smiled and head off into the forest.

The white haired girl flew above the forest hoping to rest for a bit until, _"Rosa, I have new orders for you…"_ a telepathic communication came through, _"What is it now sire?" _she replied telepathically,

"_I need you to follow that boy and keep an eye on him. There are only a few more days until his condition worsens, so make sure you time your battle precisely. That is all…"_ Rosa gave out a maniac grin and then shifted her Flygon towards a little town just beyond Mauville city.

**(Back in the forest near the camp site)**

Ash and Anabel were still collecting some fire wood in the forest. Pikachu made itself glow so they could see. As they kept gathering small twigs and branches around them they accidentally reach out for the same twig which caused them to hold each others hand. Anabel blushed and gave way for Ash to carry that last piece of wood.

They both walked silently in the woods until Ash spotted a small clearing where the moon shone brightly. Ash ordered his Pikachu to stop glowing and told Anabel to look at the beautiful stars. "Look at those stars Anabel, aren't they just awesome?"

"Yeah… they are…" in truth her eyes were barely focused on the sky, her attention was more on Ash. They boy's appearance to her was more than what the stars could ever give. It was like he was glowing brighter than a thousand stars put together. "Huh? Is something on my face?" he said to her, "Uh… no nothing! I was just… wondering how your Pikachu got so strong"

Ash laughed, "Well me and Pikachu have been training for a long time and I think your Espeon is strong too. I would love to battle you in the Valmarian league Anabel"

'Love' that single word was able to make her heart burst with joy. She was blushing even brighter than before. "Oh no! I think we'd better head back to camp or we won't have dinner at all!" (Pikapika!)

"Oh wait Ash, wait for me!"

"Where could those two be?" Tracey rubbed his head as he wondered where Ash and Anabel were. He had already prepared the food and water but there was no fire to cook them with. Max and Richie's stomach grumbled with hunger clearly stated on their faces. It had been an hours since they had left and some of them were beginning to get suspicious. It wasn't long until Ash came out with a good amount of wood on him. Anabel dropped most of her pile when she ran after him but Ash cheered her up.

As the food finally got cooking, the gang took out their Pokemons from their Pokeball to let them breathe the fresh air. It was then that Ash's slow brain cells kicked, he opened his bag and gave Misty a surprise of a life time. It was her Pokemons that were 'stolen' from the gym back in Cerulean city. She cried out with glee when she hugged her Politoed again. Everyone smiled at the happy girl who was overjoyed to see her old friends once again but no one noticed Brock was already awake from his painful slumber.

Even though he was happy for her there was something he noticed that no one else could. The laughs deaf in his ears and smiley faces were blind in his eyes. He couldn't hear the word 'thank you' being said to Ash. He was a little disappointed to see Misty act this way but Ash didn't seem to mind it at all.

**(Ash's POV)**

After a few plates of Tracey's stew everyone decided to go to sleep since we'll be heading off again in the morning. I wasn't sleepy nor was I even hungry during lunch time. I just ate because I didn't want to make everyone worried. I closed my eyes and slept next to a rock with my Pikachu. The sleeping bags were getting uncomfortable for some reason.

The entire camp was quiet, but not for long. I heard a slow moan a few paces away from my side. I took a peek and saw Duplica twist and turning in her sleeping bag. "What's wrong Duplica?" I said to her. She was shocked to see me looking directly at her. Her face glow a bit red and it still felt unusual to me. My mom's face never turned red when she sees me, it must be a girl thing.

We both got up and talked around the camp fire, which had already died down. I never really noticed her black jacket until now. It looked quite cool and it was the same brand I was wearing. She seemed to be depressed about something and so I tried to comfort her.

"What's the matter Duplica, you look sad"

The emerald haired girl nearly jumped off her rear when she heard his voice "Huh? Oh I'm sorry, I guess my mind is somewhere else nowadays!"

There was a long pause in the air… before they began to have a normal conversation

"Hey Ash, do you think things would be different if I traveled with you?"

"Huh? What do you mean Duplica? You're already traveling with me"

"Not that silly. I mean, would you be different if I agreed to travel with you two years ago?"

What kind of a question was that? I couldn't really make out on what she was trying to say but I had to say something back.

"Well… to be honest… I don't know myself. Maybe I would be different, maybe not"

"_Yeah, that was a nice comeback Ash!"_ I said to myself. Duplica seemed to take it alright as well. I looked up into the sky and glared at the moon. It reminded me of that dream I had with Chu. Wait a minute! Chu's a character in my dream… how could I possibly meet him in the real world? But its strange… he felt so real that time and besides… I made a promise that I would meet him again and I never break a promise.

"Ash?" the single word snapped me right back to reality. Duplica was giving me a worried glance so I reassured her with a smile. "Hey if you're having trouble sleeping, I think I might just have the cure" I reach out for my bag and pulled out the prize I won from the arcade this morning. Her eyes would've popped out from her sockets if they could when I pulled out the Teddiursa stuffed toy out. She was hesitant to accept it but when I insisted upon it, she cuddled it like it was now a part of her.

"So, you like it?" I asked a stupid question, _"Of course she likes it Ash!"_

"Oh Ash, I love it! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" she squeezed the toy so hard that it would take a crowbar just to pry her hands off of it.

Satisfied, she said her good nights and went straight to bed with a bright smile on her face. "Well someone's gonna be having sweet dreams today" I said to myself. That little talk with her really poofed me out so I decided to follow everybody else and went back to my sleeping point near that rock.

Pikachu was already fast asleep near Togepi and Misty. Their faces looked so innocent and harmless that it would be a crime just to wake them up. So I slept alone but I didn't mind. As long as I could see my buddy in the morning I wouldn't mind at all.

I closed my eyes and prepare to drop off into dream land very soon but before I left, a sudden pain came across me.

My body felt like it was being slashed by a Scyther's claw a thousand times per second. I tried to scream but the words wouldn't come out. I felt an unbearable heat rising in my body I could've swore I was breathing out fire. My head ache painfully till it felt like my brain turned to dust. My eyes blurred and soon I collapsed from the pain. The only thing I saw before passing out was… Misty. I tried to call her out but the words wouldn't come. I fainted… and thought that this was it.

**(Ash's Dream, Normal POV)**

Ash wanders around an empty field that was once called… the garden. It was the place where he rescued Tracey. The garden was a complete mess just as he remembered in the real world. All the trees were burned down to a crisp, the lake smelled of toxic and waste, the sky was cloudy and lightning could be heard from a distance. It was a scene no one would want to see.

"What am I doing here?" he said to himself. A good question that doesn't have an answer… yet.

Ash scanned the entire field hoping to see some sort of sign. He looked up and saw the two moons once again. It seemed to represent something… but what could it be? As he was momentarily awed by the formation of stars, his attention was quickly attracted by the sound of cries below him.

A large group of Pokemons ranging from hundreds to thousands were all lining up formally as a single carriage drawn in by four Rapadash. Four Lucarios armed with full iron armors walked along side it making sure whatever what was inside the carriage was not disturbed. In moments they reach a small shelter made of stone and clay.

Ash moved in to see what all the commotion was all about. He was behind a big crowd so he couldn't see very well. He tried to push through until he remembered that he could just phase through the Pokemons like a ghost. "Huh? Oh yeah, now I remember. This is a dream so that means I can do whatever I want here. Now let's see…"

After walking through the large group of Nidokings and Nidoqueens, Ash finally made it to where it all began. To where the hatred and anger first rose into the hearts of Pokemons.

The four Lucarios took off their helmets and bowed to the carriage before opening its doors. Chu came out with sadness written all over his eyes. Tears fell down through his cheeks as he walked along with the Lucarios. While the event went on, Ash felt an unbearable guilt building in his heart. He felt responsible for Chu's tears even though he doesn't know why. _"Why am I crying?"_ he thought.

Chu began chanting some sort of prayer to the sheltered building. The other Pokemons knelt or bowed and followed the same prayer he was saying. Ash couldn't make any of the words out but for some reason it sounded very familiar.

After the prayers were said, Chu waved his arms and gave a signal to the Blazikens. They turned the entire building into a burning inferno. Ash couldn't feel the heat coming inside but he was still shock on what was going on. The Pokemons broke down into a pool of tears the moment the building caught fire.

"I think you've seen enough for today" a familiar voice crept up behind Ash making him take a defensive stance. It was his other self again… "YOU!" he said in response.

"We meet again Ash Ketchum" it was his none other than his dream self DA (Dream Ash)

"Who are you?! Show your face!" Ash was slightly trembling in fear but did not show it through his face.

"There's no need to be alarmed, I'm not here to fight you"

"Yeah right! Listen, whoever you are just leave me alone!" he took a step back and prepared for a fight.

"Peace Ash… I'm not going to do anything to hurt you. In fact, I'm going to do just the opposite" Ash gave a confusing face.

"The opposite? What does that mean?"

"It means I'm going to help you Ash. But first I think I should explain"

**(Meanwhile, in Pallet town the real world on the same night)**

Delia was awakened by the sound of thunder that struck near by. Her sleep was cut short after many frequent storms that had been coming and going. She got up and looked through the transparent doors as the rain poured down on professor Oak's ranch. Hey eyes widened when she saw the professor himself taking all of the Pokemons into the shelter.

"Alright everyone, single file, there's enough room for everyone so don't panic" he said while putting all the Pokemons inside the barn. They were all calm and controlled until another streak of lightning burst down on the ground. The Pokemons that were still outside were all freaked out and began to go on a rampage. The professor tried to calm them down but then one of the Rapadash got annoyed and tackled him.

Delia's eyes widened and quickly ran towards the ranch even without protection from the rain. She dragged the professor back into the house with a minor sprain on his left arm. After making sure the professor wouldn't be going anywhere, she ran towards the ranch with a lab coat and used her fingers as a whistle. "Alright everyone back in a single file" no one listened to her. Veins were now bulging out of her head as she clenched her fist "ALL OF YOU GET INTO A SINGLE FILE RIGHT NOW!!!!" the tone of her voice was more terrifying than the sound of the storm itself. They all lined up and walked into the shelter without any problems.

Delia closed the barn doors and locked it tightly so none of them would get out until the storm stops. After making sure it was neatly tight she ran back into the house and sighed with relief. The professor was still unconscious from the little tackle and was snoozing peacefully. She sighed again and began wrapping his arm with bandages.

**(In professor Birch's lab)**

Professor Birch and his colleagues were still up that night researching on the strange psychic wave that's been happening for quite sometime. Ever since the first wave emitted from Goldenrod city in Johto, they've been working non stop to pin point the location of the person/machine/Pokemon that could create such a powerful blast.

Professor Ivy came in a few weeks ago to study this new found power. They've been trying to break every law of physics and psychics just to get a small amount of results that would prove useful, but so far there hasn't been any progress.

"Anything?" said Ivy to the couch potato on the sofa

"No… nothing. Arghhh! I don't get it! First Johto, then Kanto and now Hoenn?! This is madness!" Birch scratched his head roughly as another equation ended in a blasting failure.

Ivy tried to calm the man down by patting his back and rubbing his neck. "There's nothing you can do Birch. The experiment was a failure. We could try using---"

"No! We can't waste anymore time and money on things we can't be certain. Joey, I want a complete and accurate analysis on the three psychic waves we picked up last month and compare it!"

"Yes sir, right away!" the scientist quickly got some folders and ran towards the archives

"(yawn) I really need to get some sleep. Ivy, when the report is done please tell the others they can sleep now"

"Of course professor. (she notices a small history book volumn #93) Hmm? Professor, are you still reading these books?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah, I was looking in to some things that might lead us to a new solution"

Ivy then noticed a folded page on the book. She turned up the page and read what Birch has been reading for the past few days. She giggled at him with a slight smile, "I can't believe you still listen to this story Birch"

Birch immediately took the book away from her and held it in embarrassment. He was reading an old mother's bed story that came from this particular history book. "Oh be quiet, this is serious research you know!" he said blushing slightly,

"I remember my mother telling me that story a long time ago hahahaha What was the title again? The…"

**(Back in Ash's dream)**

"The Pokemon king?" Ash muttered out in response. DA nodded in reply.

"Yes, the Pokemon king. He was a ruler of a marvelous country and he was praised by both Pokemons and humans. He had a wonderful life… until" DA seemed hesitant to speak, "Until 'they' ended his life"

"Who was this king?" Ash asked with great interest.

DA was hesitant at first but then he thought, _"Oh well, he's gonna find out sooner or later so why not now?" _he then spoke up "His name has been changed by history and time. Some gave him small titles like 'little king' or 'baby king' but his name should not be said so lightly. His name… was …

Hsa…

'Hsa' the single word echoed through Ash's head as if it rang an untouched bell deep within his mind.

Ash walked towards his other self, "How do you know so much about him?" he asked.

His other self giggled, "That's because… I… am him" he removed his hat to reveal his face. His hair turned white, his body grew more masculine and tattoos began forming around his skin. As he stood on top of that hill he looked like a divine figure of both good and evil, ready to smite whatever comes against him.

"You… your that guy I saw… in my---"

"Dreams? Yes, I was the king of my empire and now I have been reduced to this. A mere thought of a boy whose dream is to become a Pokemons master"

Ash tried to process everything that Hsa was saying but it didn't seem to make sense. If he says that he is Ash and he the king, then that mean Ash, is the king? Nothing made sense anymore!

"So Ash, are you ready to become the Pokemon king?"

"Wha?! But aren't you the king?"

"I am but now I am not. It's hard to explain but now is not the time for history"

"I don't understand!" Ash was now very confused. He backed away from Hsa but the king kept coming closer and closer. The king sighed, _"If he keeps this up then he will find it hard to bear… but still"_

"This is not a choice for you to make Ash Ketchum! For millenniums I have witness mankind take away the very freedom of those around them!" Hsa's calm and collected face disappeared in an instant as it was replaced with anger and hatred, "Pokemons were taken by force from their homes while the humans use them to do something cannot!"

"No you're wrong! Humans never use Pokemons! They're our friends!"

"Friends?! Do you use your friends to battle with each other? Do you take them away from their family just to fill your own lust for entertainment? Do you take your friends as your pets?! NO!"

**(Back in the real world in professor Birch's lab)**

The two scientists sat on the sofa after brewing some coffee. Their colleagues have already turned in for the night and were off to sleep. Ivy still couldn't believe that Birch was still reading a fairy tale she heard long ago from her parents. "So are you going to tell me the story?" she asked him

Birch pouted annoyingly, Ivy just giggled at his child like attitude. "Oh come on, don't be mad. I just can't believe that a man your age would be reading something so… childish"

"It's not childish, its serious research!" "Uh huh" she replied sarcastically, "Let me guess, the king of Pokemon, the one true king who had power of all Pokemons saved the world from endless destruction. He was hailed king at the age of four and ruled over the land with peace and compassion hahahahaha!"

"Are you quite finish?!" said Birch raising an angry brow

"Wait for a second… hahahaha… Ok, I'm done"

"Even though it's just a fairy tale, that isn't how the story ended…"

"Huh? What do you mean? Didn't he save the kingdom and lived happily ever after?"

"That's how the people tell story to their children, but in truth… there was another ending"

Ivy put down her mug as she knew that this was gonna be serious.

"From the story you've heard, they probably just said that the king had Pokemons with him right? (Ivy nods) Well in truth, he actually fought it alone"

"Alone? But didn't the he have Raichu, Charizard and Blastoise?"

"No, when he was four years old, he fought against the evil wizard by himself"

"But did the evil wizard have Pokemons? If I remembered correctly he had a Magneton, Steelix and a… a Kabutops I think"

"Correct, and he fought them all"

"So are you saying that this legend is false?"

"NO! In several books I discovered one thing in common. The king had extraordinary powers which gave him the ability of all Pokemons. Some say that he was half Pokemon and half human"

"Ok so what's your point?"

"Its says here that the last power he used against the evil wizard was unlike no other. They say that it was a psychic power that gave him control over all Pokemons"

"So what do you mean?"

"Well take a look at this (shows her a wall carving of a map) Does this place look familiar?"

"That looks like… the old map of Hoenn!"

"And look at where the wizard's tower is located"

"If I remember correctly, that place is somewhere along Littleroot town and Petalburg city!"

"That's right! If this book is telling half of what is true then the legend of the Pokemon king might actually be true!"

"Wait… you said there was another ending to the story. What was it?" this caught her attention quite clearly.

"Oh… well it's not really a happy ending like we all thought"

"Oh come on, how could something so bad happen to such a powerful kid?" she asked with curiousity written all over her face

"From my research and studies… the king died at the age of four teen"

"Oh my… so young"

"Yes, is says that when the king became so powerful, the people were more afraid of him. So they poisoned him"

They both remained silent for awhile. Ivy was having a hard time believing this. A story that was just supposed to be a simple tale of fantasy and myths was turned into a political battle.

**(Back in Ash's Mindscape)**

Ash was having a battle against Hsa. The king was trying to convince him that Ash was his reincarnation but so far he wasn't having much luck.

"Why should I believe anything you say?! Ash tried to push his look alike away. "You're just a dream, this can't be real!"

"Believe what you wish but you cannot run from who you are Ash! You are me and I am you… it's that simple" Hsa extends his arm to him but Ash was scared. Scared of him and everything he had just said.

The king took a few steps closer, almost reaching Ash until… "STAY AWAY FROM ME!!" the tattoos on Ash's right arm began to glow blue. He let out an attack that seemed to look like a hyper beam. The attack missed Hsa by a few centimeters. It was quite clear on his face that he wasn't expecting that.

The compassionate face that he was giving out a moment ago faded away. "You will accept your fate Ash Ketchum, even if I have to **FORCE YOU TO DO SO!!"** his voice gave away a demonic tune which frightened Ash even more.

The king grabbed Ash arm and said some sort of incantation.

"Let me go!" Ash tried to pry his right arm off his but he wouldn't budge. It was like being stuck with super glue ten folds.

Just when the king finished his spell or whatever, Ash began feeling a strange tingling inside of his arm. The tattoos began to grow all over him. It extended from his arm to his chest then to his head and heart. Every second that passed by gave him an eternity of pain. Ash fell in defeat on the ground and clutched his stomach. He screamed out through the entire moment as the darkness envelops around him.

What happens after that… no one knows…


	17. A Brother in Need is A Brother in Deed

**Chapter 17: A Brother in Need is a Brother in Deed**

The morning sun had risen and the air was breathtaking. Everyone had woken up from their slumber and were preparing for breakfast. No one wanted to miss the most important meal of the day, especially when Brock's cooking.

Everyone was either having fun or just playing silly around the camp site. Dawn was blasting a jolly good time with her Piplup and Buneary while her Beyleef snuggled near Ash. After being taken care by Dawn for three months, Beyleef still thought of Ash with great love and care every day. It was a connection she made with him a long time ago.

Tracey began sketching Togepi and Pikachu playing tag in the field while Max, May and Anabel talk about their times during the Battle Frontier.

Misty was with Richie, Duplica and Drew as they discuss battle tactics which she had no interest in. _"Geeze they're just like Ash!"_ she thought.

Suddenly Brock gave out the signal, "Ok everyone, breakfast's ready!" the entire gang sat down on the grass and began gobbling down the delicious meal. The Pokemons got their usual Pokechows.

While Brock stood proud of himself as he saw his friends dig in his food, one plate stood idle, "Hey, has anyone seen Ash? It's not like him to miss a meal" asked Brock.

They all shook their heads and began scanning the field for their number one trainer. After a quick look, Max shouted out, "There he is, over there near Bayleef!"

They all look at the young boy who was still in his sleeping position. May got up and brought his plate to him just in case he might wake up by the smell of food. Sadly, the young trainer didn't even budge. She then tried to wake him up but before she could reach for his hat, a Houndoom suddenly appeared out of the nearby bushes and attacked her. The rest of the gang got up and took defensive positions.

"Everyone be careful, this is no ordinary Houndoom!" Anabel warned them and Drew had to agree

"She's right… look at those armors! It must belong to one of those White haired thieves!" The Houndoom took a bite on Ash's clothes and drag him towards the empty field.

May saw this and wasn't gonna let some monster take him away without a fight, "Keep your paws off him! Blaziken, come out and use overheat!"

A humanoid-bird-like Pokemon came out of the Pokeball and let out a stream of fire at the Houndoom. The dog-like Pokemon countered by using tackle attack using its horn. "Blaziken, dodge it and use flame thrower!" Blaziken did as it was told and let out another stream of fire at Houndoom. Unfortunately, the armor the Pokemon was wearing blocked off the heat from its flank.

"Looks like we'll need more than fire to put this one down!" Drew spoke out

But Misty was way ahead of him, "I'm way ahead of you! Starmie, Staryu, show them what Water Pokemons can do! Watergun"

The two star-like Pokemons unleashed their water attacks and knocked the Houndoom to the ground but it was still far from finish. It quickly got back on its feet and let out a fire attack of its own. "Oh o! Starmie, Staryu, use your water gun and block it!" Even with the combined power of two water Pokemons, the fire was so hot and powerful that it pierced through the stream of water and created an explosion. Staryu was out cold but Starmie was still in.

It was then Dawn sent out Piplup to do battle, "Alright Piplup, use bubble beam!" the penguin immediately hit Houndoom with bubbles that exploded repeatedly until it fell down to the ground. Sensing victory, Dawn ordered another bubble beam attack just to make sure. It was then Houndoom got back on its feet and used its horn to take down Piplup. Dawn caught her Pokemon in mid air and cuddled it to safety.

As the battle waged on, three unlikely goons were spying on the gang's every move.

"Look how that Houndoom clobbers them!" said Meowth

Jessie nodded in amazement, "You're right, it's even strong against water Pokemons too"

"This is perfect!" said James, "Let's just wait for them to tire out and then we'll steal all their Pokemons and that Houndoom as a bonus!"

"Now that's an idea James! I'll bring out both my Arbok and Serviper to take them all down!"

"But we still need to be careful. The twerps seems to be traveling with a bigger group and one of them seems to be a Frontier Brain if I remember"

Meowth shrugged and placed his binoculars back on: "Who cares, if it's a trainer than we rob them all the same!"

"Alright enough chit chat! Let's just get ready when they used up all their Pokemons!"

Richie was now in the battle, "Alright, my turn! Sparky, let's do it! Pikachu, do you mind lending a hand? (Pikapika!) Alright, let's give'em one of our dual lightning bolt attack!" The two Pikachus unleashed a medium size jolt of electricity and took the Houndoom off by surprise which knocked it to the ground. However, it quickly recovered and let out a fire attack, "Oh no! Dodge it both of you!"

The immense heat the fire blast gave was incredible. Pikachu and Sparky landed safely away from the blast but now they were separated. "Sparky, use your agility to avoid Houndoom's flame thrower and use iron tail! Pikachu, give Sparky cover with your lightning burst attack!"

Sparky immediately dodged away from the fire and quickly approached Houndoom. Just before the dog like Pokemon could tackle Sparky, Pikachu let out several small shots of electricity to catch it off guard. With a smack of the iron tail, Houndoom fell to the ground once again.

Even after so many hits, the Houndoom got up once more and prepared to attack. Its eyes were burning like the fire it breathes. As it limps towards the two electrical mice it let out a flame thrower near Ash making a fire shield around the unconscious boy.

"Oh no, Ash!" Brock cried out

May saw this and immediately got into action, "This isn't good! Squirtle, I choose you! (Squirtle appears) Squirtle, use your hydro pump and put out that fire quickly!"

Misty followed not far behind: "Starmie, use watergun and help Ash too!"

Duplica knew that this fire would spread to the forest so she immediately got up and sent out her Dittos. "This isn't good! Junior Dit, changed into Houndoom! (Ditto changed into a giant version of Houndoom) All right!"

"Th… that's junior?" pondered Brock

"I guess I forgot to mention. Junior Dit can morph into big Pokemons but when it comes to small or medium size, he can change into a big version of it! Alright junior, give him a taste of his own medicine! Flame thrower!"

Junior (Dit junior) gave out a huge blast of fire towards Houndoom, but with its small size, it quickly dodge it and gave junior a ramming attack. It was incredible! An injured Pokemon that was still able to fight after all that beating would be given a Purple Heart medal by now.

"Its time I gave it a shot! Espeon, use your quick attack!" Anabel joined in the fight along with Dawn, "Buneary, come out and give it a taste of your hyper punch!"

"Sparky, Pikachu, cover them with your lighting attacks!"

The Houndoom was slammed to the ground for the fifth time and still it was able to get up. Just when it was about to give out another attack, Brock called out Onix to help out.

Outnumbered, outmatched and outmaneuvered, the Houndoom did what it could only at a time like this. It fell to the ground in defeat letting out silent moan. The entire gang sighed with relief as their attacker finally gave up.

Even though they were victorious, something was oddly amiss. With all the noise they were making, how could Ash still be sleeping?

May was the first who got to him. "Hey Ash, are you ok? Ash, say something!" but there was no response. The boy was locked tight in his sleep, like he fell into a coma. May began to panic, "Brock, I think there's something wrong with Ash! He's not waking up!"

"Hold on, let me take a look" Brock went in and tried to feel a pulse, "Well he's breathing and he still has a pulse. I don't see anything wrong with him"

**(Ash's Mindscape)**

Ash was still slowly being consumed by the darkness. He tried to break free from all the pain but it wouldn't budge. The pool of darkness was full of Pokemons that had glowing red eyes (imagine it like Heartless shaped as Pokemons From Kingdom Hearts) Ash tried to pull himself onto a small patch of land in the distance but the Dark Pokemons just kept pulling him back. "Grrrrr… LET ME GO!" he shouted out to them.

Ash gave out a few more umph until he finally freed himself from their clutches. He went to the center of the island as the darkness slowly covers it.

Just when he thought he could get a moments rest, he remembered the immense pain coming from his right arm. Everything was so painful that it even made his body go temporarily numb. Just then a thought came in. If he still had that power he used against Hsa, maybe he could use it again.

He pulled out his right arm and began to focus everything he had on it. The tattoos glow and soon he felt an immense heat coming through his veins. In a fraction of a second, a dozen dark Pokemons went flying high above the sky, never to be seen again. Ash clutched his arm, as the blast he just gave seemed to have made the pain even worst.

"Please Ash, I'm trying to help you, can't you see that?" Hsa pleaded him to listen

"Well you have a funny way of helping people ARGGGHHH!!!"

"Don't struggle against the pain, when you accept it, the pain will go away"

The young trainer wasn't really in a position to negotiate so he decided to comply to the boy who calls himself king. Ash released himself as he gave up the endless struggle and just like the king promised, the pain went away.

Hsa smiled as his plan was close to completion. Just when the tattoos were about to cover every parts of Ash's body, it stopped and slowly it began to melt away. The king looked around as the world of dreams slowly melted away as well. "NOOO!" he screamed out, "Grrrrr! (sigh) I guess we'll just have to wait next time… Ash Ketchum"

After Hsa disappeared, a great big flash swept across Ash's face making him feel like the whole world just lifted off his shoulders.

The boy woke up from his longest nightmare ever. His vision was blurry, his body was stiff and he could hear voices of people ranging around his ear. When his vision finally focused the first thing he saw Misty, holding an empty bucket of water. "Uh… what happened?" he said still half asleep

"Hey Ash, are you feeling alright?" Brock gave him a worried face along with the others.

Ash searched his mind for what just happened a few minutes ago. The last thing he could remember was… falling asleep. There was however something poking around his mind though, like a forgotten memory ready to burst out.

Just before he could reply to that question a familiar growl came from his stomach, "I'm hungry" he said finally. The whole gang burst into a giggle then a laughter on the oh-so-familiar sound and sight of Ash Ketchum.

The boy took a look around and saw the whole campsite devastated, "Whoa, what happened to the camp? Did a typhoon hit or something?"

"We were attacked by a Houndoom a few minutes ago. We think it might belong to one of those Pokemon thieves"

Max then pointed at where the Houndoom had fallen but before they even knew it. The Pokemon was already gone, "Hey, it's gone!!!"

"But that's impossible! I'm sure we knocked it out!" said May in disbelief

Duplica stammered, "It must've ran away when we were helping Ash. Junior Dit, you can turn back now junior morph back into a Ditto You were awesome junior!"

With a sample taste of Duplica's awesome might, the other League competitors began having doubts about their strength capabilities.

May thought _"If she can do that then she may be the strongest opponent other than Ashs!"_

Drew thought _"If that's what her Dittos can do on a regular basis, I can't wait to see her in full action!"_

Dawn thought _"Everyone here's strong. But no matter what happens I will use everything master Ash taught me and use it on the battlefield. There's no way I'm going to lose!"_

Ash said, "Hey Brock, what's for breakfast?"

Everyone looked at him with an annoying gaze, "What? I'm hungry"

**(Back in Professor Oak's lab)**

Samuel Oak was lying on the couch when the smell of coffee woke him up. It was just the way he liked it. Two cups of sugar, no added taste, not completely black and toasts right next to his plate. "Oh, my head…" he said while holding the side of his head.

It wasn't long until he noticed that his right arm was bandaged and placed neatly on a pillow.

Delia: "Oh professor, I see you managed to get up after all hee hee hee"

Prof Oak: "What happened last night? The only thing I remember was putting all the Pokemons in the shelter and then…"

He was stopped when Delia placed her finger on his lips, "Shhhh… now now, don't worry about the Pokemons. I already took them out of the shelter this morning. Now say ahhhhh" she took one slice of bread and fed Sam as he sat on the couch.

The professor felt a little embarrassed to be treated as a child by a woman much younger than him. He opened his mouth and took a bite off the bread and it was amazingly tasty.

By the time they both finished breakfast, the professor went out to do his morning chores. He looked around but then saw that everything he had to do was already done!

The stables were cleaned, the Pokechows were given, the water Pokemons were brushed and the grass Pokemons were playing at the field. The professor was startled.

"Oh professor, there you are! You shouldn't stay out at this time or you'll catch a cold"

"Delia, did you do all my chores this morning?"

"Uh huh! Mr. Mime helped me too. Right Mr. Mime? (Mister mime!) hee hee hee!"

Sam had no idea what to say. Should he be grateful for doing all his work for one day or should he be utterly humiliated to have a guest doing his chores? Just when he was running down his train of thoughts, Delia took the opportunity to grab him and pull the old coot back into his house.

The two Jennies that were staying with them were still asleep in the guest room. Though the professor didn't mind the extra twins staying at his house, he was getting annoyed by the frequent visits from boys that just wanted to see the two Jennies like a freak show or something.

"So what do you want for lunch Sammy? I have some left over spaghetti from last night or do you want something new?"

'Sammy'? Since when did she start calling the professor with his nick name? "Uh… I think I'll skip lunch today hehehehe"

Delia pouted and gave Sam an annoying stare, "Oh no you don't mister! Skipping meals and having diets isn't good for people at your age! There's breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner and midnight snack. If you cut out one of them you're in for a world of hurt! Take my Ashy for example, he never misses a meal in his entire life!"

"_That must explain why Ash always gets hungry"_ he thought, "Alright Delia, I'll just have your usual delicacies. It doesn't really matter what you cook, cuz I know it'll be delicious"

Mrs. K blushed slightly at his last comment, "You… you really think everything I cook is delicious?" the professor just nodded. She didn't know what to say to him. She had heard many comments from the professor before but this time it was a little different. She looked at the professor's golden smile. _"That must be where Ash got his smile from"_ she thought as it reminded her of her only son. "Ok then, I'll make you a meal so good that you'll be begging me for seconds!" and with that she immediately ran towards the kitchen.

**(Back on Route 103 near the outskirts of Oldale town)**

When the gang finished up their breakfast, Ash and his friends continue on their journey to Petalburg city, to catch a boat to Valmarian to compete in the Valmarian league. But first, they had to make a short stop in what May would call a 'fashion detour'.

"There's no way I'm gonna wear that!" Ash yelled out as he pushed away the offered shirt.

"Come on Ash, you have to pick out something! The only reason why we kept being attack by your fans is because they can recognize you in that old outfit!" May tried to reason with him but was having little progress with the young soon-to-be Pokemon master.

"But I like my clothes! You can't make me wear them, never!"

It was then Drew took another bucket of water and 'accidentally' splashed it on top of Ash, "Oh my, you should change Ash or you'll catch a cold hee hee hee!"

Everyone burst into laughter as the young trainer was soaking wet, "Alright I'll change, but I get to choose what I wear and no one better laugh or else!" he said in defeat as he carried the piled up clothes into the woods. His Pikachu and Beyleef followed him so they could help pick out his new outfit.

A few minutes after he got out of sight from the rest of the gang he sighed, "I don't get it with girls and clothes. I look good the way I am, right Pikachu?" Pikachu shook his head and pouted, "Thanks for your help. Now let's see… no… no… no… never…" he began tossing the clothes away one by one, "No… no… not this… not a chance… I'd give up my badge before wearing this!" then suddenly, one particular set of clothes attracted his attention, "Hey isn't this May's bandana?" the red muffler was quite fascinating so Ash decided to put it on his neck rather than his head. "Hey… I think this might work out after all!" he then began picking the clothes one by one.

While the other members of the gang trained and played around the field, May knew that her time with Ash was slowly gonna drift away. So she decided to look for advice at a very desperate source. Brock...

"Hey Brock can we talk for a minute?" May came by to see the squinty eyed boy packing the food and supplies into the bags

"Huh? Oh sure May what's poking ya?" he didn't even look back at her when he spoke out

"Well, it's about… Ash"

"Ash?" he replied still not looking back, "Oh don't worry about him, he may be small but he can take care of himself"

"It's not like that, it's something else…"

"Something else?" that last sentence caught his undivided attention, "What do you mean?"

"Promise you won't tell anyone? (he nods) Promise? (he nods again) If you do, I'll rip your head off! (Brock nodded hesitantly) Well you see… I uh… kinda… like him"

"Well that's no surprise, we all like him. He is after all our friend, right?"

"No, not that kind of like! I mean… like like"

Brock now understood what the girl was trying to say. She loved Ash! Brock's face was filled with hope and confusion mixed together. "Wow… so… did you tell him yet?" "Of course not! Why would I say that to him!?"

"Because you like him?"

May covered his mouth and nearly panicked, "Shhhhh! Don't say it out loud!"

"Ok, but when did this started?"

May tried to think for a moment but she couldn't remember, "I don't remember… I think it was when I left for Johto"

"Hmmm… usually I'd give advice to boys who were desperate, but right now… I'm as lost as you are May"

"Well some help you were!"

"Sorry, I'm a lover not a love advisor"

"Hey, what are you guys hushing about?" it was Max who popped in

"Oh nothing, nothing at all, right Brock?"

Brock sweat dropped, "Uh… yeah, we weren't talking anything about Ash mphhh!"

"Brock!"

"It slipped ok! It wasn't intentional!" the man prayed to whatever god that was watching over him to save him from the giant mallet that was about to strike him.

Max then just said in a bored tone, "Oh you mean your little 'like like' on Ash? I know about that a long time ago"

"Wha… when did you?"

"Palease, I'm your brother. You can't hide anything from me"

"If you say a word I'll---"

"Don't worry I won't say anything… yet. But your gonna have to treat me for a double size sandwich for two weeks"

Max adjusted his glasses and grinned at his sister who was trying to contain her anger, "No way! Those things are expensive even for me!"

"Oh Ash" Max begun to say sarcastically.

"Ahhh! Alright alright, you win!" May begged her little brother as if she would almost do anything

"YES!! I never knew black mailing was so much fun!"

Brock gave out a sweat drop as he knew that Max had the advantage over his big sister, "This is going to a day to remember" he mumbled quietly as he continues whatever he was doing.

**(Max's POV)**

Wow, I finally got my sister to confess everything! Man if only Ash could've heard her. I can already imagine it… Ash Ketchum, the greatest Pokemon master in the world, my brother! Man I can't wait for them to graduate college!

I walked past the camp site and saw Munchlax still sleeping like a log. A year ago, I really felt like I had a brother. Ash protected me when Jirachi called up the evil Groudon. He saved the world from destruction and made friends with many legendary Pokemons. He saved May from danger when Team Magma attacked us. He's not just my brother… he's my role model. I wanted to be just like him when I grow up.

I hated my sister for making me go to Johto with her. She won the ribbons easily but only because Ash helped train her and Blaziken. If it wasn't for Ash, May would still be having Torchic running around. She got third place in the Pokemon contest but was recommended as a gym leader. She looked so happy when she got the offer but then she he had to decline it. She already had plans for becoming a gym leader back at home.

I spaced out for awhile until I suddenly remembered that I still haven't got my glasses repaired. I think I'll have them fix at Oldale town if I can get the chance.

Just when I kicked out a few stones on the dirt road, I saw Masquerin playing with Togepi. Yeah, maybe I'll get a lightning also. That would be perfect for a starter Pokemon. A few years from now, I might even become just as good a trainer as Ash. After that we will fulfill our promise!

**(Flashback, Normal POV)**

Max was sitting on the swings in the nearby playground. May had just announced to Ash and the others that she was going to Johto and win all the ribbons they had there. This made him very sad. The travels and adventures with Ash had made his life so exciting, so thrilling that he could only thirst for more. Probably by tomorrow, Ash would be heading back to Pallet town to see his family. Brock would probably do the same if he had the chance.

As Max swung himself back and forth, a familiar voice rang out beside him. It was Ash…

Ash tried to comfort the boy with his words but none of them were making much of an effect. May saw this and was a bit disappointed of herself. She wanted to go to Johto but her brother wanted to travel around with Ash. But she had her own goals, her own dreams to fulfill.

Not long after they had a little talk, Ash gave Max a reassuring smile.

"Hey Max, when you get you become a Pokemon trainer look for me. Once you think you're good enough, I'll challenge you to a battle and see who's better!"

"Really? I can battle with you Ash?"

"Yup, and that's a promise!"

**(End of Flashback)**

"_I promise Ash… once I'm ready… I'll show you what I've learned"_ Max clenched his fist and gaze up into the sky hoping that one day… he would battle his brother.

"It look likes the twerps are stronger than we thought" said James

Jessie nodded in agreement, "You're right… with so many of them we don't stand a chance!"

"That's why you two never win, you never plan ahead of time" gloated Cassidy

"Oh be quiet Cassidy, you're working for me now so we'll do the planning and you do the working!"

"This is slavery, not manual labor!" Butch complained since he was the one carrying most of the stuff they were bringing.

James looked back and yelled out, "We're not paying you to talk so be quiet while we think!"

"You not paying us at all!"

"SSHHH! Look, someone's coming!" Meowth hushed them up

A single figure holding a large pile of unworn clothes stepped in the field and dropped it to the ground. Everyone froze upon the realization that it was Ash or at least… the newly modified Ash

The boy took off his trademark cap on and soon his whole fashion changed. He wore a black T-shirt with a Pokeball insignia labeled on it. A slightly baggy jeans and a glove that covered his entire right arm. He didn't want his friends to see that ridiculous tattoo he had. But what caught May's attention was that he was wearing her muffler which she noticed that it was missing on her head. "There, ya happy now?" Ash said annoyingly.

The boy just smirked as he didn't even bother to notice everyone jaw's dropping to the ground. Misty let go of her Togepi as she was startled by this unusual event. Ash was actually… handsome in that getto.

"Hey Ash, you look great!" Brock said to him in a friendly manner.

"Thanks Brock, but I'm not gonna wear this when we get to Valmarian city" Ash replied

"Who is that dashing youg man!?" said Jessie

Meowth took a look closer and realized that it was none other than Ash, "It's the twerp and his Pikachu!"

"It looks like he's gone out with another fashion makeover"

"Wow Ash, you look… n… nice" Dawn stuttered the last few words

"You think so? Beyleef chose it for me and I think she likes it as well (Bey Bey!) Hey cut it out Beyleef that tickles hahahaha"

And with that the gang moved on towards Oldale town where an unexpected surprise was waiting for them.

**(Oldale town)**

"Alright you, freeze and don't move!" the police officer shouted at Rosa as she turned around to face him. There were five policemen armed with nothing but tonfas. They've been chasing the white haired girl five minutes ago when they discovered that she was one of those Pokemon thieves.

Rosa raised her arms and picked out a Pokeball from her cloaks. The policemen raised up their shields in a defensive stance, "I said---!"

"Yes yes, I heard you the first time…… 'freeze'!" an Articuno popped out of her Pokeball and it immediately let out a gust of cold wind through the police which froze the police officers completely. "Well done chosen one, you have served me well" Without another word, Rosa jumped onto Articuno's back and flew away into the distance. She then began communicating telepathically, _"Sire, I've been discovered in the human settlement. I'm heading back to you now"_

"_Don't be foolish! You will complete your mission before you return. Head towards the old tower, Hagard will meet you there!"_ with that the other person in contact broke off their communication.

"I guess he's mad at me. Let's go Ariticuno!" she then immediately shuffled the giant ice bird towards the direction of an old ruined tower, where old tales were forgotten.

**(Just by the entrance of Oldale Town)**

"Are you sure no one will recognize me?" Ash asked Tracey who was still sketching even though they were on the move.

"Don't worry Ash, I don't think your mom would even recognize you" Tracey joked at him as they finally reach the gates of the town. "Huh? What's all the commotion over there?"

The whole gang went towards a large crowd of people and Pokemons as the ambulance drove away with two police cars. Officer Jenny told the crowd to move on but the media still wanted some more info.

"What's happened here?" Dawn asked one of the police officer who wasn't doing anything important.

"It looks like one of the Pokemon thieves. A few of us chased her down to this alley when she called out one of her Pokemons and gave them frostbites"

Todd took a few pictures of the crime scene and saw some workers using a hammer and chisel to get the man inside the ice out. It was a funny scene but no one seemed to be laughing.

A few hours after that incident, the gang headed out to a nearby restaurant to get some lunch before they depart. It was a small isolated place near the north end of town. Since it was in the back side of the city, there weren't as much customers like the other restaurants.

The whole gang combined two tables together and sat in a straight formation. Ash took one head of the table while Max took the other end. They ordered out their usual meals and begun to converse about random topics that popped out. Just when the food arrived, Brock and Todd could hear a soft whisper coming from some of the tables. All of the customers and clerks that were in the restaurant were… females!

"Oh my, who is that dashing man in black?" said a blonde haired girl.

"He must be a Pokemon trainer. Oh he can battle at my field any day!" another girl squeeled.

"I wonder if I could get his number…" said another.

Brock was just about to go and do his usual lame catch up lines until Gregguru came out and stared at him with its usual grin. But before the frog like Pokemon could pull any punches on its master, Max pulled Brock away by the ear. Todd giggled at his friend's painful expression and began taking some pictures of Gregguru who didn't even care about the camera.

Just then Ash got up and walked towards the cashier, "Excuse me, can I have some ketchup for my Pikachu please?" the clerk was a teenager about his age who was probably taking this as a part time job. The clerk's face glew bright red as Ash gave her one of those golden smiles that melts a girl's soul at close proximity. "Uh… excuse me miss, are you there?" he waved his hand in front of her face.

"I uh… I uh… ummm…" the clerk was left speechless by Ash's genuine face. His eyes were so deep that your could go inside and dance around freely. The girl felt lost in words and began scrambling her head for ideas to get out of this situation

"Here you go sir!" said the waitress who butted in the conversation.

After lunch the gang had their Pokemons checked in the Pokemon center, since the battle against the Houndoom wore most of them off. They would come back in an hour or so to retrieve their Pokepals, but for now it was time to relax a bit.

Brock still had plenty of provisions left in his backpack and with Tracey's assistance he was able to organize and carry more supplies for the trip. So without worries of starvation, Brock immediately bought tickets to a fancy movie that was showing today while Tracey went to the nearby store to buy some art supplies.

May had kept her little promise to Max and bought him a double sized sandwich for the day. Only 13 days left to go. Right after one big meal, May invited Anabel to go shopping which she agreed without hesitation.

Drew and Todd went off to see the small Pokemon contest that was going on by the newly constructed gym. There weren't any gym leaders so the placed was just used for sparring matches between two trainers or coordinators. Drew laughed as he witness the rookies and newbies pretended to be Pokemon masters. Their strength of determination was strong but neither of them could match the one boy he respects.

Dawn and Duplica went their ways too. They weren't much of a shopping freak like May, but their sweet tooth really does take a lot of cash out of their pockets. Duplica still held the Teddiursa stuffed toy on her chest not letting go out of her sight.

Misty was at the Pokemon center entrance with her Togepi while Richie and Ash had a cup of hot coco in a nearby café. It would've been a normal day if it weren't for the girls asking Ash's number. Poor Ash was being harassed by a good number of women ranging from late elementary school students to late teens. It was a good thing Brock gave a recommendation to change his name temporarily or he would've been in serious trouble.

However, the name Ash chose was rather unusual. He just spelled his name backwards so they would call him Hsa instead. The name touched him somehow, like a long lost brother he never had or something of that sort, but everyone was content with the name so he went with it.

"Hey wait a minute, aren't you Richie from Goldenrod city?" said one of the curious girls. Richie just nodded in reply, "Oh can please sign my autograph book?! Oh can you introduce us to your little friend here please?"

"I uh…" Now it was Richie who was left speechless to the girls. He didn't know if they wanted his attention or Ash's attention.

"Should we Richie?" Ash asked him in friendly tone. Richie just nodded again in reply.

Without another word they both dashed different ways but headed towards the same direction, the Pokemon center. The girls were left behind confused and disappointed.

Misty felt like laughing at the thought that what Brock might've done if he saw Ash at this very moment. It wasn't long until she heard a panting sound from behind. Ash was sweating heavily since he just ran a speed of 20 kph from the rampaging girls.

After recovering from the heavy exhaustion, Ash noticed Misty sitting on the bench of the Pokemon center waiting for her Pokemons to be called up. "Oh hey Misty, I thought you were out shopping with May and the others" he said to her

"Oh don't worry, I already bought everything I need from our last stop" Misty replied

"I see… well, do you wanna go to that new park they opened up a few days ago? I heard that the place looks great!"

"Sure Ash, but shouldn't we be heading to the meeting point? I think Brock and the others would be there by now"

"Don't worry, I think they can wait for few more minutes. Oh that reminds me, are you gonna send your Pokemons back to your sisters?"

"I already sent them THEIR Pokemons but there's no way I'm gonna send them mine! I'd rather have one of Pikachu's thunder shocks then to send them back to those irresponsible three!" Misty finished by placing her arms on her hips. Ash burst out a laugh at his best friend, "What's so funny?" she asked him

"I guess you haven't really changed all these times hahahaha" he replied with a continuing laugh.

"Well excuse me! You're the one who hasn't changed at all mister!"

"What are you mean by that? I change… sometimes" Ash was now thinking of a good comeback while Pikachu just giggled along with Misty. "Hey, you're supposed to be on my side Pikachu!" he growled at his little yellow friend.

"Hey Pikachu, why don't you play with Togepi for awhile and I'll give you a bag of ketchup!"

Without another word, Pikachu agreed and went off with the little egg Pokemon and began playing a game of hide and seek. The two humans were now left alone. Misty sat on the bench while Ash just stood there idiotically when he could just sit somewhere nearby. The Pokemon center was empty so there was nobody around to see them. This was quite rare since the Valmarian league was coming up Ash was expecting this place to be booming with trainers, but now it's just like an empty ghost building.

Just when they were about to say something, the automatic door swooshed opened and let in a boy that would've shaken the very fabrics of the town. A white haired boy who seemed to be taller than the ones Ash had met was standing right in front of him!

The wind blew right through the man's jacket as he adjusted his aqua colored classes. The man was slightly pale, like a ghost yet his eyes were burning with hate. "Is this the Pokemon center?" he said suddenly. Ash grabbed Misty and took a defensive stance. "Hmm?" the man took a quick look at Ash.

His eyes gave out a little hint of a surprised emotion. "YOU!" he said with anger clearly in his dark and evil tone. He then grinned evilly and took out two Pokeballs from his belt. An Ivysaur and a Feraligatr appeared in full combat armor.

Richie was just outside the Pokemon center when he finally lost the girls that were after him. _"I guess I know how Ash feels now"_ he thought. Just before he could enter the Pokemon center, a small shock came onto his face on what he saw.

A white haired boy just about his age but a little taller.

Richie then looked beyond the boy and saw two armored Pokemons. This was more than enough proof that he was one of the Pokemon thieves. He then saw Ash calling out his Noctowl, Bulbasaur and Pikachu while Misty called out her Politoed and Psyduck. It was an even battle since this isn't one of your regular matches. Richie knew that Ash wouldn't want to fight inside the Pokemon center but there were very little options right now.

Nurse Joy came out of the nursing room to see what all the commotion was all about. She immediately recognized the white haired thief and the armor Pokemons. Without second thought she picked up the phone and called the police.

"What do you want this time? There's no Pokemon here for you!" Misty yelled out at the thief but he just giggled in return. The armored Pokemons giggled too as if her words were just a joke to them.

"I know I shouldn't be doing this but fate has its way of bringing us together… don't you think so?" said the thief to his Pokemons which they just nodded. "Enough talk, Ivysaur, use your solar beam attack!" Ivysaur charged up but was then interrupted by Ash.

"I won't let you steal any of these Pokemons! You'll have to go through me first! Noctowl, use gust attack! Bulbasaur use your razor leaf and combine your powers together!" Ash commanded his Pokemons and the fight began.

The white haired boy leaped out of the way as his Pokemons were pushed out of the Pokemon center with a strong wind attack. Richie saw this and took the opportunity to call out Zippo and Sparky to aid his comrades in need.

Seeing that more have joined up against him, the white haired thief took out two more Pokemons to his side. "I call upon you my chosens, come forth and fulfill your duty!" Steelix and Golem appeared out of the Pokeballs wearing full battle gear.

"I'll handle the rock Pokemons! Ash, you deal with the others with Richie!" Ash complied with her tactics and soon they begun to fight. "Alright, Politoed, use watergun! Psyduck use confusion!"

"Bulbasaur, use your razor leaf attack! Noctowl use your gust attack! Pikachu, use thundershock!" the three Pokemons combined their powers and let it all out against Ivysaur.

Ivysaur was knocked back a few centimeters but its armor managed to take the beating. It was then the thief moved in for a counter attack, "Ivysaur, fire your solar beam now!" Ivysaur began to glow and soon it let out a beam from its back which knocked back Bulbasaur way back towards its master. "Ha, the tides have turned! Feraligatr, use hydro pump on the Charmeleon!" Feraligatr immediately moved in and let out a stream of water out.

"Dodge it Zippo! Sparky, use thunder shock on Ferligatr!" Richie ordered his Pokemons like a true professional. This made Ash proud to know that he's gotten better since the last time they battled. Feraligatr was stunned by the little jolt it was given but it was still far from being defeated.

"Now it's my turn! Steelix, Golem, tackle double tackle!" the thief gave out orders to his rock Pokemons but then he noticed that they were busy nailing down the two water Pokemons of Misty. "Grrr… fine, let's make this battle more interesting! Come out, Entei!"

The single name set fear to the hearts of others. 'Entei' the Pokemon of power was really there and they were looking at it. "Entei?!" a word escaped Ash's lips. He wasn't expecting a legendary Pokemon to be against him at this time but he wasn't gonna falter now. "Alright Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Noctowl, get ready for that new plan we've been working on!"

'New plan?' Since when did Ash created a new plan, and what kind of a plan would be strong enough to take down a legendary Pokemon such as Entei?

"Richie, I'll need your help on this one! Misty, keep the rock Pokemons busy!"

"You don't have to remind me! Politoed, use your bodyslam! Psyduck, use your headbutt and take out Steelix! (the two water Pokemons succeeded) Alright, don't underestimate the power of water Pokemons" she cheered out to her little compadres as they took out two tough Pokemons easily.

"Alright, here goes nothing! Richie, ya ready?"

"But Ash, I don't think---"

"Hey, trust me Richie. I promise it'll work!" _'I hope'_

"Ok Ash, I trust you! Sparky, Zippo, give everything you got and give cover for Ash and his Pokemons!"

May, Anabel and Max were at the town's grocery store which had its very own Pokemon contest in its backyard. The rookies were battling each other fiercely but Max could crack tactics with a blink of an eye. He saw all the flaws the young trainers were doing and knew their strengths right away. "Hey May, can I borrow Munchlax? I wanna try and battle with the others over there"

"No way Max, you're still not old enough to handle a Pokemon" she replied back to him. "Come on now May, it wouldn't hurt to let him experience something ahead of time" Anabel tried to persuade the young coordinator to give her brother a chance, "But only those at the age of ten are allowed to do battle" It was then the clerk interrupted, "Oh don't you worry about it young lady, this isn't really an official battle. Trainers just pop by and practice at the training ground. I think you're brother can handle himself" May finally sighed in defeat and gave Max her Munchlax. "Alright here you go, but be sure not to go out recklessly ok!"

Max immediately head out towards the battle zone with Munchlax in his hands. The other trainers laughed at him for having such a cute Pokemon battling them but Max learned that it's better not to respond to taunts.

"Hey look, the kid's got himself a Munchlax!" said the opposing trainer, "Ooo, I'm so scared hahahaha!"

"I bet that thing won't even last one minute on the field!" said one of the audience

As they continued to barrage Max with taunts, the boy fixed his glasses above his nose and smirked, "Well if you guys thing your so strong… then why don't you try me?" the others were a bit taken by the counter the kid just made, "Alright, are we gonna have a battle or are we done for the day?" said the referee who looked annoyed by the young wannabe trainers. He was kind of impressed with Max's behavior since he wasn't anything like the guys hanging around all day.

Max was challenged by the strongest trainer in the training ground but the referee was the one who set the rules, "Alright, this is a one-on-one battle with no time limit. Are you ready?... begin!"

"Tentacruel, use your tentacles and get rid of that Munchlax!" the trainer ordered its Pokemon but Max quickly discovered one weak spot on the squid-like Pokemon, Munchlax, use double team!" Munchlax split itself into four and attacked Tentacruel all at once. "Ha, that's what you get for underestimating a kid!" Max gloated like he already won.

Behind the sound proof glass, he could see May yelling proudly at him, "Yeah Max, show that loser what you're made of! Send his back to last week!" Anabel had to stop her friend from making a fool out of herself at the grocery store. The customers were starring at her, avoiding her at all possible moments.

Tentacruel got up and awaited for further orders, "Alright then, Tentacruel, use your poison sting attack!" Max knew this medium range attack very well and had another plan on his head, "Munchlax, use double team again!" the sting missed Munchlax as it separated into five, "Alright, now use body slam attack!" Munchlax flung itself into the air and dropped towards Tentacruel. "You fell for it! Tentacruel, use your tentacles on all of them now!" Munchlax was eventually caught on one of Tentacruel's tentacles and was being wrapped rather tightly.

Things were not looking so well for Max and May was just about to barge in and give him lecture if it wasn't for Anabel. Max thought deep on how to get Munchlax out of this tight situation. It was then he remembered what Ash taught him back during the Battle Frontier days, _"Oh man, if this keeps up then Munchlax will be out for sure! What do I do?! Wait… what would Ash do? Hmm… Ash always said to take your time and think carefully. Don't get distracted and keep fighting… THAT'S IT!!!"_ Max gave out a yelp from his mind and prepared for a counter attack, "Alright Munchlax, use bite attack!" Munchlax bit the tentacles off its body and was now visibly angry at the Pokemon that made it look thinner! "Alright Munchlax, hyper beam!" with a blast from Munchlax, Tentacruel was knocked out like a light. The referee waited if Tentacruel was still able to stand up but after it revealed its swurly eyes he came to a conclusion, "Tentacruel is unable to battle! The winner goes to the challenger Max and his Munchlax!" the opponent was visibly amazed by this "N… no way! I lost to a rookie?! This is impossible!"

Max went to congratulate his Pokemon but Munchlax just ignored him and went straight to the buffet table.

May finally broke out of Anabel's clutches and went to congratulate his brother. "That was awesome Max, you actually beat him with just three moves!" the little brother grinned proudly at himself as the other trainers were struck with awe. The best trainer in the entire field was beaten by kid who wasn't even ten years old. They all wanted advice from Max but he didn't want to tell them that he learned everything he knew from Ash Ketchum… who would believe him?

"That was amazing Max, you'd make a great trainer someday!" Anabel complimented the boy's first victory

"Hehehe… thanks but Munchlax deserves some of the credit too (Munch munch!) Hehehe… that's right buddy!"

Not long after that, the referee came by to see Max personally, "Well congratulation Max. You really showed these trainers something. In the past two months I've never seen anyone who's more capable to be a trainer than you"

"Thank you. It's just something that I learned from a friend of mine hehehe"

"Well whoever this friend of yours is, he must be one good trainer to teach you. Please send him my regards"

"We will thanks" said May, "Come on guys, we should head towards the meeting area"

Just as they were about to leave the training ground, Anabel noticed a small crowd gathering on the television. "Hey, what's going on over there?" they took a quick look at the TV and were shocked to see who were in it. It wasn't a movie or a commercial of any of that sort, but it was the news channel. The reporter was mumbling something in front of the Pokemon center. When the screen turned into the aerial view of the place everyone was shocked. It was Ash, Misty and Richie! And they were battling someone… but not just 'someone' but a White haired thief! Max, Max and Anabel pushed through the crowd to get a front row view of the TV. Their eye's didn't deceive them, the ones they saw on TV was indeed Ash, Misty and Richie!"

**(In front of the Pokemon Center in Oldale town)**

Sparky and Zippo attacked Entei relentlessly but with its swift movement and amazing powers, the beast managed to avoid most of their attacks with ease.

"Enough playing around, Feraligatr, Ivysaur, move in to support! Entei use fire blast!" Entei let out a stream of fire off its mouth which melted the road in seconds. Ash and Misty could even feel the heat, and they were farther away than anyone. "Ivysaur, charge up your solar beam again! Ferligatr, attack that child with your dynamic punch!"

Just when Ferligatr was closing in on Ash, Psyduck appeared and began using its confusion ability on it. Frelagator began wavering and soon smacked itself on the wall. "Take that you oversized… thing!" Misty yelled out in victory once again.

"Feraligatr, stand up and use your hydro pump attack with Entei's fire blast!" immediately the two large Pokemons aimed their attacks at each other and fired their elemental attacks. The water and fire immediately caused a smoke to develop around the entire front area.

"He's doing just what I thought he'd do!" Ash yelled out in his mind as his plan was going perfectly like he knew everything that had been happening. "Alright, Pikachu, absorb! Bulbasaur, get on Noctowl's back and use your razor leaf!"

Bulbasaur leaped onto Noctowl and fired away its razor leaf blindly. The Pokemon thief saw where the attack was coming from and smirked, "Heh, that was foolish! Entei, use your flame thrower on that Bulbasaur!" Entei let out a smaller but more accurate burst of fire onto the fog. Suddenly another burst of fire slammed against Feraligatr, "Watch your fire Entei, you just hit your allies!" but the burst of fire kept coming at Feraligatr without stop. The giant water Pokemon couldn't see through the heat, "Entei, I order you to stop your attack at once!" but it was not Entei who was firing. He already stopped on the first order and now he was becoming confused. "What the? It's a trick! Feraligatr, use your hydro pump on where the fire is coming from!"

Feraligatr immediately fired back, but it was too late. The fire was already gone and there was no other Pokemons in sight. The thick fog got even thicker than last time since more fire and water came in contact. Suddenly…

"Richie, Misty, do it now!" Ash yelled out the command then suddenly Feraligatr and Entei were pushed back towards Ivysaur who wasn't finished charging its solar beam. "Alright Pikachu, Thunder Storm!" (PI…KA…CHU!!!!) the little mouse glew nearly as bright as the sun and immediately pushed the fog away. Everything was now clear and everything was exposed.

The thief looked around and suddenly realized Ash's plan on taking him out. Misty and Richie were on both flanks with different elemental Pokemons, which confused both Entei and Feraligatr, making them both think they were attacking each other. After that he let them both tackle the Pokemons into the same position as Ivysaur to effectively take them out with one shot of Pikachu's ultimate attack.

Pikachu let out a multitude of its lightning attacks to rain down on the three armored Pokemons. The battle ended the moment Pikachu dropped to the ground, still eager and ready to fight. Entei, Feraligatr and Ivysaur were all unconscious. Entei struggled to get up but what's left of its energy was already gone.

"Alright! We did it everyone!" Ash broke off the momentary silence with a jubilant cry of victory. Richie and Misty smiled at Ash's usual victory behavior but kept their cool. They had an image to keep up.

Just when things were finally settling down, the thief took out another Pokeball from his belt. Ash and the others got into battling positions waiting for the next Pokemon to be thrown at them however… what the thief did caught them completely by surprise.

He placed the Pokeball that he was about to use back onto his belt and sighed.

"I… yield… to you…" the thief broke down to the ground and let out a single tear down his face. His heart and soul were hurt but he wasn't depressed from losing… he was sad about something else. Whatever the reason he was sad about… only time… will tell…

Police sirens came into hearing distance. The thief returned all his Pokemons to their Pokeballs and placed them in his belt. Ash and the others were expecting him to run but what happened next caught them off guard. The thief handed Ash his belt of twelve Pokeballs. He had more Pokemons than Ash thought but why didn't he used them. Probably because his trump card was already defeated in battle.

"By the way Ash Ketchum. My name is Hagard. Remember it well, cuz we might just meet again" the thief who is now known as Hagard turned around and faced the cops with his hand proudly in the air. A minute later the cuffs were on and not long after that he was taken to the station. Another criminal had been brought to justice.

Ash was confused why Hagard didn't use all his Pokemons, and even more confused on he gave them up so willingly. But who cares about the minor details? He got himself an Entei for crying out loud!

The media quickly moved in to get a small glimpse of Ash or even at least a short interview. Ash was surrounded once again by the mob of fans who just wanted his autograph. Ash ran into the nearest possible hideaway and unfortunately it just had to be the Pokemon center. Nurse Joy disabled the automatic door openings and requested Ash to follow her.

"Come on, follow me. This Pokemon center has a back door!" she led the way for the trio.

"Thanks a lot Nurse Joy, we appreciate your help!" Misty thanked her.

"Oh don't mention it. My sister Joy told me about you guys and said about how you saved her Pokemon center from a Regirock"

"Not a problem Nurse Joy. Anyway, we'll see ya later. Come on everyone!" Ash and his two companions left the building through the back exit.

Right when they were out of sight, Joy ordered the Smeargle (a painter Pokemon) to cover the door with colors matching the walls. She did this just incase the media breaks in and tries to search everywhere.

Ash, Richie and Misty rested on the bench near the end of town. They had probably run half a mile by now. "Come on guys, I don't think it's safe to stay in Oldale town anymore" Ash moaned out in exhaustion. The other two agreed and headed towards the meeting point without a second thought. I guess fame has its own price.

**(Time Skip 2 hours West Exit of Oldale Town)**

The others met at the same spot at the exact same time. They all saw what happened on TV. It was a live feed from a media chopper that had a great view of the whole action and everyone in the country saw Pikachu's power.

"That was a close one Ash!" said Brock

"I know, but what was supposed to do? I couldn't just sit back and let him take all those Pokemons!"

Dawn just smiled and turned to the boy, "Well whatever your reasons are, you still blew away your cover in front of thousands of people and probably everyone will know how you look like"

"Hey, I got an idea!" the gang turned their heads towards Richie who had his hands up, "Maybe we could disguise him like me and people would probably think that we're brothers!" They all looked at Richie with a glare that says 'pathetic' "What? It's just a thought!"

"Wait! That's a great idea!" Max butted in with sparkly eyes. Everyone looked at him with a confused face. "Don't you get it? If Ash were to pretend to be like one of us, then maybe the media won't recognize him!"

"Hmm, then he should act like me! After all, I am the most attractive guy in the group" Brock said with sparkles flashing behind him, but it short lived when Misty came by to pull his ear, "Just one of you is more than I can handle! Besides, we're trying to make him less attractive not more attractive!"

"Oww, yeah I guess I missed that part"

"Maybe he should be more like me!" stated Tracey, "After all, Pokemon observers don't really get much attention from anyone" And it was exactly what he said. No one really paid attention to him at all, "I was being sarcastic!"

It wasn't long till Todd came by with his recommendation, "Hey Ash, maybe becoming a photographer might give you an old look! No one, not even professor Oak would recognize you!"

"I would tell you to be like me, but I think the world can only handle one gift from the heavens" said Drew flicking his hair

Ash sweat dropped and sighed, "Oh boy, here we go again… another makeover Look, everyone, I'll choose my own clothes!"

Once again Ash had to go through the racks of clothing and change in the nearby rest room. He just got used to the new look and even thought of keeping the new clothes. He looked through the rack and thought of everyone's (every male) clothing.

"_Hmm… Brock's is too loose and Tracey's is a little too tropical for my likening. Richie's designs aren't bad but everyone probably knows about him too. Todd and Drew well… their just kinda… too noticeable" _Just when he scanned through his mind he decided that he needed something that clearly says **'I'm not Ash Ketchum PERIOD!'** and perhaps something that won't draw much crowd.

Something comfortable yet not attractive, something nice and… _"That's it!"_ Ash yelled out in his mind and began shuffling through the clothes. He picked out an old pair of jeans, a light green T-shirt and a pair of glasses. He opened the sink and began combing his wet hair. _"This is gonna knock them out for sure!"_ Ash thought as he finished giving out the final details.

The gang waited at the exit for 'Mr. popular' as Misty calls him. The crowd and the media that were laying siege (not literally) to the Pokemon center had already disappeared and are now searching the city. Every fan, trainer and journalist looked high and low for Ash like some sort of wanted criminal with a large bounty on his head.

Just then, a Pokemon trainer wearing dark sun glasses approached the group. He didn't look like your everyday trainer and the jock uniform really gave way towards his attitude. "Excuse me, are you by any chance May Maple of Petalburg city?" May nodded at him in reply. "Oh dude! I'm like a big fan of your father! Do you mind signing my autograph book? May scribbles her name in Oh my, you're that Richie who fought that Pokemon thief a few hours ago! Please sign this! Wait a minute! You're Tracey from the Orange Archipelago and your Todd, the one who took a picture of the legendary Articuno and---"

A few minutes later, the Pokemon trainer had all their autographs. He jumped and smiled with happiness like a boy who just learned that he could jump. Everyone gave out a sweat drop but was still happy for that trainer. Strangely though that the trainer seemed to know everything about them but they knew nothing about him. He was able to get everything right from their shampoos to the size of their shoes. The gang soon began to think that this trainer was actually a stalker or something like that and soon they began to slowly walk away… well… everyone except Max.

"What do you think is so funny?"

"Oh nothing. It's just that I have the autograph of every famous Pokemon trainer there is!"

"Ha! Palease, I bet you don't even have Ash Ketchum's autograph. He's the best there is!"

The trainer looked a bit surprised to the little point Dexter's last phrase but he quickly got back into show off mode and began gloating.

"Ash Ketchum? You mean that loser that's been hunting low lives with his Pokemons? HA! Only a desperate trainer would want his autograph"

"Hey, don't you talk trash about him! He can kick your sorry patuti any time any day!"

"Oh I'd love to see him try. Besides, the only reason why his autographs are so rare is because he doesn't want to show his ugly head to people"

"Hey, you shouldn't bad mouth people like that!"

"And who's gonna stop me, you?"

"Well I…"

"When people keep winning and winning they begin think that they're invincible. That Ash is no different. He's just a pond loser face who's too shy to go anywhere. I wouldn't be surprised if he lost to me hahaha!"

Max gritted his teeth and tried to hold back his anger as well as possible but from the looks on his eyes he was losing rapidly. He heard trainers insulted Ash several times before but never directly in front of him. If anyone dares insult his 'brother' and probably his role model, they would have face his wrath.

"Why you…! I'm warning you, Ash Ketchum has beaten many Pokemon trainers and even beat the elite 4 of all the land so… so…!"

"Max…" even May was having a hard time controlling her urge to pound that man to a pulp

"Don't you dare look down on him! Ash Ketchum is the best trainer this world has ever seen and he's gonna compete in the Valmarian league and he's gonna win it! So don't you ever trash talk about my brother!"

A single tear tinkled down Max's eye, his face was dead serious and angry. No one, not even May could've expected this kind of response from someone so small. The trainer that had just been trash talking about Ash didn't even bother to hear his near cries. Just when he was about to say something back to counter those words another voice came in from behind.

"Get away from him you creep! (everyone looked at the nerdy looking boy) If you have the guts to talk why don't you pick on somebody your own size! Three on three, no time limit right here right now!"

No one understood why that boy would stand up for Max, they just thought that it was one of those slogans 'one for all and all for one' but for this case I guess we could say 'nerds stick together'

"Ha! What's the matter kid, did I hurt your little brother? Hahahaha!"

"Why don't you let the battle do the talking. If you think you're that powerful then let's do this! I choose you Totodile! (Totodile appears) (the trainer laughs)"

A mere sight of the little Pokemon made the trainer burst into a laugh, "Hahahaha! A Totodile? I guess I was wrong, you're not a wimp you're a super wimp!"

The trainer brought out three Pokemons. A Drowzee, Vulpix and a Sperow.

"Hey wait a minute! You're only supposed to use one Pokemon at a time, not three at once!" Misty yelled out a protest but the nerd boy stopped her, "Don't interrupt! This guy is mine!"

the trainer grinned and fired back, "Yeah, listen to the geek kid. He knows what he's doing… NOT! Hahahahaha"

The nerd kid was now looking visibly angry at the trainer. He then adjusted his glasses and prepared to fight. The sun was close to setting already. It was then the nerd kid made a brave statement, "I'll defeat you…" "What?" the trainer was confused on what the nerd just said, "I'll defeat you before sun set!"

"Ha, brave words coming from a wimp like you! Vulpix, Sperow hit that Totodile with everything you've got! Drowzee, use your confusion attack!" they all followed the trainers orders and began bombarding Totodile with their attack moves.

As the fighting went on for about five minutes, everyone began to have thoughts of their own.

Drew thought, _"That kid has three Pokemons on field and the other guy only has one. This could be trouble for him"_

Richie thought. _"What is he doing? His opponent is attacking but all he's doing is just letting Totodile go on defense! How can he win if he keeps on the dodging!?"_

May thought, "_You'd better not lose kid! Not after what you just said or else I'm gonna kill you!"_

Dawn thought, "_Oh Ash, why did you have to leave when we need you the most!"_

Brock thought, _"This is strange. The kid is all offensive but… oh I get it… it's the oldest trick in the book. Nice move nerd boy!"_

Anabel thought, _"I see, he's wearing them out so they won't move as fast. A very impressive tactic"_

Duplica thought, _"Grrr… just give me one minute with that man and I'll make him pay for saying those things to Ash! I'll make him pay!"_

Misty thought, _"Wow, that trainer really knows his Pokemon combination powers. But why isn't the boy attacking back? He had so many openings already"_

Todd thought, _"This is amazing! Three against one! Only Ash was able to do that and win but if this kid does win, he might also be one of participants in the Valmarian League!"_

Tracey thought, _"I need to sketch this! A first battle of three against one! I will call this… 'The Showdown at Sunset' Yeah, it will be my masterpiece"_

Just as the battle went on for another ten minutes, the trash talking trainer was getting a bit nervous. "Hey nerd boy, it's almost sun set and you haven't even laid a finger on my Pokemons"

"You haven't laid a single spec of dust on my Totodile either so what's your point?" the nerd boy countered his taunt with great intelligence. "I did say I was gonna defeat you before sun set and that's what I'm going to do. I'm just killing time to make it look more dramatic"

The trainer was now mad, he got caught in his own taunts and now he's got nothing to throw back, "GRRRRR! That's it, no more mister nice guy! All of you, full power!"

"Just what I expected from a rookie" the nerd whispered to himself and gave out his first offensive command, "Totodile, use hydro pump and blow them away!" Totodile let out a powerful stream of water from his mouth and knocked the three Pokemons down, "Totodile, stop your attack…"

"Wait a minute! Why did he…?"

"What's the matter Brock?" Dawn asked but was answered by Richie

"The kid stopped his attack. He could've easily taken out Vulpix since it's weak against water, but the kid stopped" _"What is that kid planning?"_

The trainer that was fighting visibly flinched at the thought of losing to the nerd, "Alright, I've had enough of you! Why don't you take this on for size! (Blastoise appears)"

May saw this and quickly became angry, "Hey, that's cheating! Only three Pokemons are allowed!"

"Be quiet! Blastoise, use hydro pump on that loser!"

Blastoise lowered its cannons and aimed at the nerd boy. A blast from those cannons wouldn't be lethal but it would still cause some major damage on the human body. Misty should know, she experienced it first hand back in Goldenrod city.

Any normal person would immediately run instead of facing such a powerful attack head on but the nerd boy didn't seem to be one of those normal kids. He just stood there and smirked.

"Blastoise, fire!" Blastoise immediately released a huge burst of water from its back cannons and headed directly for the nerd kid. It came so close that you could almost feel it in your face.

In just a few seconds, the nerd boy tilted his head sideward and let the stream of water pass him just by an inch. He didn't move from his position nor did he even flinch. Everyone's eyes widened with surprise.

A few minutes later the nerd kid looked up to his watch and said, "It's time…" quietly to himself, "Totodile, give'em a taste of your hydro pump once more!" Totodile jumped and let out an even stronger attack.

"Blastoise withdraw!" Blastoise immediately hid back into its shell to protect itself from the water attack. However, this was also part of the nerd boy's plan.

"He's doing just like I planned! Now Totodile, it's time for a little shell game! Use tackle attack!" Totodile leaped into the air and slammed the giant shell onto the three original battling Pokemons which quickly put them out of the area unconscious.

"What the?! Impossible! Grrrr… Blastoise, come out and show this kid what you're made of!"

However, when Blastoise came out from its shell, it was too dizzy to even move so it fell and soon the battle ended.

"Looks like I win…" said the nerd kid. Brock and the others (except Ash) screamed with cheers and delight on the boy's victory. Not only did he show that kid who's boss, he defeated four Pokemons with only his Totodile!

The trainer was furious forget mad, he was down right furious! "Arrrrgggg! Not yet kid, I still have Pokemons to take you out!" but before he could summoned out another of his Pokemons, a voice came out from behind.

"Hold it right there young man!" it was none other than Officer Jenny, "I saw the whole thing and how you cheated against your opponent. I'm afraid you and I are going to the station. Does anyone have a problem with that?" everyone shook their heads and smiled.

May quickly gave that nerd kid a big hug which ruined his coolness. "Oh thank you thank you thank you! You were awesome!" she squealed into his ears and nearly knocked off him off balance.

"That was an impressive fight kid" Brock complimented the boy, "In all my life I've only seen one person who was able to defeat three Pokemons but now that you're here I guess you broke the record"

Duplica came by as well and congratulated him too, "You were great! It's amazing how strong your Totodile is! Are you in the Valmarian league?"

"Uh… yeah, I am" the nerd said shyly

Before the nerd kid could answer any of the questions, he noticed Max on the bench… still having that sad face, just like the time when he was leaving for Johto. "What's wrong?" the nerd asked.

"Nothing… thanks anyway" Max sounded sad and depressed

"That doesn't sound like a victory cheer. Come on, tell me what's wrong"

"It's just that… I never thought anyone else could do what Ash just did"

"So, what did he do?"

"He defeated three Pokemon gym leaders with his Pikachu but you… you defeated four Pokemon"

"But I thought you used to call him the 'best', am I right?"

"He is the best! There's no one who can defeat him!"

"Then why are you sad?"

"I… It's just that I thought of him as my brother, and now when I needed him the most… I… I always thought he would be there for me! To stand up for me! I thought of him as my brother but then you showed up and… and…!"

Max fought back his tears as hard as he could. The dam he built on his eyes was beginning to overflow as he looked at the nerd kid.

The nerd smiled back warmly as he looked down at Max. No one knew how to react or even think for that matter.

"You know what Max… I also thought of you as my little brother…"

Max's eyes widened greatly with small trickles of water coming out. He looked up at the nerd as he knelt down on one knee. This greatly confused the others. No one expected to see the nerd kid smiling after such a barrage of powerful words. "Thanks Max…" the voice of the nerd changed dramatically. The geeky tone was replaced by a soothing heart warming sound. Max looked up to the boy who removed his thin glasses and fuzzed up his hair. "A… Ash?!" Max stuttered out.

"That meant a lot to me…" Ash gave out a heart warming smile and gave his 'little brother' a hug. "When you were with me, I always thought of you as my little brother too" The tears Max held back came pouring down on his face. He couldn't believe it. Ash actually thought of him as his brother. Max was supposed to be happy, but right now his emotions were mixed up.

He mind was full of joy. He couldn't believe that the boy that stood up for his cause was there with him. The boy he respected and considered a brother that he thought had left him was with him this whole time. This would perhaps be the last time he would ever doubt Ash.

By the time Max managed to input all the data in his brain he hugged Ash back and let a stream of tears roll down his cheeks. Ash always said to hide his tears but this time he didn't care. Let them see… he had a brother and that's more than enough for him.

By the time the sun had touched the sea bed, Max held on Ash's shoulder and kept saying in a soft crying voice on Ash's shoulders.

"Brother… big brother…"

The whole gang recognized Ash the moment he took off those glasses (like superman). They burst out tears of happiness and joy to see such a beautiful scene. Everything was perfect, the atmosphere, the background and well… everything!

Tracey ripped out his old sketch of the fighting that he made a few minutes ago and decided to make THIS his masterpiece. "Now this is a scene worth sketching. I will call it…

'_Brothers'_

It was a long time before Max cried himself to sleep. Ash volunteered to carry him back, however since all hotels were monitored by the media they decided to camp outside the town. They made a good distance between them and the town.

However, before they left the town, Team Rocket was also nearby… sobbing like they were watching some sort soap opera.

"That was just so… beautiful!" said James as he sneezed out

Jessie too was also crying her hear out, "(sniff) Hand me another tissue (sob)"

"That must've been the most beautiful thing I've ever seen… (sob)" Meowth held the tears from his eyes onto his whiskers

Cassidy blehed at them and shrugged, "Oh please, I can't believe you guys are crying over such petty brother scene"

But Butch was having the same reaction with the others, "But Cassidy, it was just so… beautiful"

"Argggg! Why did I have to be working for such wimps!"

**(The Oldale Town Police Station holding area)**

Hagard was still in his cell waiting to be transferred to a high maximum security prison in Mauville city. The interrogators tried to pry some information out of him but just as Chaucer did, he ignored all questions and kept quiet. He was left inside a jail cell hoping in his heart that someone would break him out already.

And so his wish came true. The wall of his cell exploded into small pieces leaving a giant hole in its place. "You're late Rosa…" he said without even looking at his rescuers.

"Sorry, but I'm not Rosa" Hagard's eyes widened slightly and quickly got into a fighting stance, "Easy silver hair we're here to rescue you" the two feminine figure came into sight. It was Domino and Wendy! The two professionals of Team Rocket!

"Who are you and what do you want?!"

"We're here to rescue you ya oaf! But first we'd like to make a deal" said Domino

"I have no intentions of dealing with you hum---"

Hagard was cut off when a telepathic communication came through his mind, "_No Hagard, wait! Accept the human's offer!"_ said the voice on the other side.

"_But sire, we cannot trust humans, especially these humans!"_ Hagard replied with anger in his telepathic voice tone.

"_Do not pass up an opportunity Hagard, these humans may be of some use if treated correctly"_ the other voice tried to reason with Hagard, and he was surely winning.

"_Sire, I mean no disrespect but what if---" _he was cut off by the other voice

"_Humans use Pokemons to do their bidding can it not go the other way?"_ Hagard was immediately convinced and then broke off communication. "Very well… what is your proposal?"

Wendy smiled and spoke out in a soft but yet witch like tone, "I knew you'd see it our way"

"We've heard how powerful your Pokemons are so here's the gist" Domino spoke up, "You help us train our Pokemons and give us those armor designs and in return we'll let you in on whatever profit we get"

"Hmm an interesting deal. But I will choose six Pokemons for my own"

Having not much time left, Wendy quickly agreed, "Deal! picks up her radio Alright we're set, come and get us"

A few minutes later Hagard, Domino and Wendy flew into the sky on a Team Rocket chopper and were soon out of sight. The police tried to give chase but their efforts proved useless.

And so once again… another white haired thief managed to escape judgment from the law and was again able to roam free to terrorize the world.


	18. A Curse Unforgotten

**Chapter 18: A Curse Unforgotten**

When we last saw our heroes, they were still on their way to Petalburg city. However after a quick stop at Oldale they just realized that only have about a month and two weeks to get to Valmarian city where they would compete in the Valmarian League to become Pokemon Master and Champion. Ash decided that his Max like disguise wasn't the best choice so he went on with the one he had then. Black shirt, blue jeans and May's bandana on his neck.

We now find the gang and their Pokemons resting in a nearby meadow when suddenly…

"Huh? Who's that?" said Anabel to the others. She saw a chubby looking man, and a slim lady dressed like Amazonian explorers or something. The others glared at them with questions on their minds. The two adventurers seemed to be lost.

"Hey, isn't that professor Birch?" May said with surprised tone.

"Hey now that you mentioned it, he does look like Birch but then that means… (guk!)" Brock stopped his sentence and curls into a fetal position. "Oh no… it's her…"

"Who is it Brock?" asked Misty who looked at him a little confused. Ash gave out a sweat drop and gladly answered her question "It's Professor Birch and Professor Ivy!"

'Ivy' that single name made Brock even more curled up like a cocoon.

**(If anyone is wondering why, then you need to watch Pokemon more often)**

Just as Birch was scanning his surroudings, a pair of hands caught his attention, "Hmm? Oh its May and Max! Hey kids, how are you!" he yelled out to them but was immediately stopped by Ivy who tapped his shoulders, "Professor, don't you think we need to focus on the search?" the man just shrugged off some stress and smiled, "Oh that can wait Ivy. Besides, you don't get to see old friends every day now do you?"

Birch and Ivy walked up to the gang and said their hellos. Misty introduced them to the others while Tracey tries to get Brock out of his curling position. I guess no one will ever know what really happened between Brock and Ivy. Moments later the gang sat down for some of Tracey's stew. Since Brock was still isolated in his own zone the others just dumped his emotionless body in a place where he wouldn't sneak away.

"So Mr. Birch, what are you doing all the way out in the woods?" Dawn asked

"Oh Professor Ivy and I are looking for an old tower here in the woods. We're on a quest to find the lost history of the Pokemon King!" Birch stood up proudly as he made that little dramatic pose. May giggled and suddenly burst into a laugh!

"Hahahaha! Oh I'm sorry, hahaha. You just reminded me of a story my mom used to tell me when I was still a baby" May kept giggling a few times before she noticed everyone was starring at her. Birch curled up into the same position as Brock.

"Oh don't you worry about him he's been getting that from his everybody nowadays" said Ivy laughing. "So who's this Pokemon king?" Ash asked hoping to get a straight answer from her. Ivy's face gave out a weak smile and chuckled, "We're not exactly sure on who he is, but from our sources, they say that he was a king that was respected and praised by both humans and Pokemons. They also said that he was able to talk with Pokemons both normally and telepathically"

"Wow, he must've been one powerful man!" said Todd in amazement

"Powerful, yes but Man, no" Ivy let out a small sigh, "He died at the age of fourteen according to several similar records. Some say he died of poisoning, another says that a rebellion caused it and perhaps much more"

"Well, so why are you guys looking all the way out here?" asked Max while tilting his glasses

"Well you see…" Ivy seemed hesitant to answer at first but then she realized it wouldn't be too much harm to tell them a few things about their research. She immediately pulled out a medium size scroll and placed it on the portable picnic table which Tracey packed with him, "Here, take a look at this (she opens up an old map and the map of Hoenn) This old map is the one Professor Birch found in the books and this is the map of Hoenn today" Everyone took a little peek at both maps and compared it. It had several similarities but some parts of the land were a bit far off.

"They looked almost identical" said May

Drew had to agree, "Yeah, but some of the areas in the north seemed to continue"

Ivy simply let out a smirk, "That's no surprise. Believe it or not, this old map is actually Hoenn ten thousand years ago. They say that it was work of natural earthquakes or some other natural disaster but that's not the point"

"It isn't?" said Ash. The professor then turned her attention to the Hoenn girl, "May, do you remember the story of the Pokemon king?" May looked back almost shocked but when she thought back for a moment, "Well not exatly, I didn't really listen since I just thought it was nothing but a fairy tale"

"Well if my memory is right, I think that it went like this…" Drew decided to tell the story since he remembered it like he heard it just yesterday.

**(The Story of The Pokemon King)**

Once upon a time in a land far away, there was a kingdom that was ruled by an evil wizard. He cast spells on the world and destroyed anyone who opposed him Humans or Pokemon alike. The wizard was named Kear, or Kear the wicked. He ruled over Poketopia for generations with the power of eternal youth.

Many brave warriors fought against the wizard but none prevailed. The wizard was strong and powerful, but he always craved for morer. He commanded an army of Pokemons and conquered half the world in one day. By then no one in the world dare to go against the wizard, until one boy stood up against the wizard.

Kear was furious on how a single child was able to stand so brave. A Raichu, Blastoise and Charizard stood by the boy's side to help in the fight. The battle waged on at the fields of the Wizard's tower, where Kear's power were strongest but the child did not falter. He faced an army of Pokemons with his allies and fought their way to victory.

When Kear was finally defeated, the child took the wizard's staff and sealed Kear in his own weapon foever.

The world rejoiced to the child and proclaimed him as Pokemon king. And so the child lived out his days as king… til the very end.

**(End of Story)**

"Yes, that's exactly how the story was told" Ivy nodded. When Drew finished, he let out a sigh since he just looked like an idiot who listens to baby stories, "I still don't get it. Do you really listen to these fairy tales?" he asked which the professor let out fake smile. "Well to tell you the truth those fairy tales are actually our only sources"

"WHAT!!!!" the gang said in unison

"So you guys are just acting… on instinct?" it was a statement in the form of the question. But the professor had more excuses up her sleeves, "Well yes we are but this is just a small project. We're actually looking for something much bigger"

"What could be bigger than the Pokemon king?" Ash asked. "Well you see…" Ivy wanted to answer, but telling them more than this would be a breach of secret research security. Just when she was about to deny them access to more info, Birch returned to his normal position and spoke up. "I'll tell them Ivy"

The young female professor turned her head to meet Birch's in surprise, "Are you sure professor? This is classified information" But the man just waved it off, "I'll take responsibility about this. Besides, I think these kids can help us"

"So what's this classified information?" Max asked with a slight hint of excitement in his voice. It wasn't exactly everyday you get to hear top secret information from a high ranking research official.

Birch let out smile but then his face turned dead serious, "I'll tell you, but you must promise never to tell anyone else!" They all nodded in agreement. "Good. Does anyone know what a P-wave is?" he asked around.

Max placed his hand over his chin and thought for a moment, "P-wave… hmm… Oh I remember now! That's Psychic-wave!" he yelled out in which professor Ivy nodded, "Yes, it determines the strength of a psychic power. I have here a P-wave detector" she said pulling out a small radio-like machine, "It's not the best but it can read up to fifty thousand Psychic radius. Does anyone here have a psychic Pokemon?"

Everyone shook their heads in unison.

"Well I have a Noctowl that knows a psychic attack, will that do?" said Ash holding Noctowl's Pokemon

"That's perfect. (she place some wires on Noctowl) Ok let a rip!"

"Ok Noctowl, use foresight!" Noctowl began letting out a small beam onto Ivy which made the P-wave detector tilt a little.

The professor took note of the readings and smiled, "Well that's an impressive. The reading goes up to eight thousand Psychic wave. That's pretty high for a Noctowl"

"Hey that's great Noctowl! You've grown so much I hardly noticed" Ash gave Noctowl a few strokes on its wing which made him happy. But then suddenly the P-wave detector began acting strangely, "Hey what's wrong with the machine?"

"I don't know, this never happened before" Ivy began tinkering with the P-wave detector to see what was wrong, but then when she looked at the readings her eyes widened with shock, "Professor Birch, these readings, they are…"

Birch immediately reacted to the machine and began processing the data. The machine began giving out small sparks of electricity. Ash and the others barely had enough time to move when the thing expoded right on their faces.

"Oh boy… what happened?" said Dawn waving her hand around to get rid of the smoke in front of her face

Birch let out a few coughs before yelling out annoyingly, "(cough cough) Dang it, we were so close!"

"That is what we've been researching on" Ivy stated out. "It's a psychic wave of a large scale. It reaches up to fifty million P-wave. If a human could hear psychic sound like that our heads would be blown to bits!"

"Whoa! What kind of a Pokemon could do such a thing?" asked Ash in amazement of the numbers.

"None that we know of. Professor Birch and I have concluded that you'll need at least twenty thousand Alakazams to even get close to those numbers. This psychic wave has been appearing for sometime and no one knows what could be causing it"

"Could it be a machine?" asked Misty. Birch thought of that situation before but then countered, "We thought of that but so far our research have proven nothing"

"So what does the Pokemon king have to do with this P-wave?" Max asked rubbing the small marks off his cheeks.

"Well it's a funny story really" Ivy said with a slight giggle. But Prof Birch corrected her with an annoyed tone, "It's RESEARCH!! (sigh) Any way. From the stories that I've been looking into, legend has it that the Pokemon king had several artifacts that possessed powerful psychic abilities! If we should find one of those artifacts it might bring us closer to what or who is creating these enormous waves!"

"Umm… so what are these artifacts anyway?" asked Duplica after giving out a few coughs. "An excellent question! The Pokemon king had five artifacts that he used to defeat the mighty wizard Kear. The first one we know is the staff which Drew spoke of. Another is a crown, the third is a sword, the fourth would be a vest and the last is a ring that was said to be the most powerful of them all"

Ash finally got the idea and tilted up his light, "So that's why you're going to the tower. You're looking for the staff aren't you!?"

"That's right Ash and---"

"Professor, look over there!" Ivy cut him off pointing at a bunch of storm clouds heading this way. Everyone turned to the direction she was pointing. Over by the distance, a storm cloud began to gather on the nearby forest. It gave out an evil resonance that could even be felt from where they were standing. The uneasy feeling it gave out was so unnaturally disturbing that the Pokemons cower in fear behind whatever object they could find.

Suddenly, as they gaze onto the storm a hint of shadow began to take shape. Only Birch and Ash were able to get a clear glimpse of it. It was indeed a tower of some sort.

"Did you see that?!" Birch shouted out

"See what?" Anabel replied with confusion

"The Tower! Didn't you see the tower?!"

"Yeah, it looked like it was destroyed" said Ash

"You saw it too? Well what are we standing around for? Let's go!" Birch then began leading the gang towards the forest where the storm had gathered against their will. He wasn't gonna stop for anything this time and no one will stop him from reaching that tower.

**(In Valmarian City Hospital)**

Gary was once again at the Valmarian hospital after a training routine gone terribly wrong. He had Umbreon and Arcanine battle each other to make them stronger. He gave out several commands to benefit both Pokemon until he suddenly used Umbreon's psychic attack against Arcanine's claw attack.

Umbreon lifted Arcanine to the air and sent it flying towards Gary. The claw attacked scratched his left eye but it was nothing serious. However it did left a cool battle scar behind. Gary didn't blame Arcanine or Umbreon. He blamed himself for working too hard with all that's been happening.

He sat down in his room at the hospital and flipped through the channels for something entertaining. He wanted to know if Ash would be on TV again. Suddenly, by his luck it was exactly what he got. Ash was on TV… again! This didn't surprise Gary since it has only been the thing the media ever talked about. But what did surprise Gary was when Ash fought against Hagard!

He saw the battle, he saw Ash did his tactics and mentally noted every move he made. It wasn't long until the news showed Pikachu's ultimate move. Streams of lightning flashes came across from the television screen making any person squint their eyes. But Gary wasn't about to miss this opportunity to see Ash's full power. Gary's jaw hung down from his lips. The lightning storm he just saw was incredible. None of his Pokemons would be able to withstand such a barrage of attacks and still remain standing! Gary bit his lips containing the anger surging inside of his heart. He was so furious that he smacked the remote onto the television which turned it off… permanently.

He got out of bed against the doctor's orders and begun training more and more ruthlessly than ever. He didn't care how life threatening or hazardous his actions might be… he was going to win the Valmarian League and prove to everyone that he was better.

Gary summoned out ALL of his Pokemons and begun the toughest and perhaps most exhausting training exercise in the world. He didn't care if he got hurt, the only pain he could feel right now was the thought of Ash beating him in a battle. Even though the fires of his determination were comparable to Ash, that fire was fueled not only by anger… but by another reason… a reason only Ash would understand.

**(Back in the forest)**

While Ash and the rest of the gang were searching around the forest, the storm above began pouring down on them. "Oh no, come one everyone we need to find shelter quickly!" Tracey yelled out

Since they were already so deep in the woods, they decided to hide under a large pack of trees. Brock handed out all of his extra towels to his friends but sadly he only had enough for half the group.

Ash saw his 'little brother' and May soaking wet under the rain, "Hey May, why don't you use my jacket. It should be big enough for you and Max"

"Are you sure? What about you?" May asked him

"Don't worry about me, I can share a towel with Todd" he was lying. Todd barely had enough room for himself.

May was a little hesitant to accept his jack for a minute. She blushed slightly when holding the jacket. _"It smells just like him"_ she thought for a moment. "Hey Max, come on. I got us some shelter"

As Ash wanders through the rain he began to see strange visions of himself. It was as if the rain was telling him something. Just then, he saw an orange haired girl smiling back at him. There was something familiar about her face, like a moon long since past. Here in an instant and gone with a flash, "Misty?" he said.

"Did you call?" Misty snuck up behind Ash with her Togepi soaking wet.

"Huh? Misty!?" Ash looked back and forth but he couldn't see the orange haired girl anymore

"That's my name or are you talking about the weather?" Misty held up her towel over Ash so he wouldn't get caught in the rain, "Here, you wouldn't want to get a cold until you get to Petalburg city"

"Thanks Misty, but I think I can handle a bit rain myself, right Pikachu?"

"Pika pika pikapi pikachu" (I'm not sure Ash, its pretty dark out there)

"Well it doesn't look like your Pikachu agrees" she giggled for awhile

"I guess you're right, besides, we wouldn't be able to see anything out in this fog"

"Pikachu!" (Yeah, I remember the last time you had us lost during a storm!)

Togepi laughed at what Pikachu said

Ash looked annoyed, he was able to tell that Pikachu was saying something to Togepi but couldn't make out the words.

"So Misty, how are you Pokemons doing?" Ash felt like he needed to start a conversation, he didn't know why but just staying near Misty all quiet just didn't seem right.

"Huh? Oh they're fine I guess. By the way, what are you going to do with all those Pokemons?" she was referring to the belt Hagard gave Ash during their showdown at Oldale town. The three of them, Ash, Richie and her battled against Pokemons armed to the teeth and came out victorious.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me! Hey Brock I have something for you!"

Brock immediately came out of his shelter under a large tree to see what Ash wanted, "What is it Ash?" Ash handed down several Pokeballs to him with a smile.

"I think some of these Pokemons belong to you" with a quick glimps Brock summoned out the four Pokemons from their Pokeballs then out came a Steelix, Geodude, Golem, Mashtomp, Ludicolo and Vulpix. Brock was amazed and happy to see his friends once again. He thought that the white haired thieves caught them for sure. He immediately took out the armors they were forced to wear and gave them all a nice hug. The Rock type Pokemons however didn't have much to say since they were in pain because of the rain.

"Oh sorry guys, I'll talk with you later. Steelix, Golem, Geodude, return! (all the Pokemons returned) Thank you Ash, I never thought I'd get to see my friends again"

"No problem Brock, I'm just glad they're all safe"

"And so for saving my friends, I'll make you your lazy boy stew for a reward!"

"Really? Awesome! Lazy stew it is!"

"Hey what about me? I helped too you know!" Misty gave out an annoyed face. Brock had to come up with an excuse quick or a mallet will be his dinner for tonight.

"Umm… of course! The lazy boy stew is for all of you. Why have three rewards when you can share one right?" Brock was able to get himself out of a tough situation that time but who knows how long that will work.

"Anyway, what are you gonna do with Entei Ash? Are you gonna use it in the Valmarian League?" Misty expanded the towel a bit more so her Togepi wouldn't get wet.

"Well I'm not sure myself. I think I'll send it to Professor Oak when we get to the next Pokemon center (rain stops) Huh? Hey the rain's stopping!"

As the last drip of water fell from the clouds, the sky once again cleared out of the way revealing the great blue ocean above. It wasn't long after that when the mist slowly cleared up as well. When everyone was able to dry themselves up Birch decided to move up and continued searching for that lost tower of Kear.

The gang searched everywhere from top to bottom and left no stone unturned. Birch was certain that the wizard's tower existed, but that was only the step of his operation. He wanted to see if there really was a half Pokemon half human, and if there is then the ministry of science will have a tough time on their hands.

"Umm professor?" Anabel began to talk to Brich. "Please, just call me Birch" the man replied, "Uhmm… ok" just when she was about to say something, Birch almost immediately recognized her face, "Hey aren't you one of the Frontier Brains in Kanto? I've heard that you are able to communicate with your Pokemons telepathically"

"Yes that's true" Anabel nodded, "But do you know where you're going?" Birch would've nearly froze with that question but luckily for him, he stared in a play back in his high school days, "Of course I know where I'm going. Why I've traveled these woods more times then I could remember when I was about your age"

The gang continued traveling behind professor Birch who clearly had no idea where he was going. They wandered aimlessly through the thick woods for at least two more hours until everyone began to notice a little 'Dejavu'. A single apple tree stood at the same spot as they traveled through it for the third time.

"Alright hold it!" May yelled out which stopped the group right on their tracks and faced the annoyed girl who pouted her face. "What's wrong May?" Todd asked.

She pointed to the apple tree that they've been passing for through for the fourth time. "This is the same tree we've been passing through over and over again!"

Birch knew what was gonna happen next so he decided to make a good excuse, "Nonsense May, there are plenty of apple trees in these woods so maybe the sun's playing tricks on you" he gave out a small sweat drop from his head.

"Oh really? (she picks up a half eaten apple) This is the same apple you ate when we stopped here!" everyone immediately looked at the professor with deadly intentions. Birch's ammunition of excuses had just run out.

However, Ash and his friends aren't the only ones lost in this jungle. A few miles away from our heroes a gang of unwanted low lives search desperately for a way out.

"Are we there yet?" groaned Butch

"I think I just lost twenty pounds in this heat!" said James while in a slouch position

Jessie glared at her partners annoyingly and yelled out, "Quit your whining! A moment ago you could barely stand the rain and now you can't stand the heat! Make up your mind!"

"You guys are lucky that you don't have a coat of fur on you cuz I'm feeling kinda dizzy and woozy too" said Meowth who was already sweating in buckets, "Hey look, I didn't know I had eight fingers heh heh heh (faints)"

"Come on you wimps the brats should be somewhere nearby! If we move out now we might just find them!" said Cassidy nudging the two fallen humans

"Oh great, as if Jessie wasn't enough now we have two hot heads to push us around" said James who collapsed on the ground along with Butch.

"You think it's that easy? Try sleeping on the floor every night" said Cassidy's partner who was drowsily going to sleep "I feel your pain my friend" James understood that man's pain as much as he do.

"I wouldn't mind for some food that squinty eyed twerp cooks" said Meowth drolling all over ground

Jessie immediately took out a frying pan from her back and readied some ingredience, "I could cook something up if you want!"

"Thanks but the last you cooked, you took out eight of my nine lives"

"I'm hungry… and I'm tired… can't we just rest and eat some of those delicious looking apples on that tree over there?" said James pointing at an apple tree not far. "A nice tasty apple pie would be great for a change"

It was then Cassidy had enough of their stupidity, "Grrrr… That's it I've had it with all of you! If you wanna stay here than that's fine with me, I'm going to find those brats and when I do I'll capture all their Pokemons! And don't you be expecting a share of the reward either!"

"Shouldn't you be following her Butch?"

"I think I'll stay here for awhile (faints)"

Meowth followed their example and faints along with them, "I second to that (faints)"

"Wait up guys I'm coming too (faints) zzzzzz…zzzzzz"

Jessie let out a mother of all sighs and quickly pulled out her mallet, "(sigh) Oh well, like they say: If you can't beat them, join them (knocks herself out with her magical mallet) zzzzz…zzzzzz"

**(Back with our heroes)**

While Team Rocket are off to snoozevile, Ash and his friends set up camp deep within the forest to as Brock once again prepares something good to eat.

Ash, Richie, Drew sent out their flying Pokemons to search the surrounding areas.since they could barely anything on the ground they decided to have a view from the sky instead. Not long after the four flying Pokemons were sent out they quickly returned with exciting news.

"Found anything Rose? (Rose is Richie's Taillow if you're wondering) Did you find anything that looks like a tower?"

"(Masquerin points southwest) My Masquerin says that they spotted something nearby. It could be the tower but who knows?"

"Well we won't be able to move in this fog. We'll wait till the weather gets better" said Ash. The others thought of it as a good idea so they nodded in agreement. The thick fog that disappeared a few hours ago returned mysteriously as it left. Once in the fog, none of them could see beyond their hands and probably the Pokemons wouldn't have much luck either.

"Hey guys, did you find anything?" asked Brock who was preparing the table for them to eat

"Masquerine found something in that direction but we're not really sure on what it might be" said Ash pointing at Drew's Masquerine

Birch immediately jolted up, which was kind of surprising due to his size and weight "It must be the tower! Come on let's go! (Ivy pulls his ear) Ouch ouch not the ear!"

"I think we'd better wait professor. If we head out now, we could get lost again" Ash let out a small sweat drop as it kind of reminded him about Brock and Misty

Ivy agreed and pulled the man away from the fog "I agree with the boy professor. Going out blindly is crazy and with you leading I doubt we'll even get close to it"

The gang sat down and began eating Brock's lazy boy stew. However… this meal didn't feel quite the same. Usually they'd be having this sort of meal in a sunny side place but with the fog and the creepy jungle sound… it really wasn't the same.

Suddenly, while Piplup and Buneary were eating their Pokechow a strange figure caught their eyes. A human sized shadow was seen in the distance giving them a 'come here' hand gesture. The two Pokemons of Dawn looked at each other and were strangely drawn to the person's voice.

Once Dawn noticed where her Pokemons were going she stood up and tried to stop them, "Hey wait, Piplup, Buneary, don't go into the forest!"

Ash and Todd noticed Dawn chasing after her Pokemons so they decided to chase after her as well, "Wait, Dawn, it's too dangerous out there!" Ash shouted at her.

While Todd, Ash, Pikachu and Dawn were off to the forest Ash could've swore he heard a laugh in the nearby shadow but it was probably just the wind. They all gave chase towards Dawn for about half an hour until she was no longer in sight.

"Dawn! Dawn, if you're out there say something! Dawn!" Ash yelled out to the top of his lunges

"PIKAAA!... PIKAAACHU!... PIKA!" (Dawn! Buneary! Piplup!) Pikachu was also yelling out to see if he could also get a reply from his friends.

After a few more yells Todd decided to give up for the evening, "Come on Ash, we won't find her if we're lost too. Maybe if Brock cooks something she might follow her nose instead"

The word 'nose' quickly gave Ash an idea, "Wait Todd, that's a great idea! Dawn always had this perfume on her. Maybe I could smell it if I just had a sample of her perfume"

"Pikapi! (he takes out a perfume from Todd's bag) Pikachu!" (Is this it Ash?)

Then a memory jolt into Todd's head, "Oh yeah, I remember Dawn giving this to me. She said it was almost empty so she didn't want it anymore"

"Well, its better than nothing takes a quick sniff haaa… haaaaa… haaa… HACHOO! Yup… that's Dawn's alright. (sniff sniff) This way!" The others quickly followed Ash through the forest as he sneezes. Talk about following you nose.

Dawn was finally able to catch up with Piplup and Buneary at the end of a cliff. The fog seemed to have ended along the sea shore leaving the beach clear as crystal. "You two are in a lot of trouble running away like that! Come on let's go back before we make everyone else worry" the two Pokemons apologized and quickly followed her through the thick mist. Suddenly…

"Haaa… haaaa… HAAACHOOO!"

_"I know that sneeze"_ thought Dawn. She remembers how Ash would always sneeze around her because of the strong perfume she was using. Ash and Todd suddenly appeared from the woods.

Piplup and Buneary laughed at Ash's red nose. He must've been sneezing all the way just to follow her scent.

"Fher you are Dawnf! Wef've been… haaa… HAACHOO!" Ash said as he sniffed his nose.

"What Ash is trying to say is that: You shouldn't be running off alone like that" Todd finished Ash's sentence for him.

Dawn lowered her head in apology, "Sorry, Piplup and Buneary ran off so I didn't really think"

"Well anyway, we should probably head back to camp. The others must be worried sick about us by now"

The three of them looked back at the forest and had one single thought, _"Now which way was it back to camp?"_ Once again, Ash was doing the opposite of what he just said to Birch.

A few minutes later Ash came to a decision, "Well we might as well stay her for now. We wouldn't want to run off getting lost again now would we?"

"Can't you just use your super smell to follow Brock's cooking?" asked Todd

Ash would've agreed if it weren't for the slight side affect of his nose, "Yeah I'd love to but we don't exactly have Brock's stew with us. I can't follow the scent if I don't even know how it smells like"

Ash gave out a good point to his companions and so they waited. They shared a bag of chips that Dawn bought from Oldale town. There was plenty of water so there weren't gonna thirst to death. Todd went immediately to sleep when the sun settled in the ocean. He left his camera and his other equipments back at the camp when he was eating.

Just as soon as they were about to catch some snoozing of their own, another pair of Team Rocket hovered over the foggy forest as they tried to look for a place to land. It was none other than the infamous Annie and Oakley, the two famous criminals of Team Rocket. They were riding on their hover craft just right above the trio.

"Hmm… well Oakley, there doesn't seem to be anything but trees and fog as far as my eyes can see. It looks like we'll just have to come tomorrow" said Annie putting down her binoculars

"We can't afford to wait till tomorrow. You saw the Pokemon they were battling right?" Oakley yelled out as she tried to keep a steady pace with her plane. Annie nodded and remembered the battle at Mauville city, "Yeah but I still can't believe it though (switches on the lap top) I'm certain that the one he fought was an Entei. A rare and powerful Pokemon indeed"

"That's right and if what I remember correctly: The White haired guy gave it to that brat" Oakley glred out the window hoping to get some sort of sign that Ash and his friends were somewhere below them.

Annie let out a small smirk, "I'd say… he's looks so much better in that black outfit. It makes him looks soo… mysterious"

"Quit complimenting him and start looking for a place to land!"

"Ok ok (starts looking)"

Just as the two deadly sisters hovered over the forest, a strange figure appeared before them. A building of some sort but it appears to be destroyed.

"Hey look Annie, isn't that?"

Annie quickly jolted up and turned the sterring wheel around! "WHAT ARE YOU DOING? TURN AROUND TURN AROUND!!!"

The flying car was just an inch away from total destruction. If Annie didn't shouted at that moment, they would've been nothing but burnt human barbeque! "What in the world was that?!" Oakley yelled out in a slight hint of fear. "It looked like some sort of tower!"

Annie looked around and gave out a very good reason, "We're six thousand feet off the ground! How is it possible to be something so tall in the middle of the forest!?"

As they faced the ruined tower once more Oakley gazed upon one of the lighted windows. She saw a man, not just any man, an evil man with psychotic grin. Her body froze as if she was just struck by one of Regice ice beam.

Annie quickly noticed her sister in a state of shock so she decided to take over the controls. She steered clear of the tower and quickly head towards a small opening on the ground. A freak wind blew her away from her course and in moments she lost control of the ship. The computer screens were all turning red with the word 'warning' written all over it. The view Annie was looking were spinning around like crazy until they finally crashed. It was then… darkness engulfed them.

Ash could see some Mukuru birds flying away in fear. _"Did something just happen?"_ he thought. Ash stood up as the stars slowly reappeared by the clearing of the clouds. He could see several of them forming shapes of Pokemons which he giggled at. _"That one looks like Pikachu hehehe"_

Back at the campsite everyone were already hitting the sacks to catch up on some snooze. Misty however was not in the mood for sleep. Her mind was constantly worrying about Ash and Todd who went after him to find Dawn. The woods were quiet and the mist was thicker than before. _"I hope they're alright"_ she thought. She already tucked in Togepi in her sleeping bag.

It was then she had a bright idea.

She lit up one of her candles and placed it on her portable stool. The small flicker of light should be enough to give out a glow. She hoped that Ash would be smart enough to follow the light this time. Once she made sure that the candle wouldn't go out by the wind, she hurried back to her sleeping bag and went straight sleep.

Dawn and Todd were already in dreamland when the moon lit up. Ash on the other hand was still awake. He couldn't sleep, heck he wasn't even tired from everything that's been happening. The boy felt like he was top of the world and was even ready to take on anything anyone threw at him. Just when he was about to force himself to sleep a growl came upon his ears.

Ash quickly turned towards the forest and spotted a Houndoom in full armor glaring at him it was the same one that attacked them a few days earlier. Dawn and Todd woke up from the unusual roar and jumped out of their sleeping positions immediately. Pikachu, Pocchama and Mimidoru all came out and prepared for battle. Ash was told how all of them fought this Houndoom and how tough it was. He was just about to order an attack until… he noticed something was wrong.

The Houndoom was limping on one leg and it seemed to have been wounded more severely than before. There were wounds and bite marks all over it. This was more than enough evidence that this Pokemon had just been through a fight of its life.

Without another thought Ash leaped over towards the wounded Pokemon and began treating its wound with a first aid kit he managed to borrow from Tracey. The first thing Ash did was take off all the heavy armor that Houndoom was carrying. He began patching and cleaning every wound on its torso and stopped all the bleeding. The Pokemon's breathing was becoming irregular and its pulse was weakening. Todd knew that the Houndoom would not be able to survive but Ash would take none of it. He didn't care if that Pokemon attacked him or not, no living thing deserves to live this way.

Ash tried the best he could to sew up the Houndoom's wounds but it was no luck. The Pokemon moaned in pain as Dawn tried to relax it. "Don't worry, everything is going to be ok. Just don't die on me!" Ash shed out a single tear from his eye. The Houndoom looked at the boy and gave a few more moans before it closed its eyes.

"Hey… HEY, wake up Houndoom! Don't die on me! You can't die so wake up!" Ash pulled the Pokemon up to his chest and pleaded it to open its eye

"Ash…" Dawn tried to calm the boy down but Ash wasn't going to accept this, "NO! I won't allow this! There has to be a way! Come on Todd, give me a hand!" Todd arrived but knew that there was nothing that could be done.

"Ash, it's too late! There's nothing more we can do right now. The nearest Pokemon center is a two days trip from here!" Ash let out a stream of tears fall out its face. He had never witness a Pokemon's death before and hell he wasn't gonna start now "But there just has to be a way! I won't let Houndoom go… I just… can't"

"Ash, please… we've done all that we can… let it go…" Dawn tried to get the boy to let it go but it was no use.

The young trainer did not reply to her. He just held the wounded/patched up Houndoom in his arms and cried. He didn't care if the Pokemon was evil or good, a life is a life and there's nothing more important than that. Todd and Dawn took pity of the boy and decided to leave him alone for awhile. Just when they were about to get up and leave, Ash's right arm began to glow blue. Ash noticed this and decided to take off his arm-length gloves.

His tattoos were glowing and he could feel a strange power surging from within his body. Ash was just as surprise as the other two but for some reason… he could understand what was going on. He quickly placed his right arm on the Houndoom and in mere moments the Pokemon glow with a bright golden light. There was a long pause after that. Todd and Dawb waited as if they knew something big was about to happen… and it did. The Houndoom slowly opened its eyes and felt itself coming back to life. Ash took out the bandages and noticed all the wounds on its body was gone… every last one of them.

The Houndoom still felt a little stiff after what just happened but it was so grateful that it gave Ash a lick on the face. "Hey, cut it out, that tickles hahahaha!"

Todd and Dawb were left at awed by this as they tried to input all the info down into their brains. That power Ash just used looked a lot similar to a recovery technique. Was it even possible? Who knows… but heck… who cares?


	19. A Family Sticks Together

**Chapter 19: A Family Sticks Together**

After that recent phenomenon back at the cliff Todd and Dawn still couldn't believe what Ash just did. The Houndoom he healed went into his Pokeball without any resistance and was quickly teleported back to professor Oak's lab. Ash knew that the Pokemon would be in good hands back at home but now they had other things to worry about. How the heck were they gonna find a way out of the forest?

The mist was still thick and the rain kept pouring down on them. The rain comes and goes as it pleases but the mist stayed behind as if it didn't want them to leave. Ash finally got impatient with the fog and decided to risk it. The three of them would now traverse the woods in small hopes to find their friends. "Alright guys, stick close together or we might get lost in this place" Ash extended his hand to Dawn which she reluctantly took. Todd was the last on the line.

"_Ash's hand is so warm… I've never felt anything like it before"_ Dawn began going through her train of thoughts, _"If this is what Ash's Pokemons feel everyday then I have to envy them"_

Back at the main camp, Birch was awakened by a strange noise that bugged him since last night. He turned around to see what was making that ridiculous sound but before to his surprise… it was a Magneton. "A Magneton… here? I must be hallucinating" Birch rubbed his eyes and took a closer look at the Pokemon. It was indeed a Magneton and in the flesh…… well technically speaking its steel or iron or… well you get the idea!

The others always woke up a few minutes after the Magneton appeared. The Pokemon floated and gaze at each of them. Suddenly it began starring towards the east. The others looked at where it was looking and when the lightning struck for a brief second… it appeared. Everyone saw it as clear as day. With just a single millisecond of the sight the image was implanted into their heads like an irremovable data. They all saw the tower…

"Did you guys see that?!" Misty broke out the silence. Everyone nodded in agreement but said nothing, they were still in a moment of shock of what they had just witnessed. A few moments later the Magneton approach Birch and gave some sort of gesture to him.

"What is it saying?" Max was slightly curious about the Magneton

"I think it wants us to follow it" Ivy tried to translate the gesture the Pokemon was giving out. The Magneton nodded and quickly traversed through the woods. Birch didn't think of anything else so he quickly grabs his backpack and followed that Pokemon to wherever it may lead. "Professor, wait for us! It's too dangerous to travel! Professor? Professor!" Ivy quickly trailed behind her partner and was then followed by the rest of the gang.

Birch followed that electrical Pokemon through the thickest part of the forest. It was first lushing with green and nearly blossoming flowers until the green forest ended. Birch soon fell into a puddle of dirty slimy mud and got his outfit messed up. However… that was the least of his problems. The moment Ivy and the others finally caught up… their eyes were awed by the amazing historical structure that stood before them. None of them could say anything that could describe what they were feeling but for some reason Brock were able to recover, "That must be the second tallest thing I've ever seen!" he lied. The tower was actually taller than three battle towers combined. However, one thing puzzled them: How could something so tall stand there without being noticed? It was actually tall enough to be seen in Fortree town!

After recovering from the fall, Birch immediately got up and ran up towards the tower. The land around the tower seemed odd though. Though the area that the gang just came from was lush with trees and beautiful meadows, the land that surrounded the tower seemed to be… dying. It was as if the tower was sucking away all the energy from the earth itself. The whole gang followed Birch and tried to stop him from doing anything reckless but the swamp just seemed to slow them down.

When Birch finally got to the main entrance he took out his P-wave detector and began scanning the tower in front of him. The readings were off the charts just as he expected. The professor smiled and yelled out to Ivy, "Hey Ivy, I think we might've just hit out conclusion! The psychic waves are off the charts! You gotta come and see this!"

"Professor, wait (puff puff puff) You really have to slow down" Ivy panted towards the ground until she inhaled from her nose. The smell of the swamp was horrible! It was no wonder why there weren't any Pokemons around. A little sniff of this place could knock a kid unconscious, in fact… Max just fainted on Tracey's back.

It wasn't long until Brock told them to get into the tower to get away from the smell. May and Tracey carried Max into the tower along with the others. The smell inside was way better than the swamp. It was a bit damp and humid but it certainly was roomy. The main gate was locked tight with a giant log that could only be moved by at least two dozen giant Pokemons so they snuck in by a broken part of the wall. The place was indeed a mess. There was a spiral stair that seemed to go on forever towards the top of the tower but since this place was so run down it had several gaps between them.

Brock decided to camp out here for the… night? That can't be right it was still morning! Richie and Duplica looked out the window on the second floor and saw the sun clearly but it wasn't as bright as before. It seemed dim and darker than usual as if the sun was afraid to shower the tower with its powerful rays. This was quite disturbing for everyone except for Birch. The professor was more focused on how he was going to get to the top. If the story he read from the history book was right then the king's magical staff would be on the top floor!

"Oh no you don't mister! We're having breakfast and that's final!" Ivy pulled the chubby scientist down from the stair just as he was about to make it to the third floor. "Tracey, do you mind cooking something that would make this man go to sleep for once? He could use the rest"

"If he could cook something like that then I'd recommend it to Ash" Misty tried to get a joke off to get their worries off Ash for awhile. Tracey let out a sweardrop off his face,

**(Outside the Wizard's Tower)**

While the gang set up camp inside the tower a pair of Team Rocket managed to land safely on the swamp ground not far from the tower. Annie was still carrying Oakley on her lap, it seemed like she was hit by a psychic attack or something. "Darn, this place smells like a thousand Muks put together. Hey sis, what's gotten into you? Sis? Come on wake up! (no reply) Oh great! (sees the tower) Hmm… maybe I could get some shelter in there" Annie quickly gave her little sister a ride on her shoulders and made her way towards the tower. Just then… she realized that she was now in a puddle of mud, "You owe me a new outfit when this is over Oakley!"

**(Back in the Tower)**

After the gang had finally settled inside the tower and of course after a quick breakfast, Birch immediately took the liberty of being the first to explore the ruins. He was so sure that this was the tower of the wizard Kear and he believed that the Pokemon king's staff was just beyond these stairs. Even though his determination to get there was great, the spiral stairs wasn't gonna make it easy. The steps the gang had to take were extremely dangerous and most parts of the stairs were either destroyed or damaged.

Finally reaching the 87th floor (Max counted) they decided to take a break from the never ending climbing. Brock had finally settled things with Professor Ivy so he doesn't do go into a state of depression like he'd normally do. Brock was too tired to cook so he decided to just have a little snack along the way.

Just when things finally settled down, a rumbling came from below. Richie and Anabel looked down the parapet and noticed that something was climbing up the stairs in a different manner. "It's a Kabutops!" Richie yelled out to his friends. But before any of them could react the Kabutops leaped across the spiral stairs and began attacking them.

Brock immediately got up and told the others to run. He wasn't able to bring any of his heavy Pokemons because the support planks on the tower would surely collapse. "Come on everyone, run to the top floor!"

Drew stayed behind with Richie and Anabel to fight off the Kabuto. Sparky came along with Zippo. Absol was summoned with Masquerain while Anabel chose her Abra and Espeon. The Kabutops glared at his opponent and smirked. "Sparky, use iron tail! Zippo, use flame thrower!" Richie yelled out his orders. Anabel followed behind, "Abra, Espeon, use psychic attack!" she was now yelling out her orders rather than using her telekinesis. "Absol, use razor wind! Masquerain, follow behind for support!" Drew came up last and prepared to fight. The Kabutops lived up to its name of being one of the most agile Pokemon there is in the world by dodging several of the attacks at such an enclosed space. Richie knew this would be bad but he wasn't gonna back down now. Drew and Anabel agreed and decided to make their stand here.

Brock and the rest of the gang could hear struggle going on from below. He told them not to look back and keep on running. They didn't know how long they've been running until they finally stopped on the 160th floor. The floor they were on was a little different from the rest of the floors. This level had statues on it, but not just ordinary statues, Pokemon statues!

The gang settled down and rest for awhile on that creepy floor. Max pulled out his last bag of chips and shared it with the others. They were having an uneasy feeling about this whole wizard's tower thing and were getting restless. After a few minutes of taking in some rations they finally cooled down. "Hey guys, take a look at this!" Max yelled out to the others, "It's a statue of a Charizard!" everyone looked at the impressive work of art but something about the statue seemed oddly amissed.

"Why does it look so… sad?" said May.

Even Tracey was impressed with the work. His sketches were made in pencil but to carve a perfect realistic size of a Charizard was a thousand times more difficult than a drawing. He was inspired by this and even considered going through masonry (that's the art of carving stones)

As the gang observed each statue closely, they began to realize that it wasn't really far off from the real Pokemons in real life. However… just when Duplica was taking a stroll through the floor… a single particular statue frightened her to near shock. It was a statue of a… Steelix.

Brock immediately rushed to her aid, "Are you alright Duplica?"

"Yeah, I'm fine… I was just caught off guard" she said with a half smile

"You shouldn't move too much" said Misty, "Your still haven't fully recovered from the fight with Regirock"

Brock agreed with her as well, "I agree with Misty. It's only been a few days since you left the hospital in Oldale town and the doctor said not to take things too far"

"Ok but I must say that this Steelix looks so real"

Max gave out a hearthy laugh, "Don't be silly, it's an art work just like the rest of these statues (leans on the statue) See? It's nothing more than cold…… steel? (Steelix begins to move and roar!) WHAAAAA!!"

"Everybody, run for the higher levels!" Brock immediately got his companions to go even higher up the tower of Kear. They ran through the spiral stairs again and again until Misty finally had enough, "Misty, what are you doing?! Get over here quick!"

"No Brock, that Steelix will tear this place apart if I don't stop it now! Take Togepi and don't worry, I'll catch up with you guys later!" Misty gave her Togepi one last kiss on the head before going into battle. "Alright ya big chunk of metal, come and get me!"

**(Back in the woods)**

Ash and the other two were just running through the woods when suddenly they heard a roar coming from the east. "That sound… what was it?" he uttered out but Dawn and Todd were as clueless as he was. They decided to follow the sound of the roar and hoped that it wasn't a man eating monster.

After a few minutes of running Ash tumbled into a large basket which had some food in it. "Huh? What is this thing?" Ash said to no particular

"Isn't this… a Meowth balloon?" Dawn asked to no one in particular

Todd then realized who it belonged to, "This must be Team Rocket's balloon!" suddenly, a roar came from in from the distance, which sent the birds flying off in different directions.

Sensing great danger about his friends, Ash decided to take the baloon, "Well we might as well take it! Cyndaquil I choose you! (Cyndaquil appears) Cyndaquil, use your flamethrower and try to bring this balloon up with hot air!"

The little fire breathing Pokemon immediately took position and began blowing hard. The balloon engine wasn't installed yet so they had to rely on Pokemon power. The balloon lifter off a minute after Cyndaquil came. Once Ash and his friends were on air they immediately spotted the wizard's tower not far off the mountains. It was also in the direction of where the roar was coming from.

"Come on guys, let's go to that tower!"

"Shouldn't we go back to camp first?" Dawn recommended

"Brock, Misty and the others should be in that tower"

"How do you know?!" Todd was beginning to think that Ash was becoming psychic

"I don't, it's just a feeling! Just trust me on this"

Todd and Dawn nodded and began adjusting the balloon to move, however it wasn't going fast enough for Ash. "Alright… Noctowl, I choose you! (Noctowl appears) Hey Noctowl, I need you to pull as towards that tower" Ash quickly wraps a thick rope around Noctowl and ordered it to use super speed. The balloon was now going faster than a normal car but this was just enough to satisfy Ash need for speed.

Back on the ground, two late teens woke up from their slumber.

"Hey Jesse, where did we put the balloon?" James asked his partner

"Right over…… here?" she pointed at an empty plain area

"Oh that's good. This you install something to make it invisible?"

"Uh… no"

Meowth finally concluded, "This could only mean one thing… WE'VE BEEN ROBBED!!!"

**(At the Wizard's Tower ground floor)**

Annie was finally able to bring her sister inside the tower but with a price, "My outfit is ruined!!!" she yelled out as she dropped her sister on the ground head first. Oakley finally came back into conscious and scanned the room around her. "What the? Where am I Annie?" she said confused.

"In the tower you nearly crashed on you idiot! You really had me worried there for a second" she replied with her usual annoyed tone. "Anyway, what happened to you back on the ship? You were out cold for a whole day now you know!"

"I don't… know. The last thing I remember was seeing a face then… nothing" Oakley tried to describe what she could scrap out of her brain but sadly she couldn't remember anything. But before she could recall anything else… a slight feminine voice came up from behind with the squeak of an Articuno. "Perhaps I can help you there…" it said.

Just when Annie and Oakley turned around to see their new company Articuno shot them with an ice beam but fortunately those two sisters were agile. "And you are?" Annie said out after landing gracefully on the ground. "My name is not of any importance but you may call me Rosa" she replied with a grin.

Oakley managed to recover from the ice beam and quickly look back at Rosa, "Well it looks like our trip wasn't a waste after all sis. That Articuno would fetch a good price with Giovanni" she then called out Ariados and prepared it for battle. Annie let out her Espeon as she knows that a legendary bird like Articuno would be a hard one to beat with just one Pokemon.

Rosa frowned at the two sisters and prepared for combat. "Ha! You humans are all the same. Using Pokemons to satisfy your own selfish needs. You disgust me. Metagross come out and show them your powers! (Metagross appears) Metagross, hyper beam!"

"Oakley, I think she wants to fight" said Annie with a smirk

Oakley replied in kind, "You're right sis, but be careful, that armor it's wearing is thicker than our skin. Ariados, use your web and stick that Metagross in its place!"

"Espeon, use your quick attack and don't give it time to recover!" the two Pokemons did just what their master ordered and begun their assault. Rosa watched as her Metragross gets pounded bit by bit but she wasn't worried. "This is a joke. Their Pokemons would barely last a day in my training. It's a mystery how these two are even to stay alive till now" she observed each of Espeon and Ariados's attack but none of them were strong enough to knock her Metagross out, "Metagross, reflect!" the Metagross used it reflect ability and blocked all physical attacks that came into contact but this was just what Oakley was expecting, "Ariados, use your life drain ability!" Metagross soon felt numb and slowly fell to the ground but it was far from finished.

Rosa was quite surprised by Oakley's talents and thought of them as worthy opponents, "Oh… I'm impressed. For weak attack powers you make up with tactics. But I have no time to play with you. Metagross, ancient power!" Metragross glew bright and was now twice as strong as before. "Metagross, hyper beam!"

Annie, Oakley and their Pokemon leaped to the air just in time to dodge the deadly attack by Metagross but when they touched the ground Articuno froze them with its ice beam. Rosa smirked in victory. "Tsk tsk tsk… and here I thought Hagard was a genius. The idiot could barely last ten minutes on the battlefield. (explosion) Hmm? That must be Kear's lackies doing all the dirty work as usual. (explosion x 2) Well we certainly can't have them stay here. Alakazam, come forth! (Alakazam appears) Wipe out their memories with amnesia then send them to wherever they came from" with a single strain of orders the armored psychic Pokemon obeyed and wiped off the memories of Annie and Oakley.

After Alakazam teleported the two sisters to who-knows-where Rosa walked to her Articuno with a calm and collected look on her face. _"I don't sense him anywhere… perhaps he is just out of reach"_

**(Wizard's Tower 85th floor)**

Richie and Anabel managed to fight back the Kabutops but were pushed back two levels down. Drew held his ground on the 87th floor but Kabutops kept pounding his Absol and Masquerain. "Sparky, cover Zippo with your thunder bolt attack! Anabel, I'll buy you time. Go and see if Drew is ok!" Anabel nodded and quickly rushed up with Abra and Espeon. "Alright, Zippo, use flame thrower again!" Zippo unleashed its fire power on the Kabutops but it barely flinch. _"Dang it! This is impossible! I can't beat Kabutops unless… that's it!"_ Richie popped out an idea from the back of his head and quickly summoned out Rose. (Rose is Richie's Taillow if you don't know) "Rose, use your double team but be careful. Kabutops isn't an opponent to mess around!"

Without another word Rose soared through the parapet and begun its rain of attacks on Kabutops. With its speed nearly equaling the Kabutops Rose was able to dodge all of its attacks. This however was only a distraction to buy time for Richie and his friends.

On the 87th floor, Anabel arrived to see Drew with his Absol badly wounded but nothing critical. "Where's Richie?" Drew asked as he returned Absol into his Pokeball, "He's fighting the Kabutops right now but we should hurry and follow the others!" it was then she realized that Drew sprained his knee and was unable to move without support. Anabel carried him by his arm and started walking towards the higher floors.

**(Wizard's Tower 160th or so… floor)**

Misty was now battling Steelix with Politoed, Starmie and Staryu. Since she had three water Pokemons Steelix fell with barely a fight to match her wits. She congratulated her Pokemons and began running towards the higher levels. Just when she was about to get up the spiral stair she heard a familiar voice echoing from the outside, "Whoa! Noctowl, watch where you're going! Look out!" said the voice. But that was impossible. She was too high above the ground to even hear the birds squeak until suddenly a balloon broke through the walls making her tumble down.

"Ow… nice landing Noctowl" Ash returned his owl Pokemon to his Pokeball and climbed off only to be seen by the one last person he was expecting.

"Ash? Ash, is that you?!"

"Misty? Misty, it is you! I'm so glad so safe! But… where are the others?"

"Richie and Drew are fighting Kabutops with Anabel. Brock and the others went on ahead to the higher levels but I don't know how far this place goes"

"Hello! A little help here?!" Todd was waving his hand to get some attention from the two.

Ash quickly went back to Dawn and Todd and pulled them out of the balloon. Ash pulled the balloon basket in so just in case they would want to make a quick getaway.

"Drew and Richie can handle themselves, but if there are more of these Pokemons then I'm afraid Brock might not be enough to battle them all. Come on, let's go find them!"

Ash took the arm of Misty and dragged her towards the spiral stairs. Even though this was Ash's first time of being in this tower, it felt familiar to him like some sort of Dejavu or something like that. He knew which route to take and every non lethal trap that were laid in the area. The four of them could here struggles from below and beloved that Richie and the others would be strong enough to take down one powerful Pokemon.

**(Wizard's Tower top floor whoa…)**

Birch and the rest of the gang finally made it up the highest level of the tower. Brock and Tracey were worried about Misty but May reassured them. Since Misty is a water Pokemon trainer there's no way a Steelix could over power her. After taking a short breather at the top floor, Birch stood at the center of the room and was at awe. Everyone else in the group had the same expression. The room they were standing on was indeed the last floor of the tower and Ivy even called it a miracle for them to reach the top in just a few hours and it was barely even time for lunch.

Brock had an uneasy feeling about the place. It was oddly darker than usual and even the sun doesn't want to show its face to this place. Birch took out his flashlight and scanned around the room. Ivy came up from behind and began to whisper in his ears.

"Professor did you…"

"Yes, I noticed it too" he cut her off, "The Pokemons that came after us, they were indeed in legends as they say. First Magneton then Kabutops and now Steelix! This could only mean that the wizard must've existed. And if he did exist then the Pokemon king as well!"

Birch was barely able to control his emotions as his theory might just be true. He scanned the room some more hoping to find something that could prove his work.

However, Ivy was more worried about the kids they left behind. Sure they had Pokemons with them but the Pokemons that were guarding this tower must've been at least a million years old! That could either mean they were too old to battle or they could've possessed a lot of experience during the years… only time can tell.

The gang searched the room endlessly until Max came upon a strange statue. He couldn't tell what shape the statue was because of the dark, "Hey professor, can you point your flashlight over here?" Birch shed some light on where Max was pointing and what they saw shocked them to the bones. It was the statue of a human! "This is it!" Birch quivered with excitement tingling in his bones, "This is the wizard Kear! It's just like in the book! He really did exist!" Birch handed the flashlight to Brock and made his way to the statue.

The statue was an image of a long bearded man wearing a robe holding one staff in one arm and a stone big on the other.

Birch didn't care of his actions and quickly removed the staff from its holder, "Haha! I thought I'd never find it but here I am holding the wizard's staff! Look Ivy, it's just like in the stories!" the man was yelling with pride over an old looking staff. Brock didn't know if they should be happy for him or call the ambulance to get the man into an asylum.

A few moments later Ash and the other three finally reached the top floor of the tower. May and Brock noticed them, "Ash, you're ok!" but Ash ignored the statement Brock gave out. The moment his eyes gazed upon the staff Birch was holding… he began to see a white light enveloping around it, "Professor, let got of that staff right now!" Ash yelled out to the top of his lunges. No one knew why Ash was so worked up about but since they never saw him so angry before they just stepped back.

Birch was wondering why Ash told him to let go but before he could conjure up a solution the staff began to glow brighter than ever. Birch tried to let go of the staff but his hands were glued to it like magic. A swarm of white specters began to surround him and before he even had a chance to yell for help, a sudden darkness took over his body. Everyone shielded their eyes from the sudden burst of light but lucky for Brock he was able to see perfectly on what was happening to Birch.

The old professor knelt to the ground with smoke rising from his body. He stood up and glared at everyone who stood in the room. "So… a fool managed to set me free after all" he said in a cold dark tone. Ivy approached him, "Professor Birch, are you ok?" "Birch? Who is this Birch? And who are you? And what are you doing in my tower?!!" Birch took his staff and swung it at Ivy. Brock caught her just in time.

"Professor! What's gotten into you?!" Brock yelled at him which was only turned with greater anger and a lot of killing intent

**"How dare you raise your voice against me! I am Kear, ruler of everything that I see! You will bow down to me knave!"**

"Everyone, get back! That's not Birch anymore!" she waved off her hand to get everyone to back away

**"Silence!"** Kear/Birch yelled out, **"You dare to storm the sanctity of my home! (grabs the stone book from the statue) Na ra mity kwo ta! (Magneton appeared) What? Where are my other servants?!"**

Suddenly a voice came from the spiral stair case, "Ash, Brock, May, everyone! You're ok!" it was Richie, Drew and Anabel.

"Richie, are you guys alright?"

Anabel could be seen behind the boy along with Drew, "Don't worry about us. What happened to professor Birch?"

"If I'm not mistaken, he looks like he's being possessed by Kear himself!" Brock suggested

"What?!" was their only reply

The evil wizard who was in posessed of the professor let out an evil laugh that would even make the fiercest Pokemon cower in fear, **"Ha! Very well… one Pokemons should be enough to take care of you"**

Ash wasn't gonna standby and let that wizard get away with that insult but Brock was now even more angry than him. "Leave the Magneton to me Ash! You and the others try and get that staff away from the professor! Onix, Crobat, Steelix, I choose you!"

"So you have Pokemons as well? (giggle) You fool, I am more than a million years old! Your Pokemons are nothing compared to my servants! Magneton, use thundershock!" The Magneton unleashed a wave of static electricity at Steelix but Brock's Pokemon didn't even flinch, "Looks like you don't have as much experience as a million year old man! Onix use tail swing, Steelix, wrap attack!"

With a swing of Onix's tail, Magneton went soaring through the room at high speed right at Steelix which eventually wrapped itself around Magneton. "Alright Crobat, use super sonic and knock that Magneton out!" Crobat flew in front of Magneton and charged up its sonic powers when suddenly, "Magneton, tri attack!" the trapped Pokemon unleashed three laser beam from its eyes and flung Crobat right through the roof but it wasn't knocked out yet.

"Good… now to finish you off with (Max and Tracey jumped out from behind) What the?! Let go of me you knaves! Do you have any idea who I am?! Release me this instance!" Kear/Birch was swinging the two annoyance away from him but to no avail.

"Come on everyone! We need to separate him and that staff!" Ash commanded which his friends complied to

The whole gang (except Brock and Ivy) came running towards the professor and tried to remove his hand from the wizard's staff but no matter how hard they tried Birch wouldn't let go. They all struggled a few more minutes until Kear had enough. He unleashed some sort of shockwave to the gang which sent them flying towards the wall. "I have had enough of this nuisance! I will finish you off right here and now!!!"

Just when he was about to cast some sort of spell, May rushed in and tried to grab the staff away but Kear easily knocked her out, "Hey you leave my sister alone!" Max came running and threw a stone right at the wizard. This gave Brock an opening. "Onix, grab him!" in a mere moment, Birch was wrapped by the stone Pokemon, "Alright Crobat, get that staff off of him!" Crobat pulled the staff with its claws as hard as it could but Kear was too persistent to let go. It was then Ash came in and gave a little ounce of strength to help pull it off. A few seconds later the staff finally broke free from his clutches.

Without second thought, Ash lifted the staff above his head and smacked it right to the ground breaking the crystal that was centered on top into millions of pieces.

A specter came out of professor Birch's body with a defining roar, "NOOOOOO!!" and with that last scream of regret everything went silent. No one dared to make a sound after what just happened. Ash and the others panted heavily on the ground. Brock returned his Pokemons after a fierce battle against the Magneton. Ivy went straight to Birch to see if he was back to his old self again. "Professor Birch, are you alright? Professor? Professor, wake up!" the old coot slowly lifted his eye lids. His visions were blurry and his ears were numb. He could hear the sound of silence ringing in like an explosion popped out of his ear. "Oh… my head... Ivy?" his visions finally focused, "What happened?"

Everyone let out a sigh of relief to know that the professor was back to his old self. The Pokemons that were guarding the tower mysteriously vanished without a trace. Perhaps now they could finally find rest in the next world. Guarding an empty tower for a million years can really exhaust anyone.

Just when everyone had enough strength to stand up again the white haired girl appeared out of nowhere with her Articuno and snatched the staff off Ash in a blink of an eye. Anabel recognized the girl in an instant and her anger quickly rose up from the bottom of her heart. "Be careful everyone. This is the girl that stole my Pokemons!"

"The name is Rosa! I am one of the guardians of Pokemon! I will not be degraded to a simple girl!" Rosa quickly got off her Articuno and let out three of her Pokemons, "Alakazam, Metagross, Flygon come forth!" the three Pokemons she named came out of their Pokeballs with their own will in full armor. Rosa smirked and took a look at the staff she was holding. She then noticed that the crystal on top was destroyed, "Blast! That's gonna be a set back" she said quietly to herself. While she was inspecting the staff she barely noticed that the other Trainers had unleashed their Pokemons to fight her.

"You wish to battle against me? Interesting… let's see what your trained Pokemons can do! Alakazam, hypnosis!" the armored Alakazam immediately used its powers against Pikachu but Ash personally trained Pikachu to resist all psychic attacks. "That's not going to work that easily! Pikachu hit it with a thunder bolt attack!" Pikachu shrugged away the hypnosis and let out a small stream of electricity at Alakazam, "Metagross deflect it!" Metagross quickly jumped in and used it deflect shield to block Pikachu's thunder bolt.

It was then Brock decided to call in his Onix to aid the battle. Richie sent out his Sparky who was the only Pokemon in his arsenal who still had the strength to battle. "Alright, Onix, use tail whip to knock Metagross out of the way!" Brock ordered, Richie came in next, "Sparky, use iron tail on Alakazam!"

Metagross and Alakazam were knocked to the other end of the room with one big slam but they weren't finished just yet. It was then Ash asked his companions a favor "Go easy on them you guys! Those two are Anabel's Pokemon so don't take it too far"

"Alright we'll do!" was their reply

"Flygon, use hyper beam and set them on fire!" Rosa commanded her third Pokemon. Flygon hovered right above Onix and let out a stream of fire against it. "Oh no, Onix, dodge it!" but it was too late. Onix was smacked right on the face with a fire of 200 degrees and fell right on the ground… however… it was far from being defeated. "Alright, my turn! Sparky, use thunder burst!" Sparky charged up and unleashed several waves of electricity on Flygon which caused it to paralyze for a few minutes, "Hey, you learned my thunder wave technique!" Ash complimented his friend with a smile, "Right, Pikachu, use iron tail assault!" Pikachu leaped in front of Flygon and gave it several iron tail blows on its torso.

"_Well now this is certainly interesting"_ Rosa first thought that the fight was gonna be a quick victory but then she realized that the gang was much stronger than she anticipated. "Alakazam, psychic wave!" Alakazam immediate got up and used its psychic powers against Pikachu and sent it flying towards Ash. Ash caught his little yellow friend and slammed his back against the wall, "You alright Pikachu?" (Pika!)

Richie came in and retaliated, "Alright Sparky, use agility and get behind Flygon!" Sparky disappeared from its position and suddenly appeared right behind Flygon, "A back attack, how typical. Metagross, tackle it!" Metagross popped out of the ruined wall and rammed itself against Sparky.

"_Darn it. As long as those Alakazam and Metagross are on defense then we won't be able to do anything against Flygon. That Articuno is also gonna be a problem if we don't act fast"_ Ash was trying to devise a strategy to battle against such a perfect combination. (Pika pikapi pikachu!) Pikachu was trying to give his master some support, "That's it!" he yelled out. He then whispered into Pikachu's ear, "Alright Pikachu… absorb" the yellow mouse began charging up its energy with the electricity flowing in the air.

Rosa noticed this and thought, _"That must be the attack Hagard and Chaucer warned me about. I have to move quickly"_ she then ordered her Articuno, "Articuno, use ice beam on that Pikachu!" just when the beam was about to smack on Ash and his Pikachu, a blur got in between them. Who in his right mind would willingly face an ice beam attack?... well……. Ash would've.

It was then Ash noticed that it was Anabel who leaped out to save him. She had a shield that she took out from the wall of the room. Her hands had frostbites but she didn't mind. She wasn't gonna let someone rescue her Pokemons without her help, "Anabel, are you alright?!" Ash was shocked to see her hands with frostbites. The shield may have blocked the attack but the coldness still went through her skin like knife on butter. "Err… don't worry Ash, you guys aren't the only ones that are fighting. Espeon, psychic attack!" Anabel's Espeon jumped out and used its psychic powers on Alakazam. Two psychic Pokemons battle out their wits with their brains and see who's better. This gave Ash an idea! "Anabel, keep Alakazam busy! Brock, can you keep Metagross with Onix?" Pikachu was able to charge up but was still not enough to use his ultimate attack

"I can try! Alright Onix, use your wrap attack on Metagross and take him down!" Onix leaped out from its position and grabbed Metagross with its body. "Good work Onix! Alright Ash, I got Metagross covered!" Ash nodded and prepared to fight. With both Alakazam and Metagross kept at bay, Flygon was now vulnerable to attack but this did not mean that it couldn't defend itself.

"_They're strong! It's no wonder why Hagard lost to these humans. Their capabilities are far superior than mine. I should've taken them down one by one"_ Rosa was now regretting her actions but the word surrender was not in her dictionary. She summoned out Tauros and Pidgeot and moved in for the attack until suddenly, "Blaziken, over heat!" a stream of fire burst right in front of them making an impassable shield. "May!" Ash and Richie yelled out it unison. "Keep the numbers even that's what I say! Leave those two to me Ash. You and Richie deal with the Flygon" the two boys nodded and let May handle the rest.

While the rest of gang watch as the battle unfolds in front of them, Max began to hear cracks and creeks coming from the wall. Misty let out her Pokemons to keep control of the fire, Duplica did the same with her Dittos who morphed into Staryu and Starmie.

Ash moved in against Flygon with his Pikachu, "Alright Pikachu, use your iron tail!" Pikachu leaped up and soon its tail began to glow, "Flygon, fire blast!" Rosa ordered her Pokemon but this was exactly what Ash wanted her to do, "Now, Pikachu, use boomerang tail!" Pikachu began spinning horizontally and deflected the fire with amazing speed. Rosa was caught by surprise and soon found her Flygon knocked to the ground. However… it was not unconscious.

"Sparky, don't give it time to breath, use thunder bolt!" Sparky jumped onto mid air and smacked Flygon with another thunder bolt attack which stunned it for awhile. "Great work Sparky, now use agility and move in with an iron tail!" Sparky was moving so fast that no human eye could catch but Rosa had other methods to counter an invisible move like that, "Flygon, hyper beam 360!" Flygon let out a blast from its mouth and spin around. The beam eventually caught up with Sparky and knocked it back to the ground. "Now Flygon, finish it with a body slam!" Flygon flew high and dropped itself towards Sparky. The little yellow mouse was about to get crushed until, "Piplup, bubble beam!" "Absol, razor wind attack!" Flygon was flung a little off Sparky but was still able to get up. "Dawn, Drew?!" Ash yelled out.

The Shinou girl wink back at him, "Leave that Flygon to us Ash, you go after that crazy lady!" Drew gave him a smirk, "We can't let you do all the fighting now can we?" Ash nodded and head towards Rosa with Richie by his side.

A few moments later Rosa, was now face to face with Richie and Ash. She was on the back of her Articuno. "You can't escape! Give yourself up and all the Pokemons you stole!" Ash gave her a fair warning, "Hmph! For a kid you sure have a lot of guts! But I got what I came for. I'll finish you off right here!" but just before she could order her Articuno, a telepathic communication stormed into her head.

"_Enough Rosa! I sent you on a simple retrieval mission, not on a tactical combat! If the pressure keeps building then his majesty won't last for much longer! Return now! That's an order!"_ with a simple twist of the brain the communication broke off.

Rosa sighed with disappointment, "Looks like I won't be finishing you off after all, humans. Flygon, its time to go!" Flygon immediately flew off the floor and began charging up its hyper beam. It then fired onto the support beam which caused the floor to fall. The cracks and creeks that Max heard was now echoing throughout the entire tower. The floor the gang was standing on quickly crumbled and began descending towards the surface at an incredible speed. The only thing Ash could see before falling was Flygon, Pidgeot and Rosa on Articuno's back. The only Pokemons that were able to fly were safe from crashing onto the ground.

As the whole gang plunge towards the surface, they returned all their Pokemons into their Pokeballs (except for those who don't want to be in Pokeballs) Ash threw a Pokeball to Tauros to make sure it didn't get hurt by the impact. Anabel took out two Pokeballs and allowed her previously owned Alakazam and Metragross in as well.

A minute had passed they began falling towards the ground. Ash held onto his little brother and close his eyes. Everyone was sure that this was the end for all of them.

It was then Ash hatched out a plan. "Duplica, bring out all of your Dittos quickly!" Duplica didn't hesitated to comply. Her entire family of Dittos were out and ready to follow her command. "Snorelax, I choose you! (Snorelax appears on the ground) Snorelax, go to sleep!" Snorelax looked up to its master and complied. Duplica got the idea and ordered, "Alright everyone! Turn into Snorelax, now!" every one of her Dittos immediately morphed into the lazy Pokemon and bounce harmlessly on the ground. The gang followed not far behind and landed safely on their giant bellies.

Even though they were safe and undamaged by the crash. The fall did take a lot of strength from out young heroes.

"Hey… we're ok!" Tracey gave out a jubilant cry of victory

"And we're alive!!"

With one last yell from Brock, the tower began to shake violently. The roof above began to plunge down towards them like a comet.

"We have to get out of here now!" Ivy yelled out to the gang and they quickly head out through the crack on the wall. Duplica recalled her Dittos and Ash recalled his Snorelax. They rushed out of the tower and kept running farther away. By the time they reached a hill on the other side of the swamp, the tower collapsed onto the ground, leaving nothing but a huge pile of stones behind.

Before any of them fell asleep from exhaustion… they looked up into the sky and saw Rosa… flying away on her Articuno with grace. Todd would've taken a picture of this event but sadly his camera broke during the fight.

And so another battle had gone unconcluded. Who are these White haired thieves of the world… and what are their plans? More importantly… what are their goals?! Who knows? Only time… can tell.


	20. Ready Set Stop!

**Chapter 20: Ready-Set-Stop!**

Ash slowly opened up his eyes as his body felt numb almost everywhere. He couldn't feel his arms, legs or even his torso. "Oh… what happened?" he managed to get his mouth to work. His eye lids were unusually heavy and for good reasons too. 1) He hasn't slept for the past twenty four hours 2) He just fell off a tower nearly ten thousand feet high 3) Is because he hasn't eaten anything since yesterday's breakfast.

"Ash?... Ash… Ash, wake up. Come on… wake up!... WAKE UP..." a voice kept ringing through his ear. Ash believed that it was a voice of an angel until his visions finally focused. The first thing he never thought to see. The orange haired girl Misty. "Ohhh… Misty… is that you?" the poor boy could barely even get his voice over to people's ears. Misty grabbed his face and smiled, "Wake up sleepy head!" she yelled out to him.

Ash woke up completely by her yell and moved out of his sleeping position. "Owwww… did you have to shout so loud Misty?" he rubbed his ear just to make sure it didn't go numb. Misty pouted her face as she held Togepi in her arms, "Well for you it's gonna take a blow horn just to wake you up. Come on, breakfast is ready"

The time was about half past nine in the morning. Ash was just about to eat when he noticed two scientists leaving.

"Oh professor Birch, are you ok?" Ash asked the old man, "Yes I'm fine Ash and so are the others" he replied with a slight smile, "My ears are kind of numb at the moment but I think it'll get better when Professor Ivy and I head back to Littleroot"

"Oh ok… sorry about the staff professor" Ash face slighty soured but Birch's face changed quickly from his cheery mood to a plague of guilt and sadness. "No Ash, I'm the one who should be sorry" he lowered his head in shame and said, "I put you and your friends in mortal danger because of my reckless pursuit of my own goals. I put your lives on the line and wasted three days of your journey. Things would've turned badly if you weren't around to help me. I hope Ivy and I can make it up to you and your friends"

The gang didn't really know what to say to the man. Birch was actually ready to go on his knees and beg for forgiveness, but his eyes suddenly widened when Ash tapped his left shoulder with hi usual trade mark smile, "That's ok professor. People make mistakes sometimes and become blind to everything else. That's the first thing I've learned before going on my Pokemon journey"

Brock was happy... no... he was proud to hear Ash say that, "Ash is right, we all made out own mistakes but it is with those mistakes that teaches us how to avoid it"

"Keep moving forward that's what I always say" Misty added holding her hand up high

Todd nodded and held out his hand onto his chest, "Yeah! Just like the time when Ash and I took a picture of that Articuno back in Johto! Don't ever give up on your goals and who know, you might just make it!"

The rest of the gang stood right next to each other and agreed in the same manner. This brought Birch the comfort he never knew existed. "Thank you… all of you… that's one lesson I will never forget (sob)"

With the man off to cry on his own happiness, Ivy turned to the gang to hand them a little reward, "Thank you" she said to them, "For helping us in this expedition" she turned her head to the crying professor "I never thought I'd get to see Birch in his usual self again. Here's something for your troubles" she took out a book from her bag and handed it over to Ash, "his is what cause the professor to go mad in the first place. I think it would be best if he never saw it again"

"Don't worry. I think my father would love to add this book in his collection" said May as she took the book from Ash.

With their goodbyes said, Birch and Ivy headed back to Littlroot town to give in their report but they promised the gang that they would definitely watch them in the Valmarian league.

After Ash and his friends finally finished breakfast, May butted in, "Alright Ash since we're almost in Petalburg city you might as well change into your disguise" the others agreed with May. They had enough of Ash's fans chasing them around the city which forces them to leave the town without a night's rest.

**(A ruin somewhere in the forest)**

A boy with silver hair walks the empty halls of a once proud temple silently in the day. The place was kept well hidden underneath several layers of woods. The splendid statues that stood in marvel at the front entrance were completely wrecked leaving nothing but bits of pieces of stone. The walls were now covered with decades of vines which now grew flowers and herbs both rare and common to human eyes.

The boy entered a small room which looked like some sort of altar. The room was completely sealed air tight leaving only the door and a small hole on the top of the room as a source of light. There were four pedestals each of them on one corner of the room all facing at the altar. The boy walked in and kicked a pebble towards the center of the room. There were two objects on the two of the pedestals. A necklace that bore the symbol of nobility and a gauntlet that bore the symbol of power. These two objects were neatly placed on each side of the room facing the altar.

It wasn't long until Rosa entered the room. It was noticeable that she was surprised to see the boy in the room, "Come to pay a visit to the king Sha-hear?" Rosa said jokingly. The boy who was now known as Sha-hear just shrugged and pushed her aside. Rosa took a few steps forward, "What's wrong? It's not like you to see the tomb of our king. I thought you hated this place"

"Be quiet…" Sha-hear said finally, "Did you bring what I asked for?" Rosa quickly pulled out the staff from her back and presented it to him on one knee. Sha-hear noticed the crystal that was supposed to be at the tip of the staff was missing, "Where is the crystal? If I wanted a staff made of wood I would've asked the chosens to make one!" Rosa was quite taken back by Sha-hear sudden anger. Suddenly, a voice came out from the darkness, "The crystal can be replaced… the staff is what's important now" It was Pallet himself.

"Pallet? I see that you are here" Sha-hear said in an almost scared tone. If it weren't for his calm and collected face you would think that he was actually afraid of the boy. "Give me the staff. I'll make another crystal myself" Sha-hear humbly complied and handed him the staff. It wasn't long until Rosa spoke up. "What of Hagard and Chaucer?"

Sha-hear turned his face to meet the girl's face and answered her question, "Chaucer is assembling his chosens at the northern lands and I have Hagard picking up some reinforcements from… our human friends" the last sentence caught Rosa's attention "Human?! What trechery is this!?" she was just about to draw out one of her Pokemons until Sha-hear gave out a killer look, "Calm yourself Rosa. I have no intentions of working with them but this gives us an opportunity to build an army for our king's return"

The girl cautiously placed the Pokeball back into her jacket and glared at her companion with a killing eye equal to his own, "I don't like this Sha-hear. Humans tend to backstab you when you least expect it"

"Oh don't worry" he began, "We'll make sure our weapons are ready before they even strike"

Pallet simply put the staff and the pieces of the crystal in a small bag and asnwered, "I trust your judgment Sha-hear. I'll work on the crystal immediately. It may take some time but in the mean while why don't you go look for the last relic. Sha-hear, you go. Rosa, I believe you still need time to find more chosens" the girl visibly flinched when his eyes turned to her "Um… yes… I shall" she was able to speak up before she left the room in fear.

Once the girl was out of sight, Sha-hear turned to the younger boy, "Our master's presence is still weakening. We'll have to do something to bide more time" Pallet was going to agree but he was already way ahead in planning, "Don't worry about Hsa, I've sent illusions to strengthen him"

"Are you certain that illusions can sustain him?" said Sha-hear not believing in such small powers, "Even with them pretending to be the council that would not be enough to hold the soul together" Chu/Pallet simply laughed at his worries, "That is why I created an extra illusion from our Pokemons psychic powers"

"An extra illusion?" the last statement caught his attention, "Who? The only ones who have strong ties to his majesty are you, Freya and… oh no…" he immediately knew what Chu/Pallet was talking about.

"Exactly…"

Sha-hear immediately blew out into a silent rage, "But to use that… that… that fiend is inhumane! We might risk exposing ourselves!"

"We aren't exactly humans now aren't we?" Chu/Pallet pointed out an obvious point as he returned the bag into his jacket, "I made him as real as the original thing. That should give us enough time to set up the ritual. Go… and find me that ring… NOW!"

**(At the Entrance of Petalburg City)**

"We're home!!" May yelled out to the top of her lunges as she had finally returned to where her Pokemon journey finally began. It seemed like only yesterday that she left the doors of her home to become a Pokemon coordinator. "Sis… wait for us!" Max moaned as the rest of the gang were still a few paces behind.

Petalburg hasn't really changed that much since Ash battled Norman Maple (May and Max's father and gym leader of Petalburg city) for the Balance badge. He didn't really have the time to go around shopping and playing games so he left on the next day to continue his journey.

"Wow, it's exactly the same ever since I left!" Ash stated out. He was now wearing fake glasses, a green short sleeve T-shirt and similar long pants. His hair was done by Drew himself to give him that nerdy look. After the minor details were given out… he looked almost identical to Max at the age of fourteen. "Do you really think no one recognize me in this outfit?" he asked May.

"Of course not silly. You look just like my brother so you won't draw any attention" Max then approach them, "Hey, are you saying that I'm not very noticeable?" he said in a creepy tone. May sweatdrop and apologized.

"Well, I guess there's only one way to find out!" Brock suggested and begun walking in with the rest of the gang. They headed toward May's home at the far side of the city but before heading to their destination, the gang decided to stop by the Pokemon center and have their Pokemons healed. That battle at Kear's tower really exhausted every last one of their Pokemons. Nurse Joy was surprised that all of their Pokemons needed treatment but was even more shock to see all the owners all beaten up to a pulp.

The gang sat down on the waiting bench while Drew made some phone calls to the docks. After a few minutes of calling sources and favors from his friends in the city Drew finally gave up, "Well guys, it looks like the earliest ship to Valmarian is three days away. We might as well stay at May's place until then"

May was thinking of refusing at first but then she remembered that her father built a new guest room a few days before she left for Olivine city. "Yeah sure, my dad has a spare room for guys to stay. Come on, we can just pick up the Pokemons later" the others agreed and the thought of a warm bed really did sound nice for once in a very long time. For weeks they've put against hard rock, sand and swampy soil since they weren't able to get rooms in hotels in other towns because of Ash's 'deadly-to-himself' fame.

Just as they left the Pokemon center in a hurry for a warm meal and a nice comfy bed, Ash noticed that Anabel's hands were still suffering from the frostbite from yesterday's battle. "Hey, Anabel, you might wanna see a doctor about that" but the Frontier Brain member declined, "Don't worry about it Ash, I'm sure it'll heal by the time we get to Valmarian" but the young trainer in disguise wasn't going to take it. He insisted upon going to the hospital and let the others go ahead. Misty looked back and decided to go with the two since Ash usually draws trouble when not supervised correctly…… well…… that's what Misty believe at least.

**(On board the Scarlet dining hall)**

Domino and Wendy were having a time of their lives. They invited Hagard in for a quick lunch with them so they would make him feel more… loose. "Come now 'silver hair' don't you want to eat anything?" Domino was trying to flatter the guardian with some luxurious meal ranging from salted pork to tasty steak. Hagard didn't even bother to lift his fork, "Don't be shy now, everything you see here is perfectly safe. We wouldn't poison you or have you backstab now would we" Wendy was sitting next to Domino on the other side of the table.

There was a short pause

"I must say, when you train a Pokemon, you really do 'train' them to the fullest" Domino complimented but Hagard just kept silenct as he gazed upon the feast prepared for him, "What is it with you? You haven't said a word ever since you got on board this ship. I thought someone like you would be enjoying a cruise like this" again, she was returned with silence.

"Looks like he's not a talkative type" said Wendy but this only made Domino liked him even more, "Yes very attracting" Wendy gave out a nudge and whispered into her partner's ear, "Domino! This isn't the time to be impressed with him!" but none of the words she gave out was getting to her, "Can you help it? I mean he's so mysterious and dark, it's rare to find a man who has no interest in women like me"

Wendy simply sighed "We're supposed to be razing this army to capture that Pikachu and the rest of those twerp's Pokemon! Not going for a relationship! Besides, who would want to date a kid like you?" Domino didn't take that last comment very well, "What was that?! For your information, I have as more boyfriends in a city than the cells in your tiny brain!" they were going for an all out girls fight, "Well if my brain is tiny then yours must be a grain of sand!"

As the two bickering teen battled each others wits Hagard began to say in his head, _"Now this is entertainment"_ he lift his spoon and began serving himself with soup. Domino and Wendy noticed the 'silver hair's' movement and glared at him with suspicions… Hagard looked back, "I'm a vegetarian" the two Team Rocket members fell to the floor anime style.

**(At Petalburg Hospital)**

Ash (who is currently incognito as Hsa) just got Anabel into a check up with an available doctor. He still had that uneasy feeling when in hospitals but if a friend's health is on the line then his phobia will just have to wait.

Ash was told to wait outside with Misty until the doctor was done taking a look on those frostbites.

The doctor took a look at Anabel's hands and nodded his head, "Well it looks like your hands will be just fine Anabel" the girl sigh with relief, "But first I'll have to put these heat tabs on or your fingers will be permanently numb" Anabel was shocked to hear that but was relieved now that the doctor was here. She didn't say anything so the doctor just continued (FYI: The doctor is a female) "You should really thank that boy for bringing you here. If this was left alone for a few more hours, the chill would've damaged your finger nerves completely (Hey I'm no doctor so I'm just guessing ok) Is he your friend?"

"Umm… yes he is" Anabel said quietly

"He's kind of cute don't you think? (Anabel blushes brightly) Teehee, I know that look anywhere. So are you two close friends?"

"I uh… I umm"

The check up room was turning into an interrogation room through Anabel's eyes. The heat tabs the doctor put on was nothing compared to the steam she was generating from within her shyness. "Oh dear, did I touch a nerve there?" the doctor smiled. "Well please keep those heat tabs with you for at least three hours, after that you can throw them away" Anabel just nodded still blushing brightly. She left the room and saw Ash leaning on the wall with his Pikachu on his shoulders.

"So what did the doctor say?" Ash asked still in disguise

Anabel simply blushed even brighter, "Umm… I just need to… keep these heat tabs… on for three hours"

The boy simply gave out a smile. He was glad that it wasn't anything serious, "Really? That's great! Come on, Misty is waiting for us at the entrance"

Just as they left the hospital and head towards the Pokemon gym a pair of eyes glared at them from a afar with unknown intentions. Four men dressed in dark cloaks that covered their entire body from head to toe watched as the soon-to-be Pokemon master walked out of their sight.

The trio arrived at the gym via a short cut and came just as soon as the rest of the gang did. They went through a small detour in the city and arrived much later than expected. Ash knocked on the door and waited for a reply.

"Coming!" a voice yelled out in the house. Max and May knew that only their mother had that kind of a voice and were ready to greet her with a surprise. Caroline (May and Max's mother) rushed in and opened the door but what she saw shocked her to a near heart attack. She was looking at Ash but in her mind it registered that she was looking at Max! She thought that her son left for so long that he came back years later. "Max?!" was all she could uttered out before falling unconscious!

"Mom!" the two children came to her side along with everyone else. Norman (May and Max's father and gym leader) rushed in when he heard the loud thud on the front door. "Caroline, are you ok? Say something dear!" Caroline opened her eyes as if she was in a deep sleep for ages but in reality it has only been ten seconds, "Norman? Oh my goodness, you wouldn't believe the strange dream I--- (sees Ash again) AHHHH! (faints)"

After getting Caroline into bed and out of sight of Ash Norman came by and recognized nearly all of them in an instant. "Welcome back Max, May… and I see you brought your friends too"

"Hey dad, I'm sure you remember Misty and Brock" May reintroduce them to this father. "The boys over there from right to left are Drew, Todd, Tracey and Richie. The girls over here are Dawn from Shinou, Anabel from the Frontier Brain and Duplica from Johto. These are all of my friends and they need a place to stay for two nights. We're leaving for Valmarian after that"

_"Two nights? That short?" _Normal mumbled disappointingly "Sure kids, there's a new guest room I built some time ago. Why don't you two show them around why I try to wake up your mother" Max and May agreed and showed them around the house. It still had that dojo smell but some of the furniture were replaced or removed from their usual spots. The girls and boys were separated in two guest rooms. Drew and Richie called on the bed and slept in an instant. Brock moaned out and pulled in the sofa in the living room. Anabel and Dawn had the beds so Duplica took the softest looking chair and slept like a log. Tracey and Todd took the other chairs along the living room. May and Max went to their rooms and gone to sleep as well. Pikachu and Sparky barely had any strength left in them so they went to the nearest pillow and slept like two innocent looking babies. Togepi was no exception. The little egg-shaped Pokemon was already fast asleep in her mother's arms before they even reach the city gates.

Although everyone in the group was dead beat to exhaustion, Ash wasn't able to find himself a decent place to sleep. The beds were taken, the sofa was occupied and the soft mattresses were filled with no decent amount of space to put your backs on.

With not place to sleep, the young trainer went to the backyard and found himself a suitable place to fly off to dream land. Ash may have the stamina of a hundred Tauros and perhaps the strength too but he was still a boy who needed his beauty sleeps. He then laid down under a small tree near a pond on a soft sheet of grass and began snoozing.

**(In a dark alley somewhere in the city of Petalburg)**

A dark plot was being hatched into motion as four mysterious figure assembled. "Did you find him?" said one of the hooded men. The one he was talking to shook his head in response. The others sighed in disappointment, "Keep searching throughout the city. Make sure you are not spotted by the guardians or our plans will be revealed"

"Really Furo, how could you lose sight of such an important target?" the third one taunted to the man on the opposite side, "Be quiet Loin! We all lost sight of him ever since that Houndoom attacked us" the man which was called by the name of Furo tried to defend himself. These men were the ones who snuck up to the gang's camp a few days ago. Whatever their intentions are it could not be as any good as Team Rocket's goal to control all Pokemons.

"Hmph… and I thought you were the expert of tracking targets. I guess I shouldn't trust those rumors a million years ago" said the man known as Loin. Furo gazed back and nearly stompped onto his feet, "What! Why you---"

Seeing that there was going to be a fight, another black caped man stood up and stopped them, "Enough! You're both acting like children! Act like your age for once!" another man came up from behind and giggled, "Oh we're sorry, just how are two million and fifty year old people supposed to act?"

"(sigh) Well our lord hasn't given any new orders yet. We'll split up and search through the neighboring towns. Furo, you search the city"

"And what do we do if we should encounter our target?" asked Furo. The other two were visibly hesitant to listen to the answer but the main man said anyway, "Eliminate him. It does not matter if we are defeated. We are illusions Furo, and you that as much as I do"

These… were the illusions of Pallet. Illusions that would strike a memory in Ash's mind. The illusions that would either make him… or break him.

**(Somewhere along the streets of Valmarian city)**

Gary was dozing off after hearing some sort of telepathic communication. His Umbreon was by his side to bring him back to his senses before crossing the street. "Huh? Oh, it's nothing Umbreon, I was just thinking" He began walking towards the training ground to find some new opponents to battle against. New trainers from all around the world were coming almost every day and no matter how many people come to the city, there was always more room to be filled.

Just when Gary was observing the others that were battling on stage, another trainer approached him with a challenge in mind, "Hey you! Yeah you! I'm looking for a Pokemon trainer named Gary from Pallet town. Do you know him?" Gary smirked back and faced the masculine man, "Yeah… I know him. He's me" the trainer wasn't shaken by Gary's statement, he already knew that he was the one but he just wanted to make sure, "Alright then… let's have a match! Unless you're afraid to lose!"

"Ha, let the battle do the talking! Umbreon, go!" the black cat Pokemon readied itself

"Heh, let's see how strong your Pokemons are. Grovile, show'em one of your seed gun attack!"

Grovile appeared and let out several blasts from its mouth. Umbreon took it full force but it was barely even reacting to the attack. Gary giggled, "Your attacks are too weak to even affect my Umbreon. Let's end this quickly. Umbreon, use agility and tackle it from behind!" Umbreon quickly disappeared from sight and then reappeared behind Grovile. The grass Pokemon barely had a chance to recover when Umbreon smacked it to the ground with just one blow on the head. The opposing trainer was amazed. Never before has his Grovile been knocked out by just a single blow like that.

"Wow, you're real tough mister! I guess you passed" Gary was obviously confused on what the man just said. What did he mean by…

"Passed? What do you mean by that?"

"The name's Steve. I'm part of a group of trainers who are planning on splitting the cash prize of the Valmarian league" the man said pointing his thumb at himself

"Cash prize?" Gary began, "So does that mean you're in the Valmarian league too as well? What do you want from me?"

"It's simple really. There are currently five of us in the group and if any of us becomes champion, we get to split up the cash prize evenly. It's a win-win situation"

"And let me guess, the winner gets the bigger share" Steve nodded as a gesture to his answer, "That's right, so what daya say? We could really use you for our insurance"

Before could say 'no' a sudden idea crept into his head like a little worm carrying decease. He thought that he could use this group to his advantage. Perhaps to get a hang on Ash's true battle strength or al least find out if any of them are enough to beat him. "Hmm… ok, deal. However… if I win, you guys can keep the money for yourselves"

"Really? Now you're my kind of sucker I er mean… trainer!"

Gary smirked, "Now that we have that settled, show me where this group is" With those words Steve escorted Gary towards the city's downtown area. This was either gonna be Gary's trump card or his diversion.

**(Pallet Town, Oak's Lab)**

Delia had just finished cleaning the dishes with Mr. Mime. It was the only thing she could do to take her mind off Ash and his friends. She knew that her little boy had been attacked by the most fearsome Pokemons in the world and traversed through the worst weather Mother Nature could throw at him and come out without a scratch. Ash endured through the hardship of a Pokemon trainer a thousand times and a thousand times again. The young trainer became a hero and an idol to people everywhere. There were people praising him all over town. The only ones that denied his greatness were trainers whom he had defeated and villains (Team magma and or course Team Rocket) of all sorts. Luckily for Delia, no trainers would come to Pallet town since there wasn't any gym or anything that would attract large group of tourists.

As professor Oak was busy organizing Ash's Pokemons in their category, he noticed one Pokeball in the transpoter pod. "Hmmm? When did this get here?" he opened the Pokeball and to his surprise, a Houndoom came out of it. "A Houndoom? Ash must've caught you in Hoenn. Oh well, I guess I should introduce you to the rest of Ash's Pokemons" before he did anything else, the professor noticed several bandages on the beast's leg, "Oh my… you look like you're hurt. Oh Delia, can you come in here for a moment?"

"Coming professor" she replied from the kitchen.

"Oh and bring my first-aid-kit too please, it's in the living room"

"Oh my, did you hurt yourself professor?" Delia was a bit surprised by this

"No not at all. I have a wounded Pokemon Ash sent me" the professor began removing the old bandages and realized that whoever treated this Houndoom had done a great job in patching it up. The two Jennies left to get some shopping done for Delia.

Sam tried to tinkle with the wound to see if it still hurt… but that was perhaps a dumb move to make. The Houndoom began to growl menacingly and then…

"Professor, I brought your first-aid… professor? Hmm, I thought I heard him in here" Delia looked around for the old man until she noticed that the door to the backyard was open. She took a peek and saw a some-what hilarious sight.

"HEEEEELLLLPPPP!!!!!!!" screamed the professor. Delia looked outside and saw that the Houndoom that he accidentally hurt was shooting fire at him, "Down boy! Down! Sit, sit! Heel!! HELP!!" the professor was dodging over and over again until he spotted Muk laying down on the field, "Muk, I never I thought I'd say this but tackle me! Now!" Muk gladly complied and was now all over the old professor. Houndoom shoot out a stream of fire at Muk but the mud Pokemon didn't even feel a thing.

"_Haha! Now that Muk is on me there's no way that Houndoom could blast me with its flame thrower"_ the professor was right. Even though the air around him was only able to sustain him for two minutes that would however, give him enough time for a quick getaway.

"Professor, are you here? Oh my, a Houndoom?"

"Oh no… Delia!!!" the professor recognized that voice anywhere and was quick to start pushing Muk away. However it seemed like Muk just ate his breakfast and was slightly heavier than usual,

"Hey, why are starring at me like that Houndoom?" Delia pleaded.

The professor was now in panic. If Houndoom was looking at her it could only mean that it was going to attack! "Muk, get off me right now!" but Muk was too tired to move. It was always too tired to do anything but tackling, sleeping and eating.

"Ahhhhh!" the professor heard Delia scream from the outside of Muk's huge body. "Oh no, I'm too late!" a sudden surge of strength came through the old man and in a few seconds he pushed Muk out with every bit of strength he had, "Don't worry Delia, I'm going to…… save you?" the professor was stunned to see Delia smiling and laughing as the Houndoom licked her face, "Ahahaha, ok boy now sit" the Houndoom complied and sat on the grass, "Very good, now raise your paw (Houndoom raised his paw) Good, now the other paw (Houndoom raised his other paw) Very good! Oh professor, can I keep this Houndoom? I just love to have one!"

Sam gave out a mother of all sweat drop. Muk fell a few feet behind him. Just when he finally realized that it was just all a big misunderstanding his bones began to crack. He must've put a 'little' to much effort in that last push on Muk.

**(Back with the gang at Petalburg gym)**

Ash slowly woke up by the smell of a sandwich he saw in front of him. He moved in to take a bite but it seemed to just go farther away, "Come back sandwich, I'm not gonna hurt ya" the boy was drowsing in his sleeps. When his head was reaching for the little bit of tasty delight Ash fell with a loud thud. "Owww… my head"

"Well that's one way to wake you up" said Misty who was taking a bite off the sandwich. Ash felt a drool coming down his lips because he just realized how hungry he was. "Oh hey Misty, is lunch ready?" Misty just hung her head and sigh, "Can't you think of anything else other than food and Pokemon for once? There are finer things in life you know"

"Oh come on, what could be better than Pokemon?" he asked, "By the way, are you gonna finish that?" he was referring to the half eaten sandwich. Misty looked at him and handed the peanut butter sandwich. Ash took large bites off of it and before Misty even blinked, it was gone. "So, why are you up? I thought you'd be asleep along with the others" he said finally, "Well I was until a certain snore kept me awake" Tracey was indeed a snorer during sleeps. The professor had to put himself in a sound proof room just to get some peace and quiet for the night.

The two trainers sat next to each other under that Oak tree and began thinking about the Valmarian League. It was actually the only thing the young trainer could think of at times like this. "Only a few more days till we reach Valmarian huh?" Ash struck up a conversation, "Yeah…" she replied softly. There was a slight hint of pain in her voice but she hid it quite well. "Just imagine, a whole stadium filled with the best Pokemon trainers from every town in the world… and I'm gonna be there to beat'em all!" his said in his usual heroic pose. The boy could barely control the emotions that were running through his head. The thrill of a battle, the cheer of the crowds, the powers of Pokemons and the intense atmosphere were to die for.

"There are other things than Pokemon battles Ash"

"Yeah but being a Pokemon master is my dream! And now I'm gonna make that dream into a reality! Just you wait, by next month they'll have my name on that trophy before the match even began!"

"There are more than a thousand competitors in this league Ash. Do you think you can really beat them all?"

"Oh come on Misty. I managed to defeat everyone that we encountered so far oh and that reminds me. I need to pick up my Pokemons at the Pokemon center in an hour"

Ash and Misty rant off towards the Pokemon center right after he spoke. Ash felt relieved since no one truly recognized him in and out of the center. "Well at least the disguise is working" he chuckled. By the time Nurse Joy handed him his Pokemons and an extra Pokeball belt. A thought snapped back into his mind. "Oh that's right, I need to call professor Oak right away!" he immediately reach for the nearest phone and dialed a familiar number.

"Hello, this is professor Oak speaki--- Max?!" the old man looked at the boy who looked exactly like Max at the age of fourteen. Ash quickly remembered that he was still in disguise and gave out a sweat drop, "Huh? Oh yeah, the disguise. Pssst. Professor, it's me Ash"

Professor Oak looked a little closer to the monitor but when Ash removed his glasses, it became as clear as the sky in Pallet town, "Ash? Oh it is you! Putting on another disguise to hide from the fans?" the boy nodded, "Yeah, but anyway professor how's mom doing?"

"Oh don't worry about her, she's helping me and the Pokemons with Mr. Mime. I have to say I'm surprised that you called. Where are you anyway?" the two of them exchanged their smiles and let out a small laugh together, "We're in Petalburg city" Ash began I'm staying at May's place for now. We'll be in Valmarian by next week. Oh yeah that reminds me. Professor, I'm sending you some Pokemons that I got from a battle two days ago"

"You mean the ones from the Pokemon thieves?" the professor clarified to Ash's surprise "How did you---"

Prof Oak simply smiled, "I watch the news. Everybody in Pallet town saw you fighting at Oldale and Muavile city. Your mother was very worried about you. She even asked me to record the whole thing on tape. Anyway, just send those Pokemons to me and I'll see to that they're given back to their original owners" the boy raised his head with pried, "Thanks professor. Oh by the way… I think one of them was a wild Pokemon"

"What makes you say that?" the old man asked in confusion, which Ash gladly answered "You don't exactly see an Entei everyday"

"Entei?!" Samuel Oak jolted up from his seat, "You mean you have a real Entei in one of those Pokeballs?!! This is amazing! Please send it to me right away! I would love to do some research on a legendary Pokemon!"

"Alright professor, take care of them for me. Oh by the way, did you receive my Houndoom yet?"

"You mean Burno? (yes Burno… not Bruno or anything you might think) Yes I just noticed the Pokeball recently. Your mother is planning to keep it as a pet guard dog in her house"

This caught Misty's ear and allowed her to ask, "A guard dog? Since when did you catch a Houndoom Ash?"

"I found it when Todd and I went to find Dawn back at the forest. It was wounded when it arrived so I thought you could help it"

"Well your mother decided to name it Burno" the professor interupted, "It's making a quick recovery and should be able to travel with us when we go to Valmarian. I'll be bringing all your Pokemons along too since none of them would want to miss this show of a life time"

"Thanks a lot professor, I'll see you at Valmarian then. Bye"

After retrieving his Pokemons and sending the stolen ones to the right hands, Ash and Misty left the Pokemon center. They were walking back to the gym until Ash caught sight of a parade going through the city. "Hey what's going on here?" he asked no one particular. Misty was just as confused and amazed as he was. "It looks like there's a festival going on. Come on Ash, let's go see" the boy barely had enough time to reply when Misty pulled him by his shirt.

Misty was right, there was a festival going on downtown. There were street vendors and games to be played at the side walk. The main road was turned into a giant pedestrian lane so there wouldn't be any accidents. Ash bought two bags of barbeque and rice balls and two cans of sodas to wash it all down. He never felt this hungry ever since they left Mauville in a hurry.

Just when both of them were having a great time, Misty noticed that there was a small Pokemon battle at the city square. Ash didn't see it yet and Misty had no intentions to let him see it for she knew that Ash couldn't possibly resist a Pokemon battle. There wasn't any trophy for it just some cash prize which he had plenty of but Misty didn't know that Ash had more than enough to buy himself a small mansion. The two top ups from professor Oak was bountiful already and initial bonus from Scott was more than one person could live for a year. Ash was never into money though. He never was and never will be obsessed with money.

Before Ash looked at the Pokemon battle Misty yelled out to make him look at the other direction. She wanted to buy all these trinkets and accessories that she would send back to her sisters. Even though she disliked all three of them, she wasn't a heartless girl who forgets about her family. However… the thought of Ash becoming Pokemon Master laid a big dent in her heart and mind. She didn't understand why. She was supposed to be happy for him, proud of him but no… she didn't show any of those reactions at all.

Just when Misty was distracted by all the sparkly jewels that were way far off her pay check, Ash spotted a nice string made of light metal. It was cheap and it was portable. He had plans for that string (but I'm not gonna say what hehehe)

While traversing through the city, Ash lost track of time so he approached a man dressed in black. "Excuse me sir, but what time is it?"

"Huh? Oh it's uh… 3:15 I think…" said the caped man. He looked at Ash discriminately as if he knew him from somewhere, "Ok thanks mister" and with that Ash went back to Misty's side, "Come on Misty we need to get to the gym or Brock and the others will get mad at us"

The two of them quickly made it back to the gym before a silent storm echoed from afar. Caroline answered the door as usual but this time she wasn't shocked to see Ash. Norman explained it to her when she woke up a few hours ago. To their surprise, everyone was still asleep except Max. It was a good thing Ash brought his friend's Pokemons too so they wouldn't have to make another trip to the Pokemon center. Since everyone was still asleep he decided to place their Pokeballs on the living room table.

While Caroline was in the kitchen to prepare supper Max approached his big brother, "Hey Ash, you gotta come and look at my room, I got a new computer that can see the files of all the contestant of Valmarian!" Ash was quite taken with the long sentence but the word 'Valmarian' was more than enough to make him move…… and that was a hard thing to do.

Misty was also quite intrigue on how an eight year old could get hold of that kind of information so she followed them.

"Alright and… here we are!" Max did some computer clicking and soon the screen popped up to see all the competitors of league. There was a brief detail of every character. Their bios, age and name were on the list but sadly it didn't say what Pokemon they had. Ash scrolled up and saw his name on top since it was alphabetized.

**Name: Ash Ketchum**

**Hometown Representative: Pallet Town**

**Recommendations: Drake of the Orange Archipelago, Professor Samuel Oak of Pallet Town**

**Age: 14**

**Gender: Male**

**Contestant #: 4097**

"Whoa! That's a lot of trainers to battle!" Ash's eyes widened considerably. On the list of trainers presented on the computer, there were practically thousands of contestants just vying to win the league. Max was afraid of the high numbers but this just gave Ash more encouragement. He saw some familiar names and faces pop out from the list but most of them were clearly alien to him.

"Well it looks like your gonna be having a lot of trainers to battle huh Ash?" Misty said with slight joking tone, "Yeah! And they all look like they're gonna be a challenge! Why am I standing around for?! I should get back to training! Come on out everybody!" Ash called out all of his Pokemons (even Snorelax) and began his usual routine of training. Misty sighed at her misuse of words.

Right after a few rounds of exercise, Norman came by with good intentions to Ash, "Wow Ash, you've really gotten stronger than the last time we met" he complimented, "Thanks Norman, how about you? Have any of your Pokemons gotten any better?" Ash was provoking a silent challenge to him, "Well… there's only one way to find out. Let's have a battle before dinner! Three on three, no time limit!"

"You're on!" Ash replied.

**(Time skip A few minutes later At Petalburg gym battleground)**

Max and Misty looked at both sides of the court as the intense battle was just about to begin. Even though Ash had beaten Norman before he still had that feeling that there was a possibility to lose. He like this feeling for several reasons. It keeps his blood boiling and his throat clear to speak out orders and commands.

"Alright, me first! Vigoroth, I choose you!" a Vigoroth appeared and began to roar like a wild animal. Ash had battled this before with Pikachu and he knew well its strengths and weaknesses, "Alright then, I choose you Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur came out of Ash's Pokeball and prepared to battle.

"I see you brought one of your oldest and strongest Pokemons to battle me, I'm honored. But let's see how strong it really is, Vigoroth use double team!" Vigoroth immediately multiplied itself into four and began charging at Bulbasaur, "I see your Vigoroth got stronger. Bulbasaur, jump!" Bulbasaur leaped into the air and awaited for a second command, "Alright Bulbasaur, use you razor leaf attack!" the razor leaf missed Vigoroth's real body and so it charged at Bulbasaur once more, "Alright Bulbasaur, use vine whip and wrap it around Vigoroth!"

Bulbasaur used its vine whips and entangled Vigoroth's arm, "That was a careless move for you Ash. Vigoroth, pull Bulbasaur towards you!" Vigoroth began pulling Bulbasaur closer and closer. Misty knew that this was gonna be bad, "Come on Ash, you can do it! Don't give up!" she cheered out.

"_Misty' cheering… for me? I must be dreaming!"_ Misty's encouragement gave a sudden boost to Ash's tactical knowledge and soon he devised a plan to counter this threat, "Bulbasaur, use your self as a sling shot stone!" everyone was quite confused on what Ash was talking about but Bulbasaur knew his master well and began extending his vine whip. It pulled itself away from Vigoroth's attack range and released itself to the beast Pokemon. The tackle slammed onto Vigoroth's head like a hard boulder and knocked it to the ground.

"It's not over yet! Vigoroth, seismic toss!" Vigoroth got up and held Bulbasaur and jumped into the air where it would do its most powerful attack. "Sorry Norman, but this battle is mine! Bulbasaur, vine whip on the ceiling now!" Bulbasaur received the order and hung its whole body onto the ceiling with its vines. Vigoroth lost its grip on the little grass Pokemon and fell to the ground beaten by its own technique. Norman was sure that Vigoroth would rise again to do battle but it only fell back to the ground unconscious. Norman sighed and Misty continued cheering, "This fight isn't over. Come out Slakoth!" Slakoth appeared and was now ready to do battle.

Ash expected nothing less from a great Pokemon trainer like Norman. He doesn't give up and always ready for the next fight. "I'll stick with my Bulbasaur. Bring it on Norman!" Ash was now provoking the gym leader to attack which was working quite nicely. Norman dealt with taunts before but Ash's words held something like whip that makes you wanna throw in a tantrum. "Slakoth, use amnesia!" Slakoth's eyes turned red and began making Bulbasaur drowsy. "Bulbsaur, focus! Don't lose to psychic attacks!" Bulbasaur shook away the attack and formed ready, "Good work, now use your vine whip on its arm and leg!" Bulbasaur did what his master commanded and held one arm and one leg. "Now use razor leaf!" without sufficient protection, the Slakoth was unable to defend itself with the on coming attacks and fell quickly to the ground unconscious.

Norman was amazed by the magnificent improvement of Ash and his Pokemon. To knock out two of his best fighters with one Pokemon was a great feat. "You've done well Ash. But let's see what you can do with my new and improved Slaking!" Slaking came out of its Pokeball awakened and ready to battle. It was rare to see a Slaking awake but it would be even better if it should battle. Ash's Bulbasaur didn't look a bit tired at all, in fact it haven't even broken a sweat. "Alright, finally Slaking! You ready Bulbasaur? (Bulba!) Alright Norman, it's your move!"

Norman grinned, "With pleasure! Slaking, use mega punch!" (Slaking! Sla?) Just when Slaking was about to do the order, he took a good look at Ash with a puzzling eye. (Sla? Slaking?!) the giant beast began to take a few steps back as it bowed its head in fear. Everyone in the room looked strangely at Slaking. This has never happened before to Slaking and it seemed to work on Ash's favor.

"Hey… what's wrong with Slaking?" Ash looked at the gorilla Pokemon just as confused as Norman, "It looks like its scared of something" said Max. Norman quickly got up to the Pokemon and gently tapped its back.

"Shhhh Slaking its ok, you can come back in the Pokeball now. (Slaking returned to its Pokeball) Well that certainly wasn't expected. I guess you win this battle Ash" Norman declared to him. Ash would've jumped with glee but now he felt more disappointed rather than happy, "Yeah but I didn't get to see your new and improved Slaking" Norman simply laughed at the boy's eagerness to battle, "Oh don't worry about it. Maybe before you leave we'll have another match"

Misty suddenly came up and complimented him, "You were great Ash. I can't believe how strong your Bulbasaur has gotten"

The words of her praise were more than what Ash could ever need. It was different from the other praise he got from his friends. It felt deeper and more powerful than any other words he heard before. "Dinner's ready!" shouted Caroline. Ash immediately remembered that he was still hungry and dashed off towards the dining room with spoon and fork on hand.

Everyone woke up from their evening naps and immediately head off to the dining room, they weren't surprised to see Ash/Hsa already eating but Caroline believed that she should've made more if she was serving a human-Snorelax. May had to put in an extra table to fit the whole gang in.

Brock and Tracey helped Caroline with the food but she insisted no. When they all got in place they ate what Ash left them. Max couldn't help but laugh along with his big brother. Caroline and Norman were both ecstatic to see their son laughing in such a manner. In the past days, he's been training with his father less seriously and becoming lazier… and that was very unusual for a kid with high IQ.

However, after a quick look at Ash they understood why.

After dinner Ash brought all of his Pokemon to come and look at the stars with him. Max was also there and brought his sleeping bag so they could tell ghost stories or something brotherly. Misty and Brock looked at the two of them and smiled happily.

As they looked at the two of them play with their Pokemons before going to sleep, Norman came by with a towel on his head. It was obvious that this man just came out of the showers. "You know, Max was never like that when he came back home" he said with a slight sadness in his tone. Misty looked at the gym leader with a puzzled look, "Really? What happened?"

Norman was hesitant to speak out the past but it was something he had to share it with someone other than his wife, "When May came back from the Johto League with Max… he changed. He rarely trained with me nowadays, he became lazy and sad and he almost never laughed. It was like he was totally different person and none of us could figure out why"

"But weren't you his role model?" said Brock

"I was his role mode… but that all changed. He found himself a new role model… and that boy is right beside him"

Misty giggled, "I guess he would be the first. Ash taught him a lot of things during our journeys in the Battle Frontier a year ago. He must've gotten attached to him like a---"

"A brother" Norman cut her off. "Heh… I guess I can't change the way the boy thinks. He traveled around with Ash for so long… I guess he lost touch with home… heh. I just don't know what to do anymore (sob)" now his tone was full of sadness. He didn't noticed he was crying until Brock handed him a tissue, "Well, I guess the only thing you can do now is watch him from here on… and I think it's best… if you supported him as well"

"Yeah… you're right. I guess I got a little carried away with my words. It's just that… I thought he'd be more like me and become a gym leader" he was now openly crying to himself.

"Hmm… is it possible that you're… jealous?" said Brock

Norman sobbed a few more times before finally pulling himself together, "Heh, yeah… maybe I am jealous of him. Thank you Brock, Misty for listening to me, I feel much better now. I think I'll go and help Caroline with the dishes" with that Norman left with a relieved heart. He was relieved to know that his son was now learning from the best and who knows… maybe he'll be a Pokemon master himself.

**(In a bush not far off)**

"There they are team, ripe for the taking" Jesse was talking about Ash's Pokemon who were out of their Pokeballs and sleeping soundly. James popped out from behind with Butch, "I dunno James, this could be bad. We're near a Pokemon gym and that means the gym leader might be there too"

"Oh haven't you learned yet?!" yelled out Butch, "We're Team Rocket and we capture all the Pokemons they throw at us! That's the master plan!"

"Finally, someone with some courage and sense!" Jessie yelled out holding her fist. Meowth gave them a shhhhh sound to keep them from blowing their cover, "Be quiet all of you! If we move in fast like those ninjas we saw on TV, snatching those Pokemons should be a snap!"

"Alright then what's the plan?" asked James to Jessie, "Oh by the way Butch, are you sure you don't wanna go back with Cassidy?"

"Never!" he yelled back almost instantly, "I'd rather have one of Pikachu's thundershock than to go back to that crazy lady!"

"Well we certainly can use another partner in crime"

"But we're gonna have to split the reward equally four by four" Meowth complained but Jessie simply giggled in astonishment and said, "I'm never good in math but who cares. As long as we have that Pikachu our boss we'll be jumping with joy! Come on, let's go!"

The Team Rocket (now including Butch and the removal of Cassidy) sneaked in closely towards Ash's nearest Pokemon. It was all going well until (Wa-Buffet!!!) "No you idiot! Get back into your Pokeball right this instance"

Pikachu woke up from the sound and was surprised to see Team Rocket, "Pika!!!" (Not you guys again!)

Ash simply let out a small yawn and rubbed the sand that had been gathering in his eyes, "(yawn )Hey Pikachu what's all the… TEAM ROCKET?!!"

"Haha! Prepare for trouble!"

"And don't forget to make it double!"

"To protect the world from devas---"

"Hey! Keep it down over there!" a voice from one of the neighbors interrupted their motto. Team Rocket face faulted heavily,

Jessie was really getting annoyed with all the motto interruptions "What is it with you people?! Can't you appreciate art when you see one?!"

"The only art I see right now is beating you guys! Totodile, hydro pump!" Ash commanded his Pokemon which sent James flying away into the night sky, "(flies away by the water) What did I ever do to youuuuuuuuu!"

Jessie glared with despair to see how strong the boy's Pokemons have become, "Grrr! We're not going down without a fight twerp! Arbok, Wabuffet, go get'em!"

"A little midnight battle wouldn't hurt! Pikachu, Snorelax, Cyndaquil, Noctowl, Totodile, Bulbasaur, let's go!"

The sight of all the Pokemons made Meowth's leg twitched, "He's coming at us at full force!!!!!" but Jessie held her ground and pulled out the rest of her Pokemons out, "Well then I'll go all out too! Servipor, Lickatongue, go and get them!"

**(Two minutes later)**

"Well, do you have any more Pokemons to battle?" Ash taunted. Butch returned his last Pokemon and put it back into his belt, "This kid's stronger than last time!" but Jessie had a backup plan, "Well at least I still have my secret backup plan!"

Suddenly, James was able to come by sweating like a dog in a sunny day, "(pant pant) Heh… I'm back"

"Alright Team Rocket, are you ready to be blasting off again?!"

"Not this time twerp!" Jessie fired back, "You won't be getting the pleasure of blasting us this time!" she held out a small bomb in the palm of her hand and laughed, "Because this time--- (the bomb explodes) WE'RE BLASTING OUTSELVES OFF!!! HAHAHA! In your face twerp!!!!" And so once again… Team Rocket blasted off…… but this time…… they blasted themselves off. Pretty silly for a bunch of crooks if you ask me.

'Ahem! Anyway!' Right after the team of crooks was blasted off into the sky, Ash yawned along with his Pokepals and slept right back into their original positions. Max was a heavy sleeper. He didn't even bother waking over such petty things.

Ash expected to be in a boat that would take him to Valmarian city by now. He was expecting to be riding on a luxurious cruise like the S.S Notilus traveling from Petalburg to an outlying town near the city of Valmarian. However, things didn't go as he wished. Perhaps this was a good thing. With all the events and incidents happening recently it would a be good time to input all those data in that peanut he calls brain…… Hey! Give me some credit. I'm being nice here! Misty said that it was a grain of sand at least a peanut was much bigger!

**(The next morning)**

May was the first to wake up from the rest of the gang. She had a special feeling today, like something you don't feel very often. The moment she saw Ash outside with her little brother she knew that he would be hungry so instead of taking her morning stroll, she decided to make breakfast.

However, by the time she got down from her room the food were already prepared. May was disappointed because her chance to impress Ash was taken away already. Caroline came by to greet her daughter, "Oh good morning May, you're up early. Are you going to take your usual walk?" she said with a smile. "Huh? Oh hi mom, you're up early too. Did you make all these?" she was referring to the food on the table, "Oh no, Anabel woke up an hour ago and helped me whip something up for your friends. I think she's in the kitchen baking those cookies"

"_Wait a minute! Anabel can cook? Since when?"_ May couldn't believe it until she saw Anabel taking out a tray from the oven. She wasn't in her usual Battle Frontier outfit but more of a house wife attire. The scent of the cookies was fantastic. The fillings in each of them were different and the dough were shaped into little faces of everyone Pokemons and humans alike. "Oh good morning May, it's nice to see you" said Anabel who politely bowed to Caroline in respect of elders, "Oh please don't do that, you're making me feel old hehehe. Oh my, these cookies look so adorable!"

"Thank you Ms. Maple"

"Just call me Caroline dear and you can call that sleepy head of a husband of mine Norman. He doesn't like to be called 'sir' all the time hehehe" the two of them giggled leaving May to wonder what was so funny.

"I'll go wake the others up. May, can you watch the cookies until they cool down?" Anabel asked. May nodded without saying anything.

The first person Anabel went to wake up was of course Ash and his 'little brother'. She could never get enough of that scene Tracey was able to sketch back in Oldale town. His words touched her heart like no man could ever do. The boy loved his Pokemons and his friends no matter who or what they are.

Right after a delicious breakfast, Anabel gave out the cookies for desert. Everyone found it to be quite tasty however, some of them were having a hard time eating cookies with their own faces on it. "Hmm… it's hard to eat something that looks like me" said Richie. Sparky nodded as he looked at the cookie that looked just like him. Ash on the other hand had a different perspective "(crunch crnch) Yumm… I never knew I can taste so good!" he said as he chomped down more of the cookies. Anabel smiled…

"Well Ash, you looked well rested even though you had to sleep at the back yard" Norman said to the boy

"Oh no worries, I'm used to sleeping outdoors. The grass is really soft and I have Pikachu to help me when I'm in trouble"

The gym leader smiled, "Well at least I see that you have all the badges and symbols from all the regions"

"Yeah, but it's all thanks to my friends and my pals. They deserve most of the credit"

Caroline simply giggled at him, "(giggle) Modest as always Ash Ketchum. Why I remember when you were fighting in the Indigo Plateau, you were so embarrassed when your mother told you to---"

"ANYWAY!" Norman interrupted before his wife could say anything that would make him embarrassed, "Since you have all the badges. Why don't you have a tour around the city with your friends? A little vacation can go a long way you know"

"That's right Ash" May agreed with her father, "I can show you around the most beautiful places in the city!"

"I'd really like to have a little vacation myself!" Misty added

Duplica had to join in as well since she also wanted a vacation, "Well I'm in that's for sure. After all that's been happening some relaxation would be great"

"I'd love to take pictures of the area" said Todd holding his camera (again). Who knows, maybe there are some Pokemons around for me to look at!"

"Well since everyone wants to go…"

"It's not like you have anything better to do" Misty tried to reason with the boy so he could agree. She already had the support of the whole gang as well, "You already have all the badges in the world. What else is there to do?"

Ash thought for awhile before finally saying, "Hmm… good point. But there's still one more thing I need to do"

Everyone was a bit surprised. What could this last thing he needs to do be? Ash got up and pointed at Brock, "Brock, I challenge you for a Boulder badge!" everyone was shocked. Brock raised an eye brow as a sweat drop appears on his forehead, "Uhh… Ash, you already have a Boulder badge. It was the first you got remember?"

Ash shook his head, "That time was just because of some luck. I want to officially earn all my badges and the only one I haven't earned properly was your Boulder badge Brock" the squinty eyed man smiled with great pride bursting in his soul. A challenge by Ash would be the dream of everyone around him so he nodded, "Alright Ash, I accept your challenge! But I have to warn you, I'm much stronger than the last time we met at Pewter gym!" "Ha! I expected nothing less from you Brock!"

"Let's Battle!"

The two trainers got into position at the battleground and readied their Pokemons for combat. The whole gang rooted for both sides and waited for things to unfold. Norman refereed the match personally, "This is a battle between Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and Brock from Pewter city! This will be a one on one match with no time limit. The first Pokemon who loses conscious or surrenders will lose. This is also a battle for the Boulder badge. Trainers… begin!"

Ash moved in first, "Alright Pikachu let's put your limits to the test!"(Pikapika!) then Brock followed in with his strongest Pokemon, "There won't be any sprinklers to help you this time Ash! Go Steelix!" (roar!) when the two Pokemon meet on the same battleground, Brock moved in first, "Alright Steelix, go for a wrap attack!" Steelix charged at Pikachu at full force but Ash knew that was Brock's strongest attack, "Alright Pikachu, go for an iron tail!" the two Pokemons collided and both were knocked down equally. The gang cheered even louder than before.

"You're good Ash, your Pikachu may be fast but let's see it take this on for size! Steelix, dragon breath!" Steelix opened its mouth and let out a small flare at Pikachu. "Alright Pikachu iron tail assault!" Pikachu dodged the attack and smacked Steelix several times with its tail. "Steelix, defense curl now!" Steelix curled itself into a position where its head and face were protected.

"I was wondering when you were gonna use that move! Alright Pikachu, absorb!" Pikachu began glowing as sparks of electricity enters its body. "Oh no, not that move! Steelix, use iron tail and stop it!" Steelix uncurled itself and lunge towards Pikachu.

"You fell for it!"

Brock and the others stood in shock as Ash grinned with another plan up his sleeves, "Pikachu, agility!" in mere moments before Steelix struck the little mouse with its mighty tail, Pikachu appeared right in front of its face, "It's now or never! Pikachu, thunder burst!" Pikachu let out several waves of electricity but sadly none of them were able to hit Steelix.

"It looks like you need to improve your accuracy Ash! Steelix, wrap attack! (roar!) Steelix?" the mighty Pokemon struggled as it tried to lift itself up however it was failing miserably. The iron objects that were nailed to the room seemed to be having an effect on Steelix. A strong magnetic pulse emanated from each of the objects making Steelix become heavier than usual. "Ha! I call this move, Magnetic Field attack!" Brock and the others stood in awe as Ash had once again used his wits rather than his usual brute strength, "Ok Pikachu, let's finish this! Boomerang tail!" Pikachu spin and slammed at Steelix several times at different areas making it fall to the ground unconscious.

Norman looked at Steelix to see if it was still able to fight but sadly it was already out, "Steelix is unable to battle! The match goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet town!"

A few seconds later Ash jumped off the ground and gave out a jubilant cry of victory, "Alright, we did it! We won a Boulder Badge!" Brock sighed with relief, "You did well Steelix. We fought an amazing opponent and held off as long as we could. There's no need to be sad. Just rest up and I'll give you a scrub when we come back" he then put him back into his Pokeball.

As Ash and his friends celebrated his victory Brock approached him with the same Boulder Badge Ash gave him before the battle, "Ash, for beating me fair and square in battle, I present to you the Pewter gym Boulder Badge as proof of your victory" Ash accepted it with pride and they both shook hands as friends. Caroline was so touched by the moment of friendship that she just had to do something to remember this memorable day, "Alright then. We're gonna have a party tonight everyone!" again the gang yelled out in unison. Max then recalled something, "Which is pretty funny because it isn't even night time yet!"

(…)

(…)

(…)

"What? I was just stating the truth"

They all laughed at him.

And so the plan to go out and go shopping was put to a halt. The others didn't mind, this was truly a time to celebrate a glorious victory for all of them. A day without worries, a time without troubles, a moment to sooth and relax.

The night came faster than anyone could even predict. Caroline set up the karaoke to get the gang into a party mood. The music was loud but no one cared. Everyone in the neighborhood was out in the festival in the city square. Who needs a festival when you and your friends are all that are needed to create such a perfect party?

The music was great, many of his close friends were here and no Team Rocket to mess things up. Since this was a great party there also has to be a great meal. Ash volunteered to cook his special unnamed meal to surprise everyone. And to his surprise… everyone wanted to make their own meal. It was absolutely hilarious when Richie spilled soy sauce all over Anabel and to make it even funnier was when they began to have a food fight. Noodles and potatoes flew through the air while Pikachu was covered with flour. The little mouse then pretended to be a ghost and scared all the other Pokemons with its creepy moan.

Even though after going through all the trouble of setting up the kitchen over and over again, they were finally able to get their meals done. Brock and Tracey compared their stew to see which is better with Norman as their judge. The poor man had to choose two delicious stew but he couldn't pick. They were both wonderful in their own manner of speaking so it was a tie. Anabel made her cookies again and May made herself spaghetti. Richie made himself…… a burger…… uh… ok. Dawn made herself some of her mom's traditional cake while Duplica made some salad for herself.

For once in a life time the night was long and time was plenty…

'Its days like this that I wish it would last forever…'

-Unknown Creator-

-But it's good for this line-


	21. Come Forth, The Power of The King

**Chapter 21: Come Forth! Power of The King!**

Misty slept peacefully around the sofa along with three of her friends. The morning light bothered everyone's eyes since they didn't want to wake up just yet. The Pokemons and the adults were no different.

The party last night really tuckered them all out. The TV was still on but the sound was put on mute. Brock was hugging his pillow and kissing it like it was a girl that he was dreaming. Drew just had about enough all that mushy mushy sleep talking of his that decided to lay his feet on the squinty guy's mouth. Brock immediately spat out the taste on his mouth and woke up instantly.

"AHHHHH!!!" Brock yelled out which woke Ash up, but just barely, "(yawn) Hey Brock what's all the noise?" the older boy came up to the young trainer and said in a pleading tone, "I had the worst nightmare ever! I was kissing a girl and then when I kissed her, her lips tasted like a sweaty foot!" Ash was barely even listening to what he was saying and just ignored it, "It's probably just your imagination. Go back to… to… to sleep… zzzzzzzzzz"

Realizing what he said was right, Brock immediately went back to sleep, "Yeah, you're probably right. Ahe ahe ahe…" With that, the boy went back on his sleeping position and mumbled something about Officer Jenny or something like that.

The gang woke up approximately half past twelve in the afternoon.

**(Valmarian city Dark Alley)**

A few days after Gary had met Steve, he was introduced to the boss of a gang that only had interest in the money of the competition. "So… you're Gary Oak of Pallet town? The one we've been hearing a lot about in these parts of town?" said the boss man. Gary took a good look around their temporary secret hideout. Gary smirked and nodded but he didn't say anything back. Steve came in to introduce him to the gang. "Yeah boss, he's really tough just like they said. He beat my Grovile with just one smack with his Umbreon. Hey Gary, this is our boss Havic. That over there is Jaques and the girl on the left is Emma, they're the three toughest competitors in the competition!"

Gary ignored most of Steve's words and looked at the person who they called boss. "So let me get this straight. Everyone here is only interested in the money of the Valmarian League?" Havic nodded with his creepy grin. The shades he was wearing made it impossible to tell his expression. The guy had three Pokeballs attached to his leather jacket and another three around his arm length gloves. "That's correct Mr. Oak. As you can see, the four of us are the strongest in the entire arena. I've been watching your progress everyday and from my sources, it seems that you don't really like that Ketchum boy" it was a good thing he only said Ash's last name or Gary would've been throwing a tantrum by now.

"Four? I thought there was five?"

Steve smirked, "If you join us, then it would be five"

Gary just returned a scowl. He hasn't even given his answer and they were already making him sound like a member of their gang ,"What's it to you?" he asked

The boss of the gang simply gave out a grin, "I've heard from Steve that you're willing to win and giving away all the money" the boy nodded back in return, "That's right"

"Now that's unusual for someone of your caliber" Emma said folding her arms.

Havic ignored her comment and went straight to business, "Anyway here's the deal. We want you to be our boss"

Gary raised up his brow and repeated what he said, "Your boss?!"

The gang smiled to finally see an expression on Gary's face. "I won't lie to you kid" Havic began as he jumped down from the crate he was sitting on, "You're way better than me. To tell you the truth you're our only hope we have in beating that Ketchum kid. I think you've watched the news a few days ago?"

Jaques let out a slight frown but it couldn't be seen due to his suit, "That little Pikachu has powers beyond any of us and we have a feeling that he might also use that Entei he caught to battle against us as well"

"I seriously doubt that" said Gary which caught the attention of the gang, "Ash doesn't use just any Pokemon that he thinks is strong. He uses those who he trusts and trained"

"You sound sure of yourself" Emma grinned

"Well you were never with him when he had to get his diapers changed. He may look like a grown kid but he's still a mama's boy"

Jaques then raised a brow in slight surprise. "If you know him well, then I'm sure you know all of his Pokemon"

"The only obvious choice he's gonna pick would be that Pikachu. Unless we know what Pokemons he's going to use then I guess we'll just to rely on instinct"

It was then Steve came into the lime light, "Leave that to me. I have my way of gathering information"

Havic let out a smirk and smiled to Gary, "Ok, the battle is set and the information is taken of. We'll have the advantage for sure"

Jaques: "All the hard obstacles are done. All we need now is you as our insurance. If you win… you give us the money and none of us will say a word" There was a short pause in the air. But then it was cut off when Gary gave out an evil grin which made the rest of the gang do the same, "Agreed... Now that we have those things in check we might as well beat the losers in the training ground. That might send them a message they won't forget"

"A strike on their morale… I'm impressed" Jaques said uncrossing his arms.

Havic smiled and waved his hand as a gesture of good will, "See? You're acting like the boss already! Oh and don't worry about the other competition. We have our own ways of knocking them off the game. Any questions…… **boss**?"

The five members of the gang giggled maniacally. Gary was now the boss of several of the most powerful Pokemon trainers in the land. What will he do with them? And what bizarre reasons would drive a proud and talented man to turn into a low life cheater?

**(Back at the Petalburg)**

After the gang had a light brunch they immediately head off to go shopping just like they planned yesterday. May and the other girls went from store to store, stand to stands and mall to mall to buy everything they thought would look nice on them. Richie and the other boys observed the sports shop and shoe stores. Poor Brock had to carry all the girls purchase and it was stacking up to reach the third floor.

It wasn't long until everyone began to feel exhausted. After endless purchase with no pit stops, Ash spotted a small café inside the shopping mall "Hey guys, there's a café over there. Why don't we stop and have something to eat. My treat" the others agreed and sat for nice cup of coco, tea and soda.

"It's great to be relaxing once in awhile. That battle at Kear's tower seemed just like a dream now, don't you agree?" Drew stated in a form of a question. Richie had to agree, "Yeah, having nothing to worry about and shopping really takes the stress off of you" having that battle in the tower really took a lot of strength out of them. Brock on the other hand was just carrying all the shopping bags, "Easy for you guys to say. You guys didn't have to carry a mountain of clothes!" they both ignored him and continued on talking, "Yes indeed… just like a dream" they said in unison.

Ash laughed at the man's demise and decided to help out, "Don't worry Brock, I'll help you carry those things for you" Brock took his appreciation and smiled, "Oh thank you Ash, you don't know how much that means to me right now!"

"Ash? The Pokemon trainer?" said one of the customers

"Did I hear him right?" said another

Ash quickly stopped Brock from saying another word by putting his hand onto his mouth, "Brock, you idiot! You nearly blew my cover!" he shouted quietly at the man in question. "Ahe it's nothing everyone, he's just a fan of Ash so it's not unusual for him to talk to everyone like that hehehe" the customers seemed to buy his story but who knows for how long.

"I knew Brock would someday get us in trouble" said May with a sigh. Anabel giggled, "I guess we'll just have to call you Hsa for awhile hehehe" "Well anyway, we should head towards the next store" said Duplica to Misty, "Yeah, why don't we meet back here in two hours?"

The others agreed and head off in different directions leaving Brock, Max and Ash with their entire luggage. "Well I guess we should head back to May's place and drop the cargo" said Brock. Just as the three of them finally got things organized the squinty-desperate-to-get-a-girlfriend-man spotted a beautiful girl coming out of the salon, "Oh my, beautiful ladies at six o'clock! You guys head home I'll stay here for awhile!" he immediately dump all of the shopping bags onto Ash and Max and left without a second thought. "WAAAAAAA!" were their last screams before being crushed by the weight of expensive mall products.

**(A few hours of pain later)**

After getting all the luggage in a stable position, Ash and Max head off back to the Pokemon gym to drop off the cargo. "This isn't right. I'm a famous champion who defeated the Elite 4s of every region, won the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Shinou league. And here I am carrying all these luggage like a servant!" Ash complained all the way back to the gym and Max couldn't but agree with him.

Ash sigh, "We're finally here. (knock knock) Hello, Caroline, Norman? Is anybody home?" no one replied on the other side.

"That's strange… hey what day is it?" Max asked his 'brother'

"Hmm… I think it's Sunday"

Max sighed and lowered his head,"Well that figures. My parents always go out on Sundays to the beach. There won't be any gym battles today. (picks out a key and unlocks the door) Alright, in we go"

After finally settling in the gym and dumping the shopping bags at one corner Ash and Max decided to rest in the living room and watch TV. Surprisingly, something interesting was on the news. Ash and Max went up close as a familiar face reappears in front of them.

It appears that something had happened in Oldale and Mauville city. Apparantly it had something to do with the White haired thieves which are now called the 'White Bandits'. Max hightened the volumn to hear the reporter's words.

"This is… (people yelling out orders)… reporting live at Mauville city where apparently the police chief will be giving out a press conference with the media. The news relates to the escaped prisoners who are members of a menacing gang now called the White Bandits. Earlier this week two of the members were arrested by the police with the assistance of a Pokemon trainer named Ash Ketchum. Despite this heroic act the two bandits known as Chaucer and Hagard have escaped almost as soon as they were captured. This is what the police chief Jenny had to say"

"Despite the facts that we know that these thieves are Pokemon trainers. We will not postpone the Valmarian All Out League. From what we've known so far from these thieves are that they are not to be trifled with and are extremely dangerous. Rest assured that we will find these Pokemon thieves very soon"

"Officer Jenny, Officer Jenny!" the journalist raised his hand up, "What are the connections between the White Bandits and the Pokemon trainer Ash Ketchum?"

"Well apparently I believe that they have no connections at all. From several witnesses that we've come across, they said that the meeting between Ash Ketchum and the thieves were just by accident. This can be confirmed by Nurse Joy from Oldale town who is currently in witness protection"

"You said before that some of the Pokemons that were stolen were returned to their owners?"

Jenny was relieved to have an easy question at last, "Yes, apparently Professor Samuel Oak from Pallet town had just recently received the stolen Pokemons and now most of the Pokemons that were stolen are properly returned to their owners"

"Excuse me officer, but do the thieves have any relation to the Pokemon madness that happened in Goldenrod city a month ago? From the reports, I heard that several of them were in the city when the Pokemons began to act wild"

The room was silent and Jenny was left speechless for a minute, "Well we're not sure ourselves. However your sources are correct. The White Bandits were in Goldenrod city when the madness occurred. This however can not prove anything of their relations and (an officer came by and whispered in her ears) Umm… thank you, that will be all for today"

Max switched off the TV as soon as the broadcast turned to another story. They were both shocked to know that their hard work had come to nothing. Ash laid back on the sofa trying to get this all in his thick skull but he was still having a hard time believing it as well. After all the trouble of defeating Chaucer and Hagard, they escaped right after they left the towns.

Max looked at his troubled brother and tried to cheer him up, "Hey don't worry Ash, I'm sure they'll catch those thieves some day" Ash didn't reply. He just looked at the ceiling as if he was in a trance, "Hey Ash, why don't you teach me something about Pokemon battle. You know, to give me a head start. You must've learned a lot of things went you went to Shinou" Ash smiled back, "Sure Max. Maybe a little practice would get my mind off them"

The two of them didn't have a battle but instead Ash gave him a small lecture on how he defeated each gym leaders back in Shinou. Even though strength was important in battle he needed more than just force. He needed strategy, skill, talents and many more. Just as he was explaining all the minor details to Max, Ash realized something. The three white haired thieves he encountered these past few weeks all had different traits. Chaucer was his first opponent and after looking back he realized that he relied too much on brute strength and that's what caused him to lose. Hagard on the other hand had powerful Pokemons that were more than capable to destroy cities but he relied on tactics rather than skills which hampered his Pokemons full use of their powers. Rosa on the other hand was a whole different story. She didn't use much of tactics or brute force but instead she used her Pokemons abilities to the maximum! Of all the three opponents Ash had faced, Rosa would be in his top category of dangerous trainers. However… some part of him wanted to challenge her into a battle.

"Uh… Ash, are you there brother?" Max snapped Ash back to reality as he was a bit lost in thought. "Huh? Oh yeah, uhhh where was I?"

**(Back at the mall)**

Dawn went through a large assortment of gadgets and gizmos to find the latest of Pokemon technology. Surprisingly, she found something that might just interest Ash. A small watch sat on a corner with minimal decorations on it. It would match perfectly with his original clothings. She remembered how Ash would lose track of time back in her home town.

Anabel didn't know much about Ash back during when they first battled at her Battle tower but she was able to find out many things from May and the other girls. Misty on the other hand was left out of the blues. She didn't have a single clue on what Ash even liked and she traveled even longer than any of them.

Suddenly, Richie came along with a bag of goods he bought from the chocolate store. "Hey Misty, Drew, Todd, Tracey and I are heading back to the gym. You wanna tag along?"

"Oh no thanks, I'll hang around a bit longer and see if there's anything I can buy" she hung her head a little bit. She had already spent most of her money in Goldenrod city and her sisters seemed to have forgotten to give her, her paycheck for running the Pokemon gym in their absence.

"Well, the rest of us will be heading back to the gym. We're gonna have a practice match before we head off to Valmarian" said Richie to his friends, "You're going to battle with Drew?" Misty asked which was only replied with a smile, "Yup! All the practice we do now can make a big difference when we battle at the Valmarian League. Right Drew?" the green haired boy gave out a thumbs up, "Absolutely, Ash wouldn't want to waste his time battling weaklings now would he?"

"Hey if you guys need a sparring partner, maybe my Pokemons can help out" Tracey recommended, "Yeah and I might get some good shots in battle!" Todd came in to the conversation, "Oh that reminds me, I need to get my camera fixed if I'm going to take any pictures"

They all smiled in agreement as Richie pointed at the exit, "Well then, we're off to the gym!"

"Yeah!!"

"Hey wait a minute!" the boys turned their heads to meet Dawn's smirking face, "If you guys are gonna have a practice match then I'm all for it!"

Anabel heard this and immediately agreed, "Me too. I need to stretch out my Alakazam and Metagross if they're ever gonna catch up"

Even Duplica was coming inm "A practice match huh? Alright then, I'm in. I'll show you guys the full potential of my Dittos! They're gonna blow you away!"

Richie let out a small laugh, "Ha! You wish! My Pokemons will beat you guys and girls for sure!"

"Don't judge a girl by their colors Richie Just because we look soft on the outside, we can really bite from the inside" May taunted him but Drew managed to counter it, "Palease, from your battle tactics? I wouldn't be surprised if you lost on the first round" the young Maple didn't take that last comment too well, "What was that?!" steam was now openly coming out of her ears, "Come over here and say that to my face Drew!!"

"Hey come on you two, we can settle our fight back at the gym" Richie tried to calm the young coordinator as the two rivalry began to fire up once again.

Duplica joined up and and tried to restrained her too, "That's right, and that's when I will defeat all of you!"

Dawn heard this and took that sentence the wrong way, "What?! Dream on! I'm better than all of you put together!"

"Umm… would you mind keeping it down guys? We're in a mall here" the fighting teens simply gave him a deathly glare. Seeing all those eyes, the young Pokemon watcher knew that it would be in his best health to keep his mouth shut.

Todd gave out a sweat drop and waved his hands in defense, "What Tracey was trying to say is that uh… if you want to find out who's better than we have to settle it at the gym. Right Tracey?" Tracey nodded in fear of the trainers. Just as they finally calmed down, they gave each other a silent eye to eye message. "I bet I can get to the gym before any of you" said Dawn silently.

"First pair to get there, gets to battle" whispered May,

"Last one to get there cleans up the mess" said Duplica.

They all nodded in agreement and by the time the clock of the mall rang, they dashed off in the same direction. Todd and Tracey had to follow them because they fear that if their battle goes unsupervised then there'll be a lot of damage to pay.

Misty was left behind in confusion on what just happened. First it was a friendly challenge then it came to a duel then it became an argument. "Now what was that all about?" she said to her Togepi which laughed cheerfully like its usual self.

"That's called a sign of respect" said a voice suddenly. Misty jumped from her position in surprise and faced back to the man who sneaked up on her her. "WAA! Brock? When did you get here?!" she was relieved to ask, "And what happened to your face?!" she was referring to the multiple slap marks and shoe prints on his shirt. The poor guy was pounded to a pulp by a mob of girls and to add to the pain, the boy friends of all the girls he asked out for a date stomped on him like a piece of trash. "It's a long story" he moaned out in pain, "Let me guess. Rejected again?" Misty sighed, "That… and much more" he moaned out again.

"However, that isn't the point right now. Where are the others off to?" Brock asked.

"Oh they went to challenge each other back at the gym. It makes you wonder how they get all those fighting spirit"

"Well, wherever they get it from there has to be a lot of it to get these guys to move. (alarm sound) What the?!"

A burglary had just taken place on the second floor of the mall but it wasn't just any kind of burglary… it was Pokemon burglary. Brock and Misty were sure that it had to be one of those Pokemon thieves again so they quickly got whatever stuff they bought and rushed towards the Pokemon day care center.

Upon arrival they witness the robbery as it happened before their very eyes. A man wearing a black cloak was just zapping three baby Pokemons into his Pokeball as he grinned at his victory. "They would make excellent servants for the master" he muttered to himself. It wasn't long until the original owners came by with anger blazing in their eyes.

"Hey give me back my Torchic!" said one of the rookie trainers

"And my Plusle and Minun!" said another trainer

Furo smirked back at them and released a Tyranitar to chase them away. The civilians began to panic as the Tyranitar was set loose to cause havoc around the mall. Brock knew that this was going to be bad so he sent out Gregguru to do battle. "Misty, stay back and stop that thief! I'll handle the Tyranitar!"

"But Brock…"

"Just GO! Hurry! There's not much time!" Brock could clearly see the girl still quivering in fear but now was not the time for being a coward. "Gregguru, I know I haven't used you in battle much but this time I could really use your help!" the frog like Pokemon had never seen its master so serious before but some how he liked it. Gregguru nodded in agreement and prepared to fight, "Thanks Gregguru! Alright, use mud slap attack Gregguru!" Gregguru leaped from the ground at an amazing speed and smacked Tyranitar by the face. It then landed on the other side of the mall with a smirk on its face.

The giant green Pokemon didn't take the blow lightly and knew he was facing with a strong opponent. It immediately fired out a hyper beam at Gregguru. The frog like Pokemon took the beam head on but it quickly recovered like a true professional, "Great work Gregguru! Now use Poison sting attack!" Gregguru fired out a barrage of stings from its mouth but they all bounced harmlessly on Tyranitar's shell like skin. "It looks like this battle is gonna be harder than I thought. Alright then, Sudowoodo, I choose you! (Sudowoodo appeared) Alright then! Sudowoodo, use slam attack! Gregguru, use your mud slap attack again!" the two Pokemons obeyed their master and ganged up on Tyranitar.

The large green Pokemon was taken down with a large slam on the ground. Furo heard the loud thud from the Pokemon day care center and knew his fifteen minute of infamy was up. He sucked up the last Pokemons that were in hiding into his Pokeball and prepared to leave. Just when he got to the Day care exit, Misty summoned out Politoed to prepare for battle, "Alright thief there's no way out! Give yourself up and I might just let you off easily!" she gave out a warning to him.

Furo grinned back and released a Torchic from its Pokeball. Misty thought that he was giving himself up but she was sadly mistaken. Furo held the Torchic up with one hand and dangled it right in front of her. "Take another step and this Torchic won't be seeing the next sun rise girl" Furo threatened Misty as he held the poor Pokemon by the hair on its head, "You wouldn't dare!"

"I'm capable of many things girl. Now recall your Pokemon and step aside before I do something that you might regret"

Misty recalled her Politoed and took a few steps back to the balcony. Furo walked out of the room unopposed. He then took a few steps near the balcony and grinned evilly like some sort of villain type. Misty didn't take one eye off of him as he slowly backed away towards the escalator.

"Catch…" he said suddenly

"Huh?"

Furo suddenly threw the Torchic off the balcony and straight towards Tyranitar which was still battling Brock's Pokemons. Without second thought, Misty jumped off the balcony and caught the Pokemon mere seconds before impact. Instead of landing on the solid ground she luckily fell into a fountain where Torchic was safe and unharmed.

"Misty, are you alright?!"

"Yeah... I'm fine... Brock look out!"

Tyranitar nearly rammed Brock out of his position with its tackle attack but amazingly he dodged it by a few inches. Brock yelled out another command to take down Tyranitar, "Sudowoodo, take it down with a flail attack! Gregguru, get over its head and block its eyes!"

By the time Gregguru got on top of Tyranitar it used its paws to block its vision. The Tyranitar immediately tried to shake Gregguru off until Sudowoodo knocked it unconscious with its attack. "Great work you guys! Maybe this time we can have some peace and quiet" Brock congratulated his Pokepals and returned them to their Pokeballs. He then quickly head over to Misty who was soaking wet by the fountain. "Are you ok?" Misty nodded her head in reply. She squeezed the water out of her hair.

A few moments later, the owner of Torchic came by and hugged her little Pokemon, relieved that it was safe and sound. "My Torchic! Thank you thank you thank you! I don't know what I would've done without him" Brock and Misty were glad to see at least one of the stolen Pokemon safe and sound.

"Hey, where did the thief go?"

"He got away when I jumped to save Torchic"

"Well there's nothing more we can do here. Let's go Misty"

But before they could even think of reaching the exit, Tyranitar rose from the ground once more with anger burning in its eyes. The trainer of the Torchic ran away at first sight. Brock wanted to bring out his Pokemons but he was still in shock. The giant Pokemon charged up its hyper beam and aimed it at the two trainers until… "Pikachu, volt tackle!" the yellow mouse rammed its body onto Tyranitar with a large jolt of electricity which caused the giant Pokemon to fall. A boy came running down from the entrance of the mall with a group of his friends and with his disguise still on. It was none other than…

"Ash!" they said in unison.

He smiled back at his friends, "Are you guys ok?" they nodded in reply, "Good, looks like we came here just in time"

With Tyranitar clearly taken out of the picture, an evil laugh came from the top floor of the mall. The trio looked at where it was coming from.

Furo was amused to see the three of them. He was even surprised to see his Tyranitar beaten so easily. "I see that the world hasn't changed much after all!" he began to speak with an evil laughing tone, "I must say that I'm impressed. I never thought the new generation would be so powerful"

"Come back down here and give all those Pokemons back! They don't belong to you!" Misty yelled out to the man.

But Furo just ignored her taunts and grinned, "As much as I'd love to, I cannot. My master has plans for these Pokemon and it would be rude if I left them unfulfilled. However, this battle has been quite entertaining so now I must bid you farewell"

Ash could feel a sudden anger burning within him. Who was this guy and why is he so angry at him. This was the first time they met but it felt like he has seen him from somewhere before. "Oh no you don't! Noctowl, I choose you! (Noctowl appears) Noctowl, take Bulbasaur and Cyndaquil and bring them to the top floor!" Noctowl grabbed the two Pokeballs and flew towards the highest floor of the mall. Furo was just about to reach the mall parking lot until Noctowl released Bulbasaur and Cyndaquil to block his path.

"What the?! This isn't good!" he ran towards the balcony, "Tyranitar, return!" he sucked up the Pokemon from the ground floor and released it at the top floor. Tyranitar was not in a condition of battling but it had very little choice. "Tyranitar, hold them off! Even if you half to waste your pathetic life!" Bulbasaur used its razor leaf to push the giant Pokemon back

The gang quickly made their way through the escalator which had already stopped due to the power shortage.

"Rose, go help them!" Richie pulled out Rose from its Pokeball and went to assist the two Pokemons doing battle.

Just when Bulbasaur and Cyndquil were fighting with Tyranitar, Furo decided to make a break for it and ran towards the nearest exit. It was then Noctowl came in and attacked him with its claws. "Get off of me you stupid bird! Get… get away from me!" but Noctowl paid little heed to his words and kept pecking his head and using its gust attack.

Without warning, Cyndaquil launched one of its flame thrower attacks and flung Tyranitar away. The giant Pokemon then accidentally shot its hyper beam towards Furo. The blast was so powerful that the whole balcony broke apart which caused him to fall off towards the ground. Dawn saw the man's near demise and summoned out her Beyleef, "Beyleef, use vine whip and catch him! Hurry!" the man was seconds away from the ground when the vine whip caught him. After realizing that he was now safe from the drop, Furo immediately shook off the vines and fell to the ground on his feet.

The police came in a few minutes later along with the owners of the stolen Pokemons. They were ready to beat that man into a pulp. "Stay back or I'll---" he reach for his Pokemon belt but then he realized that it was missing, "Looking for this?" Dawn dangled his belt on the second floor. Ash and the others were impressed by her use of Beyleef's abilities.

Jenny and a few police officers closed in on Furo who was sweating heavily. He lost his bargaining chip and now he was out of Pokemons. There was just simply no way out… or is it?

Furo was in a desperate situation so he had to use his weapon of last resort. He raised up his right arm and soon it began to glow red. Ash took a closer look and some how knew what was going to happen next, "Everyone get down!" but it was too late. Furo went berserk and fired a hyper beam attack from his arm. The police force panicked and began fleeing from the area. Once they were gone Furo aimed his attack onto Dawn. The girl from Shinou was in shock and was glued onto her place. She couldn't move.

Ash quickly saw this and quickly ran towards her. The moment she got in front of Dawn, his arm began to glow as well. The hyper beam smashed right at both of them causing a huge explosion.

"Ash!" the whole gang said in unison.

Misty ran towards the fire but Brock held her back, "Misy, no! It's too dangerous!"

"But what about Ash?! He could be hurt in there!"

"We can't save him if we put our own lives at risk!" Brock tried to reason with her.

It was a good thing the fog covered their sights. Because, what was about to happen within could never be explained to them.

Ash and Dawn were unscathed but the ground around them was devastated. Ash had just built a force field to protect him and Dawn. Furo's eyes couldn't possibly get even wider but it did. His hyper beam attack had no effect on the boy but how was that possible? No mere human could handle such an attack and live.

The shock wave of the impact destroyed Ash's fake glasses and made his hair to go all spikey again which ruined his disguise. Dawni was left unconscious near her Beyleef. Ash looked back and was about to put all of his anger at the cloaked man. "How dare you…" Ash muttered. "How dare you hurt my friends…!" Furo took a few steps back before finally getting a clear view of Ash. It was then Furo understood everything. The cloaked man was sweating and panting heavily but he was smiling. Smiling like a man who just found his dream. "I found you…" he said finally, "I finally found you!" he said again. Ash didn't and perhaps couldn't understand what the man was saying but he didn't care. He was going to beat the guy so badly not even his own mother would recognize him.

Just before they were about to give each other punches the darkness returned. Ash stopped in his position and was once again possessed by a sinister force. His pupils disappeared from sight. The tattoos on his right arm expanded even longer towards his chest. His hair now had silver lining which dangled beautifully down his face. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and reopened them with completely different colors. Those chocolate colored eyes were turned into blood shot red. The gust of power flowed endlessly off his body which caused all the electronic devices in the mall to go haywire.

The gang still couldn't see what was going on in the fog. Brock and the others saw the fire going quickly out of control. Tracey knew that this was bad so he immediately pulled the fire alarm. The sprinklers became active but even they were not enough to calm the heat. It was so hot that it makes Moltres's fire blast an ice berg. "Come on everyone, we'll get fried if we don't get out of here!" Richie led them towards the nearest exit without delay.

"What about Ash and Dawn? We can't just leave them in there!" May pleaded but Todd simply pushed her forward, "They'll be fine! But if we don't get out of here we'll be toast"

"But---"

Drew knew that this was gonna take forever to get the girls moving again so he tried to persuade them, "I know how you feel May, but our priority is getting out of here alive. Don't worry about them. Ash has a knack of getting out of tight situations and I think he's been through worst than this"

"But we---" Duplica was about to say something but Anabel interrupted, "Have some faith in him girls. He's not going let some fire stop him that easily" Duplica and May nodded and continued to the exit. They hope… not pray… hope… that Ash would come out alright.

However… Ash was not alright. He wasn't even there (mentally speaking)

"So… I see that you're finally awake… your majesty!" Furo said with a smirk.

"…"

"Come on Hsa. Don't you think you're holding this grudge against us for too long already? (…) Oh… the silent treatment. I'm hurt your majesty. (…) Now now, let's not be too hasty! We wouldn't want anyone getting hurt now would we? (…) Well I guess there's only one way to end this fiasco. Come forth, Tyranitar!"

Tyranitar once again appeared from its Pokeball and readied itself for battle. Even after taking so much damage it still had enough power for one more fight.

"You're going to use a Pokemon against me? How quaint… Tyranitar, hyper beam!"

The moment Tyranitar saw Hsa's face, it complied without second thought. The giant Pokemon turned on its master and began attacking him non-stop. Furo dodged all of its attacks with his agility but was then slammed down to the ground by Beyleef's razor leaf.

Furo slowly knelt down on the ground in great pain. The menacing evil look on his face disappeared as if he was now a completely different person. Hsa, ordered another wave of razor leaf against him but this time he took the blow whole heartedly. The cloak he wore was now torn to pieces. Why did he just knelt there? He could've just moved out of the way already. Was he some how trying to get the boy's attention?

The moment Hsa noticed that Furo wasn't retaliating he stopped Beyleef from attacking. The cloaked man was glad that he finally got his attention. "Gah! (gasp) I should have known… that you would still hate us… for what we did. But I never thought…that it would be… so painful… your majesty" The caped man stood up clutching his stomach. The rage built up in Hsa even more and nothing could compare to what he was about to do. "Don't waste your energy on me your highness… I'm not worth it. I'm just an illusion created so that you wouldn't disappear" Furo took a few steps closer and closer to Ash when he saw the dark man… melting?

"Hsa, I know what I did is unforgivable… but you must understand that I did not do it by choice… I was forced to do it and---" Hsa didn't want to listen to the man's excuses so he ordered Tyranitar to fire another hyper beam but he dodged it by a millimeter,

"Listen to me your highness! Don't linger on this world with anger and hate! You have to move on and rest in peace! (…) Why won't you listen?!" Hsa ordered another hyper beam which nearly hit Furo, "The body you posses is not you! You should know that by now! That boy has nothing to do with this war! Will you drag an innocent life into this as well?!"

Hsa finally let out an emotion appear on his face. It was a mark of confusion but it seemed to be working. Words began to cram up his mind of what happened all those years ago. Hatred, anger, pain, sadness, fear… these emotions were the only thing he was able to conjure up from the back of his mind. The smell of burning rubble, the sound of steel and iron clashing together and the screams… the screams… they were all there.

Just when the young king was about to take some sense into his mind, an explosion broke up the moment and Hsa got right back into his bad side. Furo tried to reason with him again but his words weren't getting through.

"Stop it!" Hsa said out finally. Furo was amazed that he was able to get him to talk, "I'm not the boy you once knew two million years ago. I was young and easily manipulated by you and every member of the council. You abused my powers and used me as a puppet on the throne. I thought I was doing the right thing but it wasn't until she came to my life that my eyes were opened"

"Freya…" Furo muttered out to himself

"I finally got to think for myself. I did not need the council on that day forward. I was happy and everyone was happy. Humans and Pokemon alike. The world was great place for everyone…" every word that came through his mouth seemed like a life time of pain for Hsa. Tears began running through his eyes like two streams of waterfall. This made Furo felt like a knife of pure guilt just stabbed his heart. "And you…" Hsa continued, "You took everything from me!! You took my friends!" the flames around carried themselves away from Hsa, as if they were afraid of him. "You took my kingdom!" the earth began to quiver like an avalanche was coming, "You took her… away from me" the light bulbs on the ceiling wall and the surrounding shops began popping with an over burst of electricity. The mall was now filled with the essence of fire. Furo gazed back at his once proud king with tears swelling up his eyes.

"Hsa… I---"

"Do not speak to me! I never want to hear another word from you Furo…" with those final words, Hsa placed Hikari on his back and began walking away with Bayleef and Tyranitar behind him.

The cloaked man couldn't hold back his tears any longer. What could he have possibly done to make someone hate him for millenniums? However… by the time Hsa walked out of the mall, smoke began rising from Furo's body. It was then he knew that his mission was finished.

"I see… so my time is up now eh? Well… I guess I couldn't get to him anyway" his body slowly disbursed into the air and blend in with the oxygen around. The tears that fell from his eyes were real though.

"Your highness… believe me when me when I speak for every member of the council... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry…" was all that he was able to say before vanishing into nothingness.

**(Temple Ruins, Meditation room)**

Pallet just finished putting a crystal piece together. The million pieces scattered before him wasn't easy to repair. It was like a giant jigsaw puzzle with hundreds of pieces missing from the box.

Just as he finally got ¼ of the crystal back together, one of five burning torches on the lft side of the room went out. This was clearly a sign of one of his illusions defeat.

"So… Furo is defeated……"

**(Outside the mall)**

The fire department finally arrived with a dozen police cars. The Pokemon trainers around lend assistance to the peacekeeping force by sending out their Earth and Water Pokemons. Several Golems threw in sand to keep the fire from spreading while a dozen Water firing Pokemons cool the mall down. Misty and the others were amongst them. Many of the fire men and police officers were in the area and barely anyone could tell what the other person was saying.

"We need some water this way!"

"Coming! Just wait a minute! Get these people out of here!"

"Alright, everyone who isn't a Pokemon trainer please leave the area. This place is becoming too dangerous!"

"Officer Jeny! We just got word that there are still two people stuck inside the mall!"

"What?! We'll have to organize a rescue team! Get me the fire captain, he'll know what to do! (explosion x 3) Oh my!"

"Oh no! Ash!" the gang jolted up from their sitting positions and glared at the burning building.

The fire spread even further across the mall making it impossible to enter or exit without taking severe burn marks. The choppers above dropped down cold ice water to keep the firing from spreading to other buildings but the mall itself wasn't going to cool down any time soon. Brock and the others were terrified and hope that the worst part had not happened.

Just when all hope of Ash and Dawn's survival seemed lost, two figures stood amidst the smoke. Misty could recognize that hairstyle anywhere at any time. The whole gang saw the young trainer and the Shinou girl walked out of the blazing inferno with barely much of scratch and quickly ran to aid them. Ash barely knew what was going on since Hsa just recently left his body at a weakened state. The whole gang was relieved to see their two friends safe and sound.

A few minutes after they got out of the burning mall, Ash's visions began to blur and the only thing he could remember from that point on, was seeing his friends run towards him. He fell to the ground unconscious.


	22. The 2nd Detour

**Chapter 22: The 2nd Detour: Team Rocket Strikes Back! **

Tick tock tick tock tick tock… the sound of that alarm clock echoed through the ear like an annoying fly that wouldn't go away. "Pika" what was that noise? "Pikapi" what animal could be making that sweet sound? "Pikachu"

Ash slowly opened his weary and tired eyes. The wind flowed through the window making a gentle breeze around his face. The rays were a little bright so he had to adjust his vision to the normal light. By the time he fully regained consciousness he saw Pikachu looking down on him. "Oh… hey buddy. Did ya miss me?" (Pikapi!) the little yellow mouse gave his master a small hug around the neck. Ash felt a little sore around the back but nothing he couldn't handle. Actually, he felt great! Perhaps a little sleep was all he ever needed. The boy looked at his surrounding and noticed that he was back in Petalburg city gym. If his mind was still in tact then this must be the family room.

A few minutes later, Misty came in with a tray of food. It was clear on her face that she was surprised to see Ash awake at this time of day. "Well sleepy head, it looks like you're up after all"

"Oh hey Misty, what time is it?" said the boy in a sleepy manner

"A good time for you to wake up" was her reply, "Drew managed to get us tickets for a trip to Valmarian city tonight. If you didn't wake up we'll have to catch next week's cruise"

"That's great! Hey is that for me? (he was referring to the food tray)"

Misty stood proudly and handed it to him, "I made it myself. I call it 'Wake up meal' so don't laugh"

"Well it sure can wake me up! Gimme gimme gimme… (right arm cracks) Yeow! Ouch ouch ouch!"

Misty immediately got back into a nurse mode and began putting him back down to bed, "Don't move Ash! You haven't fully recovered yet!"

"Owwwww… my back feels all itchy"

"That's because you got sun burn! You really had me worried back there. I tell you, if you get caught in a burning mall again don't expect me to be there all the time!"

"Sunburn? Mall? Burning?" those words seemed like alien to him. But when his memories began coming back together he gasped, "Oh no, the Pokemons!"

"Don't worry about them" Misty waved him off, "They're all safe at the Pokemon center. Now you just sit back and eat mister! Now… say ahh"

Ash blushed back as she fed a piece of potato. He crunched the food in his mouth and gave out his usual golden smile. "Hey… this is really good Misty! This is even better than my mushroom and pork meal (munch munch munch) Oh this is great!" the Cerulean gym leader blushed at his compliment. "Compared to your other cooking this is really a big change" Misty's loving and caring reaction vanished and was now replaced with a vein throbbing on her forehead, "I remember last time when you gave me and Brock that cake you made. Oh boy, did we have a stomach ache for weeks. Or that time when you tried making something to eat when Brock was sick. Pikachu was lucky he to be having Pokechow hahahaha"

WHAM!!!

That was the sound of Misty's mallet meeting his head. Ash head fell onto the plate "Well don't expect me to cook for you any time soon mister!" Ash pulled himself together after wiping all the food of his face, "Hey! I was only telling the truth!"

"Well you could've just bend the truth a little bit!"

"Aha! So you admit that your cooking was bad!"

"What are you talking about? My cooking was perfect! And I made that cake with my sisters so who knows what kind of poison they put in it!"

"The only poison I see right now is you"

"Why you little! I'm gonna---" their argument was interrupted when a knock was heard from the door, "Well it looks like you're feeling a lot better" it was Brock

Ash was glad to see him friend up and safe, "Oh hey Brock how's everybody?" the squinty eyed man just gestured with his head, "They're still sleeping. You put on quite a stunt back there Ash, maybe you should stay in Petalburg city for awhile"

"No way Brock. The Valmarian city is just around the corner and I'm not gonna miss it. Besides, we've wasted enough time and I want to see how Gary's doing in the Valmarian gym"

"Maybe you should listen to him Ash" Misty pleaded him, "You've been through a lot in this journey and I think we should take things slower"

"Ha! And lose my focus? No way! Right Pikachu? (Pika pika) That's right, we'll go to the Valmarian stadium and we're gonna win that cup for sure!"

"Still with high determination huh?" Brock sighed, "Well that's the Ash we all know and love. (snore) Well it looks like Dawn is ok. She's more lucky that you"

He was right. Ash was full of wounds and burn marks but Dawn barely had a scar, she practically left that blazing mall inferno unscathed.

A few minutes later, Ash got out of bed and once again resumed his training. Everyone who were awake were deeply moved by the boy's dedication. Ever since he started this journey, all he could ever think about was getting to Valmarian city as quickly as possible and training. Four years ago Ash was a reckless trainer who knew only the basics of raising and training Pokemons but during those four years he was able to gain something more than just badges and trophies. He gained knowledge, experience... why he even came close to death several times already. He probably went through the gates of the afterlife back and forth so many times even the gate keeper would probably be saying **_"Would you make up your mind already?!"_**

Ash called out Totodile and Cyndaquil to do battle with each other. He needed to get his Pokemons to become even stronger but not just by strength but against their elemental weaknesses. Duplica watched from the window as she was busy helping with the packings. A single touch of Bulbasaur's razor leaf was enough to cut a giant rock in half and Pikachu's lightning bolt attack could power an entire city for a whole year. Even after being so powerful Ash wouldn't stop. He wanted to become even stronger than himself. He wanted to prove something, to make a statement of some sort to someone.

Anabel was at the Pokemart buying some supplies for the long sea trip ahead of them. There was a long line at the cash register due to the calculator being broken and all. She waited patiently until her cell phone rang, "Hello, this is Anabel speaking"

"Hey Anabel, how's Petalburg city life?" said the person on the other line

"Oh hey Scott, it's great here. We had a little bad run but we're all fine"

Scott seemed to be in a good mood on the other side of the communication. "Well that's good. How's Ash by the way?"

It was question that it seemed like he knew the answer already but she replied neither way, "He's uh fine… why?" Scott giggled back at her, "Oh nothing. It's just an old man's suspicions" he giggled again, "Hey wait a minute, how did you know I was in Petalburg city?" she asked. "I watch the news Anabel. I saw you and the others in that accident at the mall. I hope none of you are hurt"

"Oh don't worry about me. Ash got some burns but nothing too serious. He's even gone back to his training back at the gym" Anabel was so preoccupied by the conversation that she didn't even know that the line was moving. "Well that's Ash for you. No matter what you do there's nothing in this world that's gonna stop him. Oh and one other thing… try not to get yourself in trouble ok. The Frontier Brain still needs you Anabel"

"Yes Scott, I'll be careful. And don't worry about anything. I got Espeon, Alakazam and Metagross back so I should be fine"

**Time Skip (Afternoon)**

After a few spars and practices, Ash and his Pokemons think that they had enough for one day. Richie and Drew joined him not long before he stopped and boy were they exhausted. It was amazing how Ash could have so much stamina in such a small body. Brock saw the eager competitors train so hard that it seemed like an honor and a privilege to make them a little snack.

"Hey Drew, when is the boat leaving for Valmarian city?" Ash asked his green haired friend. Drew took a look at the ticket he had with him and read the time of departure, "At nine tonight. Don't expect anything like the S.S Notilus ok. That time was lucky since my dad was friend of the captain" they all gave out a sweat drop as they were hoping to have that kind of a VIP trip again.

Just as time past by like a moon long since past Max came to the gang. "Hey guys, how's training?"

"Just peachy" said Richie

"Nothing too rough I suppose" said Drew

"I think I'll go for one more round (Pikachu) Oh come one Pikachu. If you keep up like that then I guess we'll have to cut you down on the Pokeblocks"

"Pika pika! Pikachu!" (Oh come on! Food has nothing to do with exercise!)

Richie chukled at the the two, "I think your Pikachu doesn't quite agree hehehe" he said. Ash stood up and laughed back at his friends, "Ok buddy, you stay here and rest. I'll run a few more rounds around the gym before we leave for Valmarian" he then left without another word. Richie, Drew, Max and the other Pokemons that were out fell right back on the soft grass completely exhausted.

They all gaze at the clouds above and the skies beyond. It was still a wonder why Ash liked to gaze at the sky so much but they began to understand why. It was endless and infinite. It was flawless in every way. It was beautiful and majestic. As the three humans gaze at the sky, Max popped out a question, "Hey Richie, what will you do when you get to Valmarian?"

Richie seemed confused by that question but he decided to play along, "Well, the first thing I would do would be to get my Pokemons in the Pokemon center for a check up. Then maybe after that I'll probably go register at the stadium"

"Oh… I see. How about you Drew?"

"The same I guess. Then maybe after that I'll probably go and find something to eat. By the time we get there we'll be having nothing but sea food for the rest of the trip"

"I see…"

The questions Max asked seemed to be just time staller. There was something bothering him and the two teenagers could see it even if he didn't express it in his face. "What about you Max?" Richie asked, "What are you gonna do when you get to Valmarian city?"

"Oh I won't be going. I'm staying here to help dad with the gym"

The 'WHAT' expression appeared on their faces like a lightning in a sunny day. None of them knew that Max was going to be staying behind so this caught them by surprise. They felt sorry for the little boy. Missing the show that only comes every five years is like missing a big part of your life in an endless cycle. "Sorry Max. We didn't know…" Richie apologized with a frown, "There's no need to apologize" Max stood up from the ground. He looked into the deep wide open sky and forced a smile off of his face. Richie and Drew looked at the young boy who seemed to be in deep thought. They would not understand how it feels like to have a brother who isn't related to you by blood but they understand how it feels like to be left out on such an important moment. To let the galaxy move on without you is almost like being forgotten by everyone.

"I... I'm just so happy right now (sob) I finally came home after such a long trip and… I got a brother who's a famous trainer around the world. I got a dad who's also famous and I made so many friends that I could barely count" Max put all of his effort to hold back the emotional tears that was forcing its way out but eventually he lost. "It's just that… that… that I wanted to see him… see him become a Pokemon master" the tears fell down his cheeks like a tsunami. Each time he finishes a phrase he sniffs back, "I want to see him at the stadium (sniff) I want to see him (sniff) giving everything he's got on that field (sniff) I want to let him know that… I would be cheering him at the stands (sniff) I want to say to him before he goes into every battle… I wanted to say… I wanted to say… 'Brother… do your best' (sniff)"

No one dared to say a word. Max let out an emotion so heart felt that it radiated so far the whole region would feel it. Ash had left a strong bond with this young boy. A bond so great that not even death itself can't break them apart. Perhaps it was fate… perhaps it was just a coincidence, perhaps even just a slight of destiny. But Max didn't care… because no matter what happens now… Max would always be grateful to have met his brother.

Ash soon came by after a single lap around the gym, "Hey Max I---"

"Shut up! I don't want to listen!" Max cut him off. The boy was sad and angry at the same time but these two feelings don't mix very well together so it caused a catastrophic rage inside of him.

Max didn't want to face Ash right now. The moment he caught a glance of him he immediately ran away from the group and back into his house. Duplica saw him walk pass her without a word. However the feeling that Max presented was most at astounding. She never felt something so strong from someone so small but this feeling also made her feel… a bit sad. The boy locked himself in his room for the rest of the afternoon.

Ash felt confused, "What happened?" sadly the others didn't have an answer that would satisfy him.

**(On board the Scarlet, Training room)**

Hagard placed the last piece of armor on a Linoone. The little Pokemon nodded and smiled just like its usual self. The Team Rocket trainers stood ready to put their Pokemons to battle. Domino and Wendy insisted that they made sure that the armor was good enough to witstand against anything so they made a little training routine for Hagard to put it to the test.

The two female villains stood in a protected room overlooking a small battlefield. Domino spoke through the microphone, "Alright silver, it's time we put those new toys to the test. You'll be fighting some of our strongest Pokemons so don't be surprised if one or two of you should get hurt"

Hagard didn't even look back at them, instead he just gave his Pokemons (Ursaring, Linoone and Kagaskhan) a pat on the back. "Teh… it's only them I'm worried about" he muttered silently to his companions. Ursaring smirked and grinned back at them.

"That guy sure is picky with his Pokemons" said Domino to her partner Wendy

"You said it. But it's kind of stange though. The Pokemons he picked out are all normal type. They don't have any weaknesses or strengths"

"It doesn't matter really. What I want to know that his armor works or not. Let's see how our little 'silver' managed to train his Pokemons (goes to the mic) BEGIN!"

The moment she send out the starting sign, Hagard sent out Ursaring to do battle. The bear like Pokemon stared at its opponent and let it attack first. There was no need for worries right now…

**(Five minutes later)**

The last of the Pokemons of the Team Rocket professionals fell to the ground badly wounded and unconscious. Ursaring just stood at the same spot ever since this began. It yawned with boredom and smirked at its victory. Hagard and his other Pokemons were just sitting back and gazing out the window. The zeplin hovered over the forest near Petalburg city. It distant inself quite well so it was hard for anyone to spot it.

Domino and Wendy were deeply impressed with the Pokemons training process. They analyzed the Pokemons battle armor and were estatic to see the results. With an army of Team Rockets and with their newly improved Pokemons they were now strong enough to take on the whole world. "Very good 'silver' I'm amazed with the results. Have your Pokemons rest and come and meet us at the dining hall" Domino spoke through the mic and left the room with Wendy. Hagard did just as he was told and put his Pokemons back into their Pokeballs.

"So what now Domino? Now that we have an army of highly trained Pokemons, what will be our first target?" Wendy asked

A thief and crook are very different professions but Domino was probably a blend of the two. She grinned back at her partner and held out a torn page from the news paper. Wendy took a good look at the headlines, "Hmm… bank move out at Petalburg? Wait a minute! Domino, are you saying---"

"That's right. This is gonna be our first big blow out! The bank is transfering the money to Valmarian city to help prepare for the League" Domino flicked her fingers and snap the torn page back into her hands.

"Then that means…"

"That's right partner… we're through with coins and cash oh no… we're going for the motherload!"

Wendy grinned back at her with money signs in her eyes. The sound 'ka-ching' popped out in her head like a cash register just opened up in front of her. "Oh boy! We're gonna be rich! No not rich… filthy rich mwahahaha" and so the two of those villainess laughed long into the day. They immediately set course for Petalburg city where they would make the greatest heist in the course of history, the heist that might just cripple the Valmarian League and crush Ash's dream like a fragile vase.

**(Time Skip 6:13 PM At Petalburg gym) (4 hours before departure)**

"Everyone, dinner's ready!" Caroline yelled out to the house. In just a few seconds the table was filled and to their surprise, there was a feast waiting for them. Caroline used up every inch of her cooking skills and made a lot more than ten hungry families combined but she had a feeling that she had too. You could probably say it was a mother's instinct or that of sort. Ash and the other boys were sweating heavily so they changed before coming down to eat.

On that evening, everything seemed so surreal. Everyone was smiling happily like they had not a care in the world. Time had stopped for everyone, nothing there could truly or even possibly be real or could it? Who knows… and who would care? If anyone could live in a world full of happiness and leave all your stress behind who would want to leave? Some say that running away from your problems isn't right, but what is wrong about it? If this day could last just a little bit longer or even better…… could it last…… forever? These were the thoughts than through everyone's mind. Like they say 'great minds think alike'.

"Ash? Ash! Hello, is anyone in there?" Misty waved her hand in front of the boy's face dragging him back to reality. "Hey what's wrong Ash? You look like you were dozing off again"

"I was? I guess it happens to all of us" he took another bite off his spoon.

Misty was really getting annoyed with all of his lame excuses, "Yeah, sure… I've known you to be one of the worst liars on the planet"

"I guess that's what makes him a nice person" Dawn added a compliment to the insult.

"Oh Dawn , are you feeling any better now? You were out for quite awhile back there" asked the young Pokemon trainer to his friend. The Shinou girl simply raised up her arm and winked back at him, "No problem! After what you've been teaching me, I've learned to take things more seriously! That's why I'm going to the Valmarian League and prove to everyone that girls from Shinou are winners mwahahaha!"

"Ahe heh heh heh…" Ash gave out a fake laugh as he sweat dropped on his forehead, _"Maybe teaching her the secret of my determination was probably too much heh heh heh"_

"Well we still have plenty of time before the boat heads out. So what do you say we party for future memory's sake" Brock recommended which was followed by a...

"Yeah!" they all said in unison

And so once again the gang decided to crash down on everything they had. Since the festival was still on in the city, the neighbors weren't around to be bothered by the music Drew turned up. Dawn let out Piplup and Buneary dance together like two happy friends. Pikachu and Togepi were also dancing till they drop. It was a good thing that Norman's house was a big place or else the whole house would've been cramped and they would be forced to rent out a hotel. The night was longer than anyone expected it to be. Before they knew it, it was already a quarter past nine and their boat trip was leaving at ten o'clock sharp.

Tracey: "Hey everyone, we gotta jet or the boat will be leaving without us!"

They just realized that time went by so fast no one bothered to notice. They immediately packed up their supplies and belongings and hurried to the front of the house. Max, Norman and Caroline were all there to say their farewells. May was the last to come out because she wanted to bring her room with her. Caroline refitted her clothes and food and survival kits in a smaller bag just so that she wouldn't have to pay extra for the luggage.

"Well then, I guess we'll be seeing you on TV huh?" Norman gave out one of his trademark smiles which always seemed to please his female fans. "Don't forget everyone: Always give it your best!" he then gave out a thumbs up for morale support.

Caroline was next to give out her blessings, "Well you all behave and please avoid doing anything reckless. I know its too much to ask for but please take care of my little May ok Ash?" wait a minute… does that consider to be a blessing?

"Mom! I can take care of myself you know!" May blushed openly like a ripe tomato.

"Oh but May. Ash is quite a strong boy and knowing that he's with you makes me feel a whole lot better" Caroline was grinning at her daughter like some wicked witch. She knew her daughter too well because when she got home from Johto, the only thing she could talk about was Ash. She remembered the time when she and Max cheered Ash at the stands when he finally won the Hoenn league. Caroline remembered the look in her eyes. The sparkle that was in her pupils was even stronger than the stars we see at night. "Well anyway" she continued, "Please do take care of her and everyone else and… good luck on your journey"

Max was the last on the farewell line. "Umm… uh… umm… I uh… aheh heh heh… I don't really know how to start a good farewell so um…" before he could even begin, May came in and hugged her brother, "Don't you worry little bro. I know that you'll be watching all the way"

"Well I'm not much of 'good bye' person my self so i have nothing to say" Drew looked back into the dark sky hoping to take his mind off things for awhile.

Duplica and Anabel gave out smiles to keep the boy from crying again. It wasn't long then until Ash was right in front of him, "Hey little bro" it was a little hard to accept those words from him. That afternoon he yelled at him for no reason. He was angry at himself for shouting at him. He wouldn't be surprised if Ash never spoke to him for a little while. No one wanted to say anything at that moment.

Ash gave out his usual golden smile and lowered his head to meet Max face to face. It was then he realized that his little brother had grown a few inches taller than before. "I'll see you soon…" was all that he said before leaving. All of them seemed a little surprised by this act. 'I'll see you soon?' that's it? No hugs, long good byes?

After that they slowly walked away… waving their hands at the family they left. They seemed to go more and more distant until they reached a point where they could barely be seen. The three of them (Norman, Caroline and Max) stood out there and waited… waiting for something to happen.

An hour passed by and the gang had already made it to the docks. No one knew how to feel right now. Some felt a little sad of leaving a silent MVP behind and some just wanted to move on. The horn on the boat sounded out giving an impression that it will be leaving soon. The waiting line began to board the boat. Many of them were Pokemon trainers since this boat was the only one heading to Valmarian tonight and none of them could afford to stay any longer.

A few minutes before they got into the boat, Duplica noticed a heavily armored car with three police cars escorting it. Everyone looked at the unusual sight. Officer Jenny was again in command of the escort and began ordering the officers to secure the area. The armored truck drivers came out began stuffing large bags into the cargo area of the boat. Everyone seemed to wonder what was going on but it looked like Drew had all the answers, "That must be the bank withdrawal…" he said. "Bank withdrawal?" they said in unison.

"That money over there is being withdrawed by the city of Valmarian. They're gonna use it to prepare for the League and all other necessary things. I don't really know the details but I that's the gist of it"

"Wow… I never knew holding a Pokemon league could be so expensive!" Duplica said as the bags of money kept pilling up.

Anabel agreed as well, "That's one part of reality that we missed. I've never been to Valmarian city myself but I heard that it was a quiet place"

Tracey thought for a moment and said to the gang, "I've been there a few times. Believe it or not, the only time Valmarian city is ever busy is during the three months period of the League. It's actually a quiet place for a city"

"My friends told me it was huge, but there were only about two or three hundred people living in that place"

"I guess fame only comes once in a long while huh?" said Richie

"Hey wait a minute… where's Ash?" Misty asked

It seemed oddly quiet if Ash were around. By now he would be jumping and yelling how excited it was to finally get to his destination. The gang looked around for him and finally they noticed Ash under one of the street lights looking at his newly given watch. Misty went to his side, "Hey Ash, it's almost time for us to leave"

The boy noticed his best friend and smiled. He looked at his watch one more time and looked back at the stars. "Is something wrong Ash?" Misty asked with a worried tone

"Huh? Oh no it's nothing, I'm just waiting for our MVP"

"MVP? Who?"

"Oh you'll see… you'll see"

**(Back at Petalburg gym)**

Caroline and Norman waited at the entrance. They saw Max entered the house and sat on the sofa watching some comedy show. He barely paid attention to the lame act that was on but instead he was just lost in thought. Caroline came by and tried to cheer the little boy up, but the boy seemed to be locked in his own world, "Hey Max, do you want a snack? Max? Max" the voice faded from his ear and vanished. Max was now in his mind… thinking of what he could've done. He should've said something but what could he say? 'Take me with you?' no that wouldn't work. He traveled down in darkness to find something… anything that would release him from this mind numbing torture. It was he saw... a light. Not just any light…… but the light and sound of television. He looked at it and saw that time when he defeated the Hoenn league and became champion. The moves he used, the orders he gave out, the undying determination that lit like a million suns put together and the move he did at the finally showdown.

**(Max's Dream)**

Ash flipped his hat in reverse when he finally faced his last opponent. The score was 4 to 5 and Ash was on the losing side. His Pikachu was out and the only Pokemon he had left with him was Aipom. His opponent on the other hand had two strong Pokemons that seemed strong enough to take on the world. The moment Ash did his signature move the tide quickly turned. His opponent recognized that move anywhere and was now paralyzed for moment. Ash took the opportunity and knocked the score to a tie. His Aipom looked weak and was on the verge of collapsing but Ash had faith in his little monkey like friend. The opponent sent his most powerful Pokemon and with all the greatest wonders of the world he won! The crowd went wild with the sudden turn of events. A lot of people were betting on Ash to lose but he pulled it off. Ash went down to congratulate his Pokemons first hand and held it out so the whole stadium could see him. Delia and Professor Oak couldn't have been more proud to him. A single boy who came out of nowhere and defeated every opponent that stood before him and now… he's won nearly every trophy this world had to offer in a Pokemon tournament. It was then those last words that he gave out at the closing ceremony.

"So Mr. Ketchum, what is your secret in your victory?"

"Secret? Well uh… I don't think there is a secret. (Pikachu!) (Ai pom pom!) Hahaha! Well I know that my Pokemons did everything. I just gave them some guidelines, they deserve most of the credit"

"So you're saying that your Pokemons are the key to success?"

"Huh? Well that might be a part of it but… I think my secret would be to… Not give up! And move forward! No matter how far the goal maybe, you got to go and grab it! Because you're not going to get anything if you just stay in one place!"

**(End of Dream)**

Max's eyes widened as he heard those words repeated over and over again in his mind. It was as if the TV was speaking to him. The questions that were left stuck in his brain received all the answers from one simple phrase. He looked outside the window and quickly ran out of the house. The boy couldn't hold back any longer. He needed to say something, even though his brother wouldn't hear it now he believed that it would echo somewhere along the way.

"Brother! Do your best!!!!!" he yelled out to the top of his lunges that everyone in the city would hear it. "I'll be cheering for you!!!!" he shouted out over and over again.

Norman and Caroline heard their little boy yelling out with a smile on his face. It was then that they truly broke down.

"Hey Max, think fast!" Norman threw a back pack to him which he caught just in time. "There's food, water and a change of clothes in there and… you might also want to take your lap top. I'm sure it'll be handy sooner or later"

A smile crept upon Max's face. Was this a dream? Was he really saying those things? The heart warming smile came back to his face once more, "Go on now. There's only an hour left before the boat leaves the port" Caroline came by to cheer up her son. Max didn't know how to reply this event. His head was full of confusion right now and all the answered questions seemed to be replaced with more questions but Norman digressed. He patted Max on the shoulder and whispered into his ear, "Go Max… go… and learn from the greatest Pokemon Master in the world" and with that, Max gave out a father and son loving hug. He hugged back and they stayed like that for a few moments before breaking apart.

Just as Max was in the distance… he turned back to see his parents and said… "Mom, Dad, I'll see ya later!" and with that he was gone.

Caroline and Norman stood there and watch as their son followed his dream… his dream to learn from the best. Caroline let out sob from her nose. "Hey, don't worry about him. He's a strong boy" Norman tried to cheer up his wife but he failed,

"No, it's not that" Caroline had tears falling down her face, "It's just that… when Ash and the others came into the house. I felt like they were all my children. Four days ago, they returned to our house all tired after a long journey. After that, they had a party which we all enjoyed and now… and now… they left us. Oh Norman, why do children have to grow up?!"

"Now now dear. Don't worry. They'll return to us. This is their 2nd home after all" he stroked her gentle hair softly down till the end. It was a very romantic moment until an idea popped out of her head.

"Norman, let's have another baby!"

"WHAT!!!!!!!!!?"

**(Time Skip, At the Docks 9:45 PM Under the street light) (15 minutes until departure)**

"Ash, the boat's leaving!" Misty tried to pull him but the young trainer wasn't about to give up hope. "Just ten more minutes Misty. I know he'll be here!"

"Hey Ash, come on! The boat's leaving in ten minutes!" Brock yelled out

"If you don't get on now, you'll be left behind!" Anabel added

Misty wanted to pull Ash by the ear but with one look at the boy's determined and confident eyes, she knew that the boy was going to wait... no matter what. "Ash…"

He gave out his trademark smile and looked back at Misty, "Don't worry. Ten minutes will be plenty of time for him to get here"

'Time' that the first time Ash wasn't worried about time. He always wanted to go to Valmarian city faster than anyone but it seemed like none of that really mattered now. He was going to wait right there. He was going to wait even if it would take him a life time. He wouldn't leave because… because he had faith in that person, just as that person has faith… in him.

Misty was now getting annoyed but some how deep inside… she understood, "Well it's your dead liner don't expect me to---" she was cut off when she saw a kid running towards them, "Huh? Hey is that?"

"Wait for me!!!!!" it was Max… who else could it be…… wait…… don't answer that.

"Whoa! Max, what took you so long?" Ash seemed to be acting pretty normal for this kind of event. But the time of quick hellos were cut a little short. The horn of the boat sounded as it departed from the pier. "Ash!!" Brock yelled out to them.

"Let's save the reunion later! We got to go!" Misty pulled both of them towards the landing pier boarded the boat before it went too far away.

They panted heavily upon arriving at the bridge of ship. A few more minutes there and they would've been left behind by the boat. Ash and Max laughed in excitement. Misty and the others were happy for Ash. To have their little mascot back with them truly gave them that morale support that would so desperately needed in Valmarian. With their hellos said, Ash went to the front of the ship along with the others and stared at their next destination. Ash pointed his finger at the small island a few miles off and said, "Next stop: Valmarian city!"

Just as he ushered those words from his mouth the ship that was running at full speed suddenly came to a halt. The engine stopped and the so did the ship itself. The sailors tried to find out what was going on until…

'Boom!'

The cargo hold gates opened! Just as the gang and the other trainers that were on board noticed the explosion, a zeppelin in red color with a giant 'R' at the center hovered over them like a vulture ready to pick its pray. In just a few minutes, Team Rocket goons and trainers arrived on scene with Pokemons in… armor?! "Hey wait a minute! Aren't those things…" Drew was unable to finish his sentence when the attack began. The other trainers would've summoned their Pokemons immediately but right after the goons came, they used some sort of machine to suck in every Pokeball the trainers let out.

"Alright everyone, listen up!" Domino yelled out through her amplifier, "The captain and his crew would like extend their deepest apologies for delaying this trip. However, to compensate for the lost of time we'll be taking all of your Pokemons and all the money we find thank you"

The Team Rocket goons immediately captured everyone on board the ship and began transporting the money back into the armored truck they were about to steal. However, they only captured those who were on board the ship.


	23. And So It Begins

**Chapter 23: And So… It Begins…**

**(Inside the life boat on the Port side of the ship)**

Right after Team Rocket commandeered the ship Brock and Tracey lead the gang into hiding under the hoods of the life boats. It was a close call but they were fine. The gang couldn't believe their luck. Once again Team Rocket hindered their progress to Valmarian city and once again they were stealing Pokemons.

"Ouch! Drew, get your elbow off my face!" May whispered out in a yelling tone. Just a few minutes later she saw a… a… "A Ratatta mphhhh!!" the whole gang was cramped inside one life boat and May was about to scream. Everyone placed their hands on her mouth as the Ratatta crawled right thought her neck. She was going to pop so loud until she fainted… quietly.

"Hey… did you hear that?" said one of the thugs

"Hear what?" said the other

"I thought I heard something. I'll go take a look" the guard approached the life boat where the gang was hiding. Everyone knew that their cover would be blown soon enough so they had to think fast. Richie then thought of an idea. He immediately threw Ratatta to the bridge and hoped that the guard would buy the 'oh it's just a Ratatta' trick.

"Huh? Oh it's just a Ratatta. Nothing to worry about"

"Ha, you're the one that's worried. Come on let's go check on the others. They probably have the money loaded already"

By the time the goons left the gang got out of the life boat and gasped for air. "Gwahh! That was a close one!" said Brock, "Too close" said Todd.

After finally getting themselves settled and waking up May, they settle a plan to get out of this mess. They all knew that they were outnumbered, out matched and out Pokemoned a million to one… no wait, make that a million to a half.

Right when the guards left the gang moved out together towards the bridge. Most of the guards were stationed at the loading area to help with the cash transfer so there weren't that many goons guarding the Pokeball jar. "That must be where they're keeping the Pokemons they stole" Brock stated out the most obvious, "We'll have to rescue them" said Richie. The gang nodded in agreement, "But how are we gonna rescue them without being spotted?" said Anabel and Ash had just the plan, "Leave the distraction to me. You guys help the Pokemons and the trainers. I'll hold them of as long as I can" he was either very brave or very dense just like Misty would call him.

The gang split up into two group leaving Ash to stand alone. The first group was lead by Brock followed by Todd, Duplica and Richie, they went down towards the cargo hold to see if they can free the trainers. The second group was lead by Tracey who was with Misty, Max, Drew, May and Anabel. Just as Ash was about to leave to cause a major disturbance, he felt a hand touching his shoulders. He quickly turned around and saw Dawn, "Dawn? What are you doing here?" he asked. "What do you think I'm doing? I'm going to help you!"

"That's ok. Pikachu and I are more than enough to take on Team Rocket"

"But…"

"I know that you're worried Dawn but right now I have a feeling that the others might need your help. Trust me on this"

Dawn finally sighed in defeat, "Alright… I trust you Ash" she immediately head off towards the bridge while constantly looking back at her love. She arrived at the place where the gang planned to free the Pokemons from their mini prison.

Ash quickly head towards the one and only place where he could attract a large enough attention… the loading bay. Domino and Wendy were there to see the money being safely transferred from the boat to the armored truck. They planned to take the whole truck with them as a small bonus.

**(The Cargo Hold)**

Brock and the others hid behind several crates of Miltank manure as they scanned the room they were in. The crew of the ship, the trainers and the police officers were all tied up to the ground and fiercely guarded by a dozen Team Rocket trainers. "There's too many of them. I don't think we can handle them all" said Todd, "We'll have to wait then. Ash might just create enough attention to lure most of them out" said Brock. They looked around to see what exactly they were going up against. The Team Rocket trainers seemed to have the same armored Pokemons as the White Bandits this made them very suspicious. "There are a lot of them. If only we could get some of them to leave" Richie mumbled and duck behind the crates again. It was then Duplica spoke up, "Hee hee, leave that to me" she quickly changed herself into… Domino! "You guys wait here and let me do the talking"

The girl in disguise walked up to the guards and chattered about something. Brock and the others observed how she was doing and amazingly more than half the guards that were on watch left the room without any hesitation. Duplica winked back at the group unnoticed and smiled. "How did she do that?" Richie asked. Brock smiled, "It has to be…… a girl thing"

**(At the loading bay)**

The real Domino and her partner Wendy were just about to finish loading the bags of money into the truck. They hooked the zeppelin's cable onto the top of the truck and began reeling it in when suddenly…

"Bulbasaur, razor leaf and cut those cables!" in an instant the truck fell a few feet off the ground which caused a minor earthquake but it sure dragged a lot of attention. Domino looked up to see who dared attack them. It was none other than Ash Ketchum, "It's that wimp again!" said Wendy. Domino giggled, "Well well, looks like we can shoot two birds with one stone after all. Guards, forget the money and get him now!" Ash quickly dashed away with Pikachu and Bulbasaur with a dozen goons chasing after them. Wendy picked up her radio and yelled out orders, "Attention everyone, we have a trainer loose on board the ship. He is extremely dangerous and should not be trifled with. Approach with sheer numbers and capture his Pokemons at all cost!"

The command echoed through all the radios on board the ship. The guards who were guarding the prisoners and the Pokeball jar immediately left their post and began chasing Ash throughout the upper deck. Brock took the opportunity and quickly untied everyone and silently made their way towards the bridge.

A few minutes later, Ash was cornered along the top deck of the ship. Team Rocket trainers summoned out their Pokemons and prepared to do battle. Ash was expecting a tough fight like when he fought the White Bandits but surprisingly these goons were way easier than the real ones. They were stronger than before but not as much as he expected. _"Hmm… maybe I overestimated these guys"_ after taking down the first few trainers, more and more thugs and TR trainers came up to battle him. "Pikachu, Bulbasaur, we'll hold them for as long as we can!" the two Pokemons nodded and grinned. This was gonna be an easy battle.

Unknowingly by everyone, Hagard was at the control room observing the battle as it waged on. He saw Ash fighting dozens of trainers who were definitely older than him but the young trainer was barely putting any effort in his attacks. _"Hmm… it seems he has become stronger"_

Tracey and the others were trying desperately to get the Pokemons out of their prison but the only question was how. They tinkered with the sucking machine but nothing happened. Max himself was a genius with computers but he had no idea how to run a machine made by Team Rocket. A few minutes later, Brock arrived with the rest of the gang along with the trainers that were held captive. "Hey everyone where are the Pokemons? They should be out by now!"

"We're trying to get them out but the machine won't cooperate!" yelled Tracey. As everyone kept pounding and hitting the machine hoping that it would comply with brute force, Dawn had enough. She quickly turned away and ran as fast as she could towards the upper deck. Drew, Richie and Anabel followed behind.

When Ash began his battle with TR he thought that they nothing but a synch but now he's having second thoughts. Trainer after trainers after goon after goons kept coming at him to no end. His Pikachu and Bulbasaur were getting exhausted so he called out Totodile and Cyndaquil to help them. He now had four elements on his side so beating the rest of TR should be a piece of cake…… wrong!!!

Just as Ash took down the last of the Pokemon trainers, Hagard appeared, "Y… you! You're!" Ash was stuttering heavily. He was looking at one of the thieves he brought to jail. "It is good to see you again… Ash Ketchum" Ash took no time and prepared himself for a good battle but he had a disadvantage, his Pokemons were all tired from beating TR and to fight one of the White Bandits was clearly not going to be easy.

"So you're part of Team Rocket! I should've known!" Ash concluded as he pointed at the boy

"Me, with them? Please don't make me laugh. I'll never be with these low lives"

"Then why do they have your Pokemon armor?"

"They asked me for it. I don't exactly know why but these idiots actually think that the armor actually helps their Pokemons. (evil giggle) How exaggerating"

"Well… what do you want?"

"Oh nothing really. I'm just here to see how you were doing that's all"

Ash was taken a bit off guard by that last sentence, "Wha… what do you mean by that?" Hagard didn't reply. He just smirked and left without another word. Ash was now really getting confused by his actions. The first time they've met they were battling to the last man standing and now there he was walking away without a fight. Something didn't add up here and Ash could feel it. Just when he was still thinking about what was going on, a giant net suddenly covered him and his Pokemons. "Hey what the?!" it was then he heard an evil laugh coming from above, "Well well well, it looks like our little pray finally fell the good old net trap" it was Wendy and Domino. Seriously, who else would you expect?... wait…… don't answer that

"Oh no, not you two again!"

"Zip it whimp!" Wendy steamed back at him, "I'm taking your Pokemons and there's nothing on this planet that's gonna stop me!"

"Oh we'll see about that! Cyndaquil, burn the net with a flame thrower!"

Cyndaquil unleashed a powerful fire attack but the net seemed to be fire proof.

"Yeah that's it keep trying whimp. I personally designed these nets to be water, fire, electricity proof and to top it all I even made it so hard not even your razor leaf can cut through it! Mwahahahaha!"

"Oh yeah? Well let's see what it can do with size! Snorelax, I choose you!"

The moment Snorelax appeared the net expanded so much that it finally broke into pieces. "Alright Snorelax! I've got to appreciate your size for once buddy! (Snorelax) Alright, now where were we? Oh that's right, it's time to blast you guys off again!"

Domino glared at her partner and scowled, "I told you to add the expandable rubber bands! But nooooo. You said they weren't necessary HA!"

"Don't fret about it! We still have our army of Pokemons to deal with him! Go and get him boys! (the goons charged at Ash)"

Ash readied himself. The wave of Team Rocket wasn't going to be easy and he believed this was more than what he encountered back in Cerulean City. He may have taken down thousands of Pokemons with just four of his but this was a whole different matter. The only he hoped for now that he wasn't gonna forget this fight like last time.

"Pachirisu, spark attack!"

A giant blue lightning appeared and zapped the whole bunch of goons to the ground. Ash looked back and to his surprised Dawn, Anabel, Drew and Richie were there with their Pokemons ready for battle! "You guys?!"

"Sorry we're a bit late Ash. Leave the rest to us!"

Wendy stormed off again and was now openly yelling at everyone, "Grrrrr! Most annoyance! Call in the others! They won't be able to fight against all of us!"

"Yes ma'am!" said one of the thugs. He immediately pulled out a whistle from his pocket and blew it loudly. The sound echoed throughout the ship and by that moment... everything was silent. "Uh... so what now?" Ash asked sarcastically which was only backfired when more goons and thugs appeared

"Let's see how long the five of them can hold" Wendy smirked satisfied, but it was immediately cut short when Brock's voice entered the fray, "Why don't you make that fifty!"

The gang looked back to see Brock and the rest of the trainers with their Pokemons. "Brock, you made it!" said Richie.

"Sorry for the long delay. I finally figured out that the machine needed a little 'fixing' but its better late than never!"

Wendy looked at the numbers of trainers and quickly turned her head to meet Domino's: "I think we should invoke plan B now Domino"

The curly headed blond agreed and picked up her walkie talkie, "Agreed. Pick us up. We're withdrawing!"

"Yes ma'am!" said the man on the other line.

"Hey! Come back here Team Rocket!" Ash tried to catch up but the helicopter hindered his movement.

"Sorry whimp but prison stripes aren't exactly my kind of colors so ta ta!"

"Boss! What about us?!" one of the goons pleaded as their boss flew away. "Wait for me!!!"

"She really does know how to make a dramatic exit. Very impressive…" Drew complimented her style of escaping (again)

The members of Team Rocket that were left behind by their so called fearless leader decided to make a break for it towards town but Jenny was right behind them all the way. The gang was relieved to finally get rid of the nuisance and hope that they would finally get to Valmarian city already but it seems like TR did a good number on the boat and it would not be operational for some time.

Once again… Team Rocket hindered their progress to Valmarian city.

**(The Next morning)**

The gang squinted their eyes as the sun shined upon them. They could barely remember what happened last night or even remember how they got to the back yard of May's house. Misty was the first to get up since she always was a light sleeper. She looked around and noticed that the rest of the gang was pilled up upon each other. It was quite a funny scene since none of them seemed like they want to wake up for another hour or so. After giggling at them and making sure that Togepi was sleeping tightly she decided to take a little morning walk.

She looked up to her watch and was surprise to see that it was still 9:00 AM. "Wow, that battle with Team Rocket must've been shorter than I thought" she decided to take a walk along the boulevard where the sea was just perfect. The wind in the air, the water splashing on her face and no one to bother her… or so she thought. "Misty?" the girl nearly leaped into the ocean when a voice snuck up on her. She turned her head around to see who dared to sneak up on her like that. Once again to her surprise it was Ash! "Ash? What are you doing up so early?" that was a dumb question. She could already see from the boy's face that he went for a little morning exercise with his Pokemons. He was sweating heavily but it seemed like his Pokemons were dead tired. "I came out for a little exercise. And you?" he counter questioned her with his golden smile.

"Oh I was just uh… looking…" she took a mental note of Ash's bright smile. It was practically eating her from the inside like some sort of decease. It felt like her body was about to burst until water from the ocean cooled her down with a splash. "Oh boy I needed that" she said softly to herself. "Well we might as well check if the ship will take us to Valmarian city now. Come on Pikachu (Pika chu)" the little mouse was still exhausted from the exercise it just did with Ash. Ash giggled at him and decided to carry his little pal the rest of the way on his shoulders.

The two of them arrived at the docks a few minutes later. To no surprise, Officer Jenny was there along with a dozen police officers. She then noticed the two trainers, "I'm sorry you two, but this area is currently off limits everyone and…" she then recognized the young trainer with the Pikachu, "Oh my, you're Ash Ketchum! Thank you for saving us back last night"

"No problem Officer Jenny but I'm kinda wondering when the boat will take us to Valmarian city?"

Jenny looked a little sad to be the bearer of bad news to such a famous trainer, "I'm sorry Ash but from the orders of HQ states that: all transport from the sea are put to a halt. There won't be any ship leaving the docks for awhile"

"What?! Why?!"

"Some Team Rocket members escaped from last night's raid. The whole port is sealed off so there's no boat coming in or out until we find them all"

"Then when are they gonna resume the business?" Misty asked

"Well from the chief, he says at least a month worth of searching time. That's all I know"

"A month!!!!" the two of them said in unison

"That'll take forever before we even get close to the city" Ash moaned out

Jenny felt sorry for the boy as he did so much to get here all the way from Kanto. It was then she got an idea, "Well there is another way though" the two of them opened up their ears and listened to every word. "Do you kids know of Slateport city? (they nodded) Well from what I heard. That city is moving people from that city to Dewford town and when you get to Dewford, it should be a snap to find a ride to Valmarian city" the direction she pointed out seemed pretty clear but there was one problem, they will have to go through Oldale town… again.

"Is that really the only way Officer Jenny?" Misty hoped that she could have another route planned out.

"Hmm… nope. All the other routes I have in mind are either too far away or blocked by the earth quake. Well I hope you kids have a safe trip and I'll be seeing you in Valmarian city ok?" and with that Officer Jenny left to go back to work leaving the two of them to find another route to Valmarian city.

**(Back at Petalburg gym)**

Ash and Misty told the rest of the gang about the situation and to tell you the truth… their morale plummet below sea level. They really were expecting to be in Valmarian city by now but thanks to those Team Rocket, they hindered their advance. Luckily, Ash told them of that new route that was probably about week trip. A journey to Slateport city was inevitable. Norman saw the gang once again on their feet and prepared to set out on their new journey…

But Caroline slammed the door shut and locked it tight. "NO ONE'S LEAVING THIS HOUSE UNTIL BREAKFAST IS DONE!!!" the gang would've wet their pants if they could but it was a good thing they all had strong bladder. Caroline never liked it when a member of her family would skip breakfast, she remembered that she used to shout at Max just for going to school early and missed the most important meal of the day.

By the time they finished breakfast the gang left the house and began to head towards the city's exit but before Ash left, Norman and Caroline came by to pay their respects. "Ash, we want you to have this" Caroline handed him a card with her picture on it. From the looks of the outlines it appeared to be some sort of credit card, "It's from the both of us. There should be enough in there for the trip to Dewford town"

"Oh… Caroline, I can't take this. I have more than enough to keep us going" he wasn't lying. He had enough money to take a first class trip for the whole gang back and forth from Kanto to Shinou five times but Caroline couldn't possibly take no for an answer, "Don't worry Ash. We want to support you and our children on this trip and this is the only way we know how. I'm certain that you'll make good use of the money"

Norman then pat the boy's back, "And feel free to spend whatever you want to buy. My income is more than enough to feed me and my family, so don't be shy" usually a guy would be spending like crazy if he had that kind of money but Ash wasn't one of them. He was more of a good boy type which attracted a lot of attention from many girls from different regions. He eventually accepted the card and went on his way to join the rest of the gang.

**(On board the Scarlet, Control room)**

Domino and Wendy were calculating the damage they've just received. After that failed rain on the port last night they lost probably half the crew and ¾ of their Pokemon army. Domino was extremely angry and so was Wendy. If it wasn't for a particular gang of trainers they would be taking a bath in a pool of cash by now! "Grrrr! This is all that wimp's fault! Why did he have to be on that boat?! WHY?!" Domino was practically throwing a tantrum around her office. Wendy could feel her anger from the other side of the room but she was also angry as well.

After finally cooling down, Hagard came in with two goons escorting him, "Ah silver, it's nice of you to drop by" Domino sat on her chair and crossed her legs after finally cooling down, "I wasn't exactly given a choice" replied the white haired man, "What do you want from me now woman?" he was getting impatient on why they called him when he was busy. Domino grinned evilly, "Oh nothing. I just wanted to thank you on a fine job well done. The Pokemon battle armors are absolutely splendid. Although they weren't much of an effect with those wimps they sure proved useful in some of our smaller operations" Hagard knew where this was going. "Unfortunately silver, we have no longer need of your services" the guards summoned out their Pokemons and readied it for battle but Hagard wasn't surprised, in fact he was already expecting this to happen.

"Teh… you humans haven't really changed at all" he smirked then began chanting some intelligible spell silently to himself. The whole ship went silent for a few minutes. Domino and Wendy looked around but nothing seemed to be happening. "What was that? Some sort of last word or something?" Wendy spoke out too soon.

Just when the guards were about to toss the man out of the zeppelin, the communication broad cast came in. "Miss Domino, we have problems with the Pokemons! They're all going crazy!" there were sounds of explosion and fire in the background so none of them could really tell what the goon was saying. Just then, the Pokemons that the guards summoned out began attacking their owners without hesitation.

Haggard summoned out his Ursaring and made a big hole on the window. Domino managed to dodge the bear like Pokemon's attack but just barely. By the time she recovered, Hagard recalled his Pokemon back and stood near the hole he made. Domino and Wendy looked at his green emerald eyes as he grinned back at them. In a fraction of a moment, he jumped off and slowly fell towards the earth. The two villainess glared at his untimely doom until an Articuno saved him just a few seconds before he touched ground. "He is so cool…" Domino was now completely falling for that man. It seemed she was into boys that were double crossers. "Umm Domino, I hate to interrupt your happy moment here but… WE'RE ABOUT TO CRASH!!!" the zeppelin crashed onto the forest which caused a massive fire. Luckily for everyone, it was raining.

"You're late again Rosa" Hagard was able to keep a cool head even after such a dangerous stunt. Rosa looked at him extremely annoyed, "Don't even think of quarreling with me Hagard. You're lucky that Sha-hear even let's you live. When will any of you understand that your misbehavior will only hinder our progress! (sigh) You and Chaucer are exactly the same!"

"Come now Rosa, at least we've accomplished one thing. The Pokemons on that flying machine will travel to the temple and await Pallet's command. Now that's something, am I right?" Rosa ignored his words and dump the white haired boy on the ground, "You find your own way home, I'm going on a mission!" she sounded extremely angry and annoyed and left with her Articuno. "Ha, angry as always. Just like that time two million years ago" Hagard smirked then head towards the temple deep within the forest.

**(Somewhere along the way)**

"Are we there yet?" Max moaned out in boredom but who could blame him? The whole gang was bored for crying out loud. They've seen all the Pokemons along this route already and nothing was surprising anymore. Dawn already gathered the information of all the Pokemons here in Hoenn and she was also darn bored.

The few hours that past by when on uneventful and that meant nothing interesting happened. The dirt on their foot wear was so common they thought of even going on barefoot. Just when they thought that things were getting more and more boring… they were wrong. A white ball of cotton tapped on Anabel's nose. She looked up and saw… snow! It was incredible, snow was finally falling! Misty then remembered that the Valmarian League only took place during the winter seasons. A few hours later the snow began to fill the roads making it almost impossible to see. After a quick scan from Todd's new camera, he was able to spot the gates of Oldale town.

The gang rushed through the gates as fast as they could. The town that was bustling with people a minute ago seemed to have calmed down. It had only been a few hours but it looked like the place was hit by a blizzard already. The children from the neighboring houses came out to play snowball fights or build snow men/women along the empty streets. Ash quickly put on several layers of clothes so that no one would recognize him. Being a famous trainer really is difficult. After awhile, the gang arrived at the Pokemon center to have their Pokemons for a check up. It would take at least two hours for a full check up since now the group had more Pokemons than usual. The gang took this time for a quick nap.

Just when about everyone was about to fall asleep, Ash felt a presence by his side. "Dawn? Is something wrong?" the look on her face clearly stated out that she was having trouble in her mind. Ash was really not used to talking about people's problem but he was willing to listen anyway, "Ash… thank you" ok now what was she talking about? Ash tilted his head in confusion, "Umm I didn't get to thank you properly when you saved me back at the mall the other day" a blush started to form around her cheeks. Ash felt a little embarrassed himself, "Awww there's no need to thank me. You would've done the same heh heh heh" Dawn seemed happy to see him accept her gratitude. She then pulled out a small box wrapped as a gift and handed it to him. Ash wasn't really expecting a gift but what the heck, it was there and it was free. He unwrapped the box immediately and was amazed to see such a beautiful watch placed neatly in it. He picked it up gently and smiled, "Thanks Dawn, it's awesome!" he quickly replaced his old half broken watch that could never tell the time straight and tightened it to fit his wrist. He adjusted the time and then it worked.

'The value of a gift is not measured by its price nor rarity, but by its purpose'

-Unknown proverb-

-But it's still good-

A few hours later there police car drove through the town with an announcement, "Attention residents of Oldale town! Due to the current snow storm approaching, we strongly advise that no one leaves the town. This is for your own safety. All of the town exits will be opened tomorrow, thank you" the gang listened to announcement so they decided that if they want to make it to Slateport city with warm blood running through their veins they would spend the night here first before going out against the blizzard.

"Alright everyone, since we'll be staying in town we might as well pack up for snow travel. I'll head to the Pokemart and get more food" Brock stated to his friends as he heads off out.

"I'll go with you. I have some things to buy too" Tracey followed him and immediately left the area.

"I guess we'll just meet back here at the Pokemon center" Duplica stated

"I'll check us in the Pokemon center" said Todd, "Try not to party too long guys because we might leave early tomorrow morning"

And with that the gang split into three groups. Brock, Tracey and Duplica head towards the Pokemart the restock on their supplies because they forgot to re-supply at Petalburg city. Richie, Max, Ash, Todd, Dawn and Anabel stayed along the Pokemon center and had a little snowball fight. Drew, Misty and May went to the nearby park to see if there was anything of interest.

'splat'

That was the sound of a snowball hitting a certain purple haired girl's face, "Hey that wasn't fair I wasn't ready!" Anabel yelled out. Even though she suffered from frostbites a few days back it didn't make her stop playing in the snow. Max stick out his tongue in response to her complaint. Anabel got annoyed and secretly threw one snowball on his face. The snow covered his glasses and made him look like a mini Santa clause. The members of the gang who were there to witness that hilarious face laughed. "Hey, I wasn't ready!"

"Ha, that's what you get for throwing a snow ball at me" this time it was her who stick her tongue out in victory. Dawn gave out a sweatdrop as she just noticed how child like the Frontier Brain member could be. As they slammed a few snowballs at each other for an hour or so, Dawn called out Buneary and let it used its ice beam to create a wall of ice.

"Hey Dawn, that's cheating!" Ash complained but she just giggled back, "Oh come on Ash, don't get so mad or you'll melt the ice. Come out Piplup! (Piplup appears) Piplup, use bubble beam!" Piplup unleashed a wave of bubbles which eventually turned into snowballs and slammed onto Richie and Ash's face. "Ouch! Oh yeah, well two can play in that game! Totodile, I choose you! (Totodile appears) (bwabwabwabwabwa!) It's good to see you too Totodile but let's see who has more chill power! Use icy wind!" Totodile inhaled for about ten seconds and let out a wind that blew off the snow on the ground. Buneary and Piplup were covered by a mountain of snow. "Oh that's it this calls for a battle!" Dawn proposed a challenge against Ash which he reluctantly agreed.

"You're on Dawn! Two on two, tactics match, no time limit!"

"Tactics match?" that was the first time Richie heard of something like that but Anabel wasn't surprised, "Tactics match are like the ones in the Battle Frontier. Tucker, the member of tactics symbol created that kind of competition. It's still quite new but I have a feeling that it will on the Valmarian league as well" she explained it like a true professional.

Richie was intrigued on how Ash knows so much about different kind of battles, "Hey Anabel, I challenge you to a tactics match!" Anabel expected this and accepted his challenge. She knew that Richie had the same flare as Ash since they almost look like identical twins.

**(In a forest not far from Oldale town)**

Loin jumped down to meet the rest of his comrades. The two cloaked men looked at him as they thought as he was an enemy. "Oh it's only you Loin. What news do you have to report?" Loin was silent for few seconds. There was a bad news coming and they could feel it. "Furo has been defeated…" Loin said out finally. "What!? How? When?" said one of the cloaked men, but the other man stopped him before he took his rage into a physical form, "Stop Azal! There won't be any good in placing your anger on someone else" the man now known as Azal quickly unfist his hand and cooled down, "But Noeh…" Azal tried to reason with the other cloaked man which is now known as Noeh.

Seeing that things had cooled down a bit, Loin decided to continue, "He encountered Hsa in the human village. He did his best to get to his majesty but he failed" Noeh sighed, "That idiot… he knows quite well that our powers are limited. We are illusions after all"

"That ignorant fool! He should've contacted us before he did anything rash! Now our plan is exposed!" Azal was throwing his anger on any objects he could find. Rocks, trees, boulders it didn't matter. As long as he could express his anger in an… 'artistical' way he could care less. Loin then continued his report, "I have one bit of good news thought. It seems that his majesty will be crossing through the road here" Noeh finally showed an emotion in his face, "Excellent! The trap is set, now all we need is bait"

"Oh leave that to me Noeh, I think I'll be able to get his attention. Just make sure the trap works. Having a useless trap is like hunting a Monster with a bow with no arrows" he then quickly departed leaving the two of them behind to deal with the trap they set up.

"I'll make sure the talismans are in place" said Azal to Noeh

"Yeah… you do that"

They both walked through the forest into another open clearing. A small ruined castle stood at the center of the field. The walls of this once proud structure were now desolated and covered with vines of old. The splendid fountain that gave serenity to the place ceased but the cracks and broken pieces can really tell that it used to be a magnificent work of art. The residence of the castle was replaced by wild Pokemons who quickly dash off by the sight of man. Noeh and Azal entered a room at the top of the ruined structure through a nearly destroyed stair.

The room was wide and round. It had a chair right dabbed at the center which looked more like a throne. There were four pillars around the room decorated with symbols and shields. There was no doubt that a battle took place within these walls but it seemed like that the cruelty of time sadly erased all trace of who fought here. The two men smirked as they walked to the pillars. They made sure that the talismans they placed were glued and not even a typhoon would be able to blow it away. The only way that the talismans could leave is when the pillar goes with it.

**(Time skip 2 hours Back in Pallet Town)**

Professor Oak ran a check up with several new Pokemons that were going to be taken by the new trainers that just turned ten this week. There was an Eevee, Charmander, Pichu and a Treecko. "Hmm… it looks like all of you have been doing fine this past few months" the Pokemons cheered at the professor. "Well it seems like your ready. You'd better eat your food before the trainers come by" The Pokemons began chewing the food in their bowls without missing a heart beat. The professor smiled and placed the documents on the table. It wasn't long then until she noticed Delia carrying a heavy bucket of water. After all these times she had been doing all the chores in the house along with the two Jennies. He quickly got out of the house to help her, "Oh no Delia, here let me do it" no matter how many times he told her to stop doing his chores she wouldn't listen. She wanted to work so she could remove all the stress of worrying about her little boy. "Oh no really professor, I can do this myself" Samuel took the bucket anyway. He then march towards the stables with a smile, "Oh well, I guess I'll just clean the birds nest then" the professor face faulted.

He then quickly followed her and stopped her from doing his chores. It didn't feel right to have a guest doing your work while you just sit back and relax. When he visited Delia's place he was the one who received the VIP treatment. She never asked him to do her work if she had any that is. The professor followed Delia through the birds nest, the stables, the pool, the fields and perhaps everywhere in his ranch. A few hours later he realized that he already finished all of his chores. "Wow professor, I didn't know you had so much energy in you" Samuel suddenly realized that he was practically running on an empty gas tank. He immediately fell to the ground exhausted. "Oh no, professor are you alright?" she held the old man's face and saw his eyes swirling like a defeated Pokemon.

The professor quickly regained conscious and saw Delia's face. His own face grew even redder than a tomato as he had never been this close to her before. Delia was a little optimistic to Sam's face and thought that he had some sort of a fever. "Oh my professor. It looks like you have a fever. Come on I'm taking you to bed!" she dragged the tired old man towards the house.

On the second floor of the lab, the two Jennies couldn't help but giggle at the adorable sight of two young… well… one young and one old blind love.

**(Valmarian City gym)**

A Flareon fell towards the ground badly beaten by the last attack, "Flareon is unable to battle! The victory goes to Gary Oak and his Umbreon!" the audience clapped their hands in respect. Gary Oak had been defeating trainer after trainer after trainer ever since he got to this city. He was hoping to meet that White haired kid that defeated him a few months ago but he seemed to have disappeared… literally. Every day, new contestants of the Valmarian league would come and introduce themselves. The trainers would immediately begin training their Pokemons with high spirit but after a match with Gary, their spirit would plumeth below zero.

The audiences were astounded by the boy's accomplishments. His Umbreon managed to hold out against four trainers and their Pokemons without breaking a sweat. The newly formed gang that Gary was able to meet was also there with wide smirks on their faces. They had a system that worked perfectly. Havic was a power-horse for the gang along with Jaques. Emma was more of a sneaky type. She managed to persuade several trainers to drop out of the competition with little effort. Steve was the man with all the info. He can hack into the Valmarian mainframe and tell which Pokemons their opponents would be using with his laptop. It was a dead lock team.

Gary walked out of the stadium taking the Pokemon that was betted against him along as well. The rest of his gang waited for him at the entrance, "Hey, that was a pretty nice battle boss" Havic said with a defining grin, "Yeah, that was awesome! I've never seen anyone who took on a whole bunch of trainers with only one Pokemon the only person I saw doing that would be A---mphhhh!" Emma covered Steve's mouth hoping that he would not complete that name. The mere mention of that boy's name seemed to be a taboo for anyone near Gary. He challenges anyone who thinks Ash is better than him, heck he even thought that was ready to take on Ash himself!

Gary shrugged them off and headed back towards the Pokemon center. "It seems like our fearless leader is getting a little restless" Havic kept his grin up like a laughing hyena. Jaques was getting worried about that last sentence. If that's how Gary acts when he's restless then he sure didn't want to be Ash when he gets serious. "Hey Jaques, why don't you go and see if there's anymore trainers that came in today. I want to make sure that we know that Ash is here so we can be prepared" Jaques nodded and left the gym. There was only a few weeks left before the league starts so Havic decided to lessen the competitions as much as possible. He was able to get about fifty or so trainers to drop out of the league since most of them were still just first timers. The league was meant for professionals and those who know what they're doing. There is no second place nor a third place for that matter in this league. There were thousands of trainers but only one position and one prize for the taking. It was indeed the ultimate glory of every trainer on the planet.

**(Back at Oldale town, Pokemon center)**

The gang just returned from going loco around town. The heavy snow really took its toll on the road which made it almost impassable. The others were thinking that if this snow kept up then traveling to Slateport city would be a big problem. Just as Brock ordered up a few rooms for everyone, Ash came in with his Pikachu on his shoulders along with Richie, Anabel and Dawn and they were shivering. Ash hair was sticking out like icicles and Dawn's head was stuck on with her hat. Anabel and Richie just had the shivers. "ca ca ca cacaca… can we please ha ha ha ha ha have some… wa wa wa wa warm towels" Ash pleaded.

After getting some towels and a cup of hot coco as a bonus Brock wondered where these four could've been all this time. "Hey Ash, where have you guys been. You look like you've been through a snow storm"

"Well it was snowing pretty hard out there" he took off his cap and sip the hot coco

Richie then decided to explain as always, "Oh Ash, Dawn, Anabel and I were training over by the town square a few hours ago. We were battling so much we didn't know it was already getting cold" he was right. A few hours ago the four of them were battling like they were already in Valmarian city. Richie was able to beat Anabel's three main Pokemons but only by luck. The snow hindered her Espeon's movement on the field which was clearly a no-no advantage. "I guess we kinda went a little overboard with that last battle heh heh heh"

"Well anyway, it's almost night time and the roads won't be open until tomorrow. I'll grab what I can from the cafeteria and meet you guys back here in an hour"

Brock left with a smile on his face

"Hahah, that's Brock for ya. He always thinks about others before himself" Misty praised her friend's maturity until Brock gazed upon Nurse Joy, "Oh my true love, where have you been all my life?!" Misty faced faulted, "I take back what I said earlier" the gang giggled. Just as Brock was making his move, Gregguru appeared and drag the desperate boy away from the busy Nurse Joy while pumping air into its orange cheeks. "Owww, my ribs, my stomach, my dignity"

"Give it a rest Brock. Nurse Joy is obviously busy and wouldn't want to be bothered by you" Max groaned out.

"Heh, don't worry Brock, I'll get the food for ya"

"I'll go with you. You'll probably need a hand anyway" Drew said following the boy

"Thanks Drew. Hey Nurse Joy, can you take care of my Pokemons?"

"Sure thing Ash. Please be sure to pick them up later" the pick lady happily took the Pokeballs and put them in a small tray.

**(Time Skip Night time Still at the Pokemon center)**

After a healthy meal and a good night's bath the gang decided that it was time for them to hit the sacks for the long road ahead. Richie, Todd and Brock took one room. Misty, Anabel and Duplica had two rooms connected. Tracey and Drew took one room on the second floor. Max and May took another room while Ash as always took a single room.

"Hey Pikachu, are you asleep yet?" (Pika) "Sorry buddy, I just can't sleep right now. I have this weird feeling…"

"Pika pika?" (what feeling?)

"That something's… gonna happen. I don't know what but I can feel it. I don't know if it's good or bad… it's just something I've been feeling for the past few days"

Pikachu became a little worried about his master so he decided to cheer him up by performing one of his dancing tricks, "Hahaha, that's great Pikachu. Did you learn that from Dawn?" (Pika peeee)

"Thanks Pikachu, I feel a lot better now. Come on, let's go to sleep"

Just before he closed the lights, a sudden set of foot steps came from the outside. Ash walked out to see what was going on. He saw Nurse Joy on the video phone with a very worried face.

"…… I'm sorry Jenny but the snow storm is blocking the roads" said Joy

Jenny, who was on the other line was practically begging for help, "But we need some assistance. There's a Pokemon going on a rampage here and we can't stop it. Any trainer would do"

"I'm sorry Jenny but all of the Pokemon rangers are off somewhere else right now. Please hold on until they can return"

"Alright I understand. We'll try and set up camp here and hope of the best"

After that, Nurse Joy placed the phone down and sighed heavily at herself. Ash knew something was wrong so decided to play nosy boy for awhile, "Hey Nurse Joy, is something wrong?" Nurse Joy was a little taken off guard by Ash so she leaped a few feet before turning around to see him, "Oh Ash! I'm sorry, did I wake you up?" "Oh no, I couldn't sleep. But what was that about a Pokemon rampage?" Nurse Joy seemed a little hesitant to reply but she knew that he'd find out sooner or later, "Well you see… Do you know about the Pokemon madness in Johto? (Ash nods) Well you see… there's a Pokemon in the forest not far from here that's been causing a bit of a stir. It's been attacking Pokemon trainers and wild Pokemons without any reason. Officer Jenny is there with some my cousin Joy from Mauvile city and I they need more bandages for the wounded Pokemons. And as you can see, I have no one to send and this snow storm isn't gonna clear up soon"

"Is it really that bad?"

"I'm afraid so. The Pokemon center in Mauville city is practically full of injured Pokemons right now. I've been trying to contact the rangers but the weather blocks all route in and out of the city"

Ash, being a sentimental risk taker decided to give out a foolish suggestion, "Hey, why don't I go!?" Nurse Joy looked a bit confused, "I can take the bandages and beat that Pokemon for you"

"But Ash, that Pokemon is really strong! And no one knows where or when it'll strike next! **There absolutely, positively no way I am going to let you and your friends out of this Pokemon center!"**

**(Ten minutes later)**

"Good luck you guys. Please send my regards to Officer Jenny and my cousin!" Nurse Joy waved farewell to the gang. She sighed, _"How did I let that boy convince me to do this?"_ after a convincing speech from Ash, Nurse Joy was able to get that boy a special permission to leave the city. He woke up all of his friends and set out with the Pokemon ambulance with three Chancies.

Half of the gang were already sleeping during the trip. Only Todd, Dawn and Ash were awake to see the beautiful night. Todd was busy taking pictures of the moon and forest for post cards and calenders. Dawn was busy combing her hair since she believed that looks were everything. Ash… well… how unusual it may look like, he was just… awake. It was strange. One moment he feels like a weak defenseless kid but after an hour or so he would look like a boy who's ready to take on the world! It was amazing yet freaky at the same time. Was it the adrenaline pumping in his body? Or was it some sort of medication he was going through… who knows.

The trip through the road was uneventful. The storm strangely quieted down for some reason and the night felt warmer than the morning. At 2:00 AM the ambulance car arrived at their destination. Ash woke up the gang and head out to meet Officer Jenny. They were all shock to see so many wounded Pokemons laying on the ground. Some had minor beating wounds while some had major cuts and bruises. Officer Jenny was indeed very surprised to see the gang. She only expected to see one or two trainers the most but to see the legendary Ash Ketchum and the other members of the gang was more than what she could've hoped for.

Jenny: "Well, this is indeed a surprise. I thought that Joy was joking when she said she was sending the famous Ash Ketchum"

The gang helped getting the Pokemons with the most serious wounds into the ambulance. It was frightening to think that one Pokemon was able to do this kind of damage. "This is terrible…" said Misty, "Why would any Pokemon do such a thing?" Nurse Joy may have a theory to that question, "It could be the same effect as the Pokemon madness back in Johto. Anyway, I'll be taking the Pokemons back to Oldale town. Will any of you wanna come along?"

"No…" everyone turned to see Ash. The boy had a defining look on his face. Ash was gonna find out what Pokemon did this and he was gonna teach it a good lesson. "Officer Jenny, can you tell me what this Pokemon looks like so we can capture it?" Jenny nodded, "From what I heard from the Pokemon rangers, it appears to be a wild Swampert. It makes its nest near the lake not far from here. It's the only source of drinking water for the Pokemons in this area and so it attacks anyone who comes close"

"A Swampert, got it! Come on everybody, let's go pay this Swampert a visit!" Ash lead the gang through the thick woods of the forest. They all had the same feeling as Ash. Whatever could've done this will not go out unpunished especially when Ash is on the block. Officer Jenny was amazed by their courage and so she gave them a hearty salute before they disappeared into the darkness. "Good luck… all of you"

Unknowing to all of them, a pair of eyes glared at the gang with an evil grin that could make a Groudon cower in fear. The darkness and silence covered his movement and his presence hidden from the others. He ushered out a few words before vanishing… "And so it begins…"


	24. Set Up The board Cuz Here We Go!

**Chapter 24: Set Up The Board Cuz Here We Go!**

The gang continued their journey through the forest near Oldale town to search for the menacing Swampert that has been terrorizing the Pokemons for quite sometime. Ash lead the gang through the directions Officer Jenny gave them but for some sort of fluke, Ash was able to whine up in a place where all of his friends recognized really well. "YOU GOT US LOST AGAIN!!!!!" Misty yelled out to the top of her lunges. "I can't believe you Ash! We were on the right track for one moment and the next thing I knew we were taking your short cut!"

"Ahehehehe Sorry, I guess I must've lost track" everyone froze! Did Ash just accept his own mistake? Richie was saying in his mind, _"Ok that's it. Call the news crew, the world's ending, judgment day is here"_ Even Misty herself was at a state of shock but she quickly composed herself to satisfy the mood, "Good, at least now you can learn to accept you were wrong" she pouted.

It was then Brock spoke out "We might as well backtrack guys" they all agreed but when they turned back, something was different. The path on which they came through was blocked by a huge boulder. The trees seemed to be moving but yet they remained still. It was then Ash decided to use his ears rather than his eyes. He could hear the wind blowing in the air, the birds-Pokemons chirping around the forest, ground-Pokemons were making noises of their own and sound of water… wait… WATER! That must mean the lake is nearby! Ash quickly yelled out to the gang to follow him which they did. They ran as fast as they could as if something was chasing after them. There was growl and a whisper in the dark. The trees were talking to each other as if they were alive. There sound of foot steps grew louder as something that was invisible to the naked eye got closer and closer.

The gang didn't stop running for ten minutes. Ash kept the pace up and quickly decided to make a stand on a small clearing. The trainers made a circle formation which covered each other's backs. Whatever that was chasing them seemed to have no way of surprising them but they were wrong. Duplica summoned out her Dittos and prepared them for battle. The predator moved in closer and closer as if it was trying to break them apart. "Does anyone see it?" said Anabel with a disturb tone, "It must be invisible. Noctowl, I choose you!" Ash summoned his Noctowl who had the ability to find its hidden opponents, "Noctowl, use foresight!" Noctowl scanned the area with its eyes but still nothing appeared. The area soon became silent. No one heard a thing even saw anything for that matter.

"Is it… gone?" said Max scarred to his pants.

Brock looked around but saw nothing but darkness, "It could be. It might be that Swampert Officer Jenny was talking about, let's keep a sharp eye"

The gang kept quiet for a full five minutes. The growling was silenced and the echoes in the trees were gone. Their eyes glared at every comer of the field waiting for something to pop up. The snow storm that seemed to vanish some time ago returned heavier than before. Everything was covered in white and no one could see anything beyond their hands. It was like the mist they encountered near the wizard's tower except this one was thicker.

Just when things calmed down a bit, a sudden roar scared the pants off everyone making them run off towards different directions.

Misty ran off with Ash, Max and Richie to the north side of the forest. They didn't know where they were going but anywhere is better than staying there! They ran off a good distance between them and the open field but now they had another problem: they were lost and now they were separated with the rest of the gang. "We have to keep moving, who knows, we might meet up with them eventually" said Ash. The others nodded in agreement and slowly head off towards who knows.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Brock, Todd and Anabel ran towards the North West side of the woods. Brock was never so scared in his entire life in his time as a Pokemon trainer-breeder. They eventually stop on a giant boulder panting heavily like dogs that just got away from the dog catcher.

"huff huff… Is everyone ok? Huff huff…" Brock turned around to see that his group halved

Todd caught up on his breathing and finally said slowly, "Yeah I'm ok, but I can't say the same for my camera"

Anabel turned around and looked at her group, "Wait… where did everybody go?"

Brock sighed and rubbed his temples, "Oh boy… looks like we got separated after that loud roar"

"I've never heard any Pokemon that made that kind of a roar before. At least not in Hoenn" Todd noted as he stared back into the darkness.

"We might as well go look for them (roar!) Eiyeee! Well they're not going this way that for sure!" Brock quickly turned around with fear written all over his face and began walking in the other direction. The two companions followed behind.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On the other neck of the woods May, Drew, Duplica, Dawn and Tracey found themselves resting under a tree after that frightful experience. "Do you think we lost it Ash?" May asked but Ash wasn't there, "Ash? Hey where is everyone?"

"I guess we must've gotten separated when we ran away" Duplica stated

"What do we do now?" asked Dawn, "We have no idea where we are and now we're separated? This is hopeless!"

Drew tried to calm the girl as he tried to analyze the situation, "The first thing to do in this kind of situation is not to panic"

"Panic!? Who's panicking?! NOT ME! THAT'S FOR SURE! Hahaha hahaha hahaha!"

"Ohh boy" _"She's still new in getting lost. I wonder how she even got in the Valmarian league. Probably just luck I suppose"_

Tracey held up his radio and tried to contact for help, "Well, my radio isn't working either. We should head off and see if we can find them on the way. Let's just hope that whatever chased us didn't go after them"

The third group walked even deeper in the forest not even realizing that the monster that was making those strange noises was spying just right behind them. Drew turned around to see what was hiding behind the prowl but the moment his eyes locked on to that dark figure… it vanished. "Huh?"

"Hey Drew, come on! We don't have all day!" May yelled out in the distance

"Ok I'm coming!... Must've been my imagination…"

**(In a temple not far)**

Pallet was able to place the last piece of the crystal and formed it whole once more. The staff on which it was held flowed with a warmth that could be felt through whoever touches it. Pallet grinned at his latest work and slowly made his way to the altar room. He placed the staff on one of the pedestals and the moment it was in place, a golden light flowed through the object making it look like a god-made weapon. Pallet smiled and scanned the room around him. "Not long now your highness. Just wait a little more and everything will be just like it was"

A few moments later, Chaucer entered the room, "Pallet? I see you're up. Did I miss anything?" he placed his Pokeballs on the table three in total. "Nothing much" Pallet said finally, "Sha-hear is off to find the last relic and Rosa is out to find Hsa's whereabouts. If you have nothing to do then I'd suggest you do the same" the tone of his voice sounded so cold that the snow itself looked like a summer breeze.

"Hmph! I guess you're right. I just need to eat and I'll be on my way"

Just before he went through the stone door, Hagard entered. The two guardians were surprised to see each other, "Oh… it's you Chaucer. I never thought you'd be back so soon"

"Same to you. I guess your move with Rosa didn't go as planned?"

"I guess your stupidity is contagious" he said with a smirk

"Yeah you might say… Hey! You take that back!"

It wasn't long until Chu/Pallet became annoyed by their child like acts, "ENOUGH! Both of you! Hagard, what have you come to report?!"

The two guardians seemed a little frightened by the boy's sudden burst of anger. Hagard recovered quickly and cough a few times before speaking. He had a grin on his face and it seems like he had good news and that was rare to come by for any of them.

"I think it would be better if I showed you, Pallet"

Hagard guided the two of them through the temple towards the entrance. Chaucer would've popped his eyes out if he could but Pallet just grinned evilly… and I mean really… EVILLY. No… seriously. His grin can even make the dead role up their graves and move to another spot to haunt. What stood in front of the temple was an army… no… a horde… no… a legion… of Pokemons. It covered the horizon and all of them were armed with battle armors and seemed to be veterans on what they do best. All those time with Team Rocket must've really hardened them up.

"Excellent Hagard" Pallet spoke while Chaucer was still at awe, "Very good in deed" The Pokemons bowed to Pallet's presence. They did not seem to fear him but more of… respect him. Pallet grinned even wider if that was humanly possible. What he planned to do with this army… no one will know. Well… except me of course.

**(Back in the forest)**

The night finally claimed its place upon the sky darkening it. The snow fell down upon Ash's face making it itch. The place was bad enough with the snow storm but the night just made it even colder than usual. "Brrrrrrrr We have to find someplace warm soon or we'll turn to icicles" Max agreed, "I'm so cold, I think my water's already ice" he wasn't kidding. His canteen was so frozen solid that he couldn't even open it.

Richie shivered under his two layered jacket. He placed Sparky in his jacket so he wouldn't get cold. It was then Ash noticed Misty was turning a bit red, "Hey Misty, are you alright?" he asked with a worried face, "Huh? Oh I'm fine, don't worry about it" (chukichuki preee!) Ash decided that it wouldn't be good to provoke Misty now so he just decided to drop it.

They walked a few more minutes until a small cave came to sight. "Hey look there's a cave! Come on!" Ash led them without even thinking of the possibilities. There could've been a monster lurking or something that would attack them on sight but Ash didn't bother thinking of the consequences. He immediately took out a large towel from his back pack and covered the entrance so the wind wouldn't blow in.

The cave they took shelter upon seemed to be man made though. The rock formations and patterns looked as if it was carved by one powerful Pokemon. This was unsettling for the four of them. It wasn't long until Ash decided to set up his priorities, "I'm going out to see if I can find some fire wood. Richie, can you make a fire place and set up camp here for now. Max, you stay help Richie anyway you can alright?"

"Don't worry about me Ash. I didn't earn my boy scout badges for nothing!" Max stood up with pride as he rubbed away the snow from his hair. Ash smiled and turned his attention to Misty who was growing redder by the minute, "Misty, you look tired. Why don't you rest for awhile?" Misty, not trusting her mouth just nodded and quickly find herself a comfortable position to sleep.

Ash looked at the orange haired girl with worries written all over his face. "I'll be back as fast as I can (Pikachu!) Pikachu, I need you to wait here"

"Pika? Pikapika Pikapi?!" (Huh? Why not Ash?)

"Don't get mad Pikachu. I want you to look after Misty for awhile. I'll be back as soon as I can so please stay with her ok?"

"Pikachu" (Ok)

With a beat of a heart, Ash dashed off towards the forest to find whatever branches or twigs he can find to bring back. It would be dangerous for anyone to run around the woods at this time of night. The snow storm wasn't exactly helping either. Ash searched again and again throughout the ground but sadly the snow was already up to his knee.

**(On the other side of the forest)**

Tracey and his group were taking a nice nap under a natural spec of land. It was cozy just the way they all liked it. After a quick dinner from Tracey they all decided to hit the sack and hope that they would find their friends in the morning.

Just as soon as everyone slept, May got an urge to wash her face at the nearby stream. To her surprise, Duplica was also there… playing with her Dittos while hugging a Teddiursa stuffed toy in her arms. May has been wondering where she got that toy from. It seemed precious to her. Duplica would panic the moment she loses sight of it. She kept it in her arms like it was a part of her. "Oh Duplica, I didn't know that you were awake"

"Oh hey May. What are you doing up so late?"

May was a bit surprised to see her but kept a cool face going, "I was gonna ask you the same thing" Duplica smiled back and said, "Well, I just wanted to stay up for awhile. How about you?" she fired back a question

"I just needed to wash my face" she then sat right next to Duplica and washed her face with the cold icy water that was almost frozen as ice., "Hey Duplica (Hmm?) I've been wondering, where did you get that toy?" she was referring to the Teddiursa stuffed toy she was holding.

"Oh this little thing?" she said holding the toy up, "You like it? Ash gave it to me when he won it in the arcade at Mauville city. Isn't it cute?"

"He gave it to you? It must've taken a lot of tickets to get that"

The emerald haired girl gave out a small blush, "You bet! It's my number one precious item in the whole wide world. Oh I wish I could thank Ash properly"

The green haired girl shut herself up as those last words gave away her feelings. _"She likes Ash too"_ May thought. Duplica suddenly grew bright red in embarrassment, "Is that so" May grinned at her.

"Ahehehe I'm sorry… I guess I must've gotten carried away there"

"Not at all. It was kind of obvious when you start looking at it from someone else's point of view"

"Wait… does this mean you're… also?"

May blushed a little bit after she just gave an obvious hint to Duplica. The two of them sat in silence for a moment hoping that the other would break the silence. Duplica broke it first.

"So… how long have you… felt this way?"

"Probably by the time I left for Johto I guess. Ash just recently finished the Battle Frontier challenge and was heading home. How about you?"

"I… I don't remember. I used to meet him back in his journeys in Johto and Kanto so I don't really know when"

"Well I guess that's one of Ash's talents (Huh?) When my brother and I traveled with him in Hoenn, we met many people in our journey. Almost everyday we would meet new people new Pokemons and whenever we past through a place he would leave something behind. That special something only exists in him but he shares it with everyone else"

"You're right. I felt that too. Whenever he and I would part ways I always felt like he was next to me. With me all the way"

"(giggle) That's just what my brother said when we got back home from Johto (giggle)" the two of them giggled over and over again. But then Duplica had to break it.

"Ash was… no… he is special. He had more heart than the entire world combined. He looked to his enemies like they were rivals. He looked at his friends as families and his Pokemons as his brothers and sisters. He treated all of us… as equals"

"I guess that's how we all feel about him" said May holding her knees together

"Everyone but Misty (laugh) hahahahaha! But don't tell her that"

"My lips are sealed!" May replied with a hand gesture

After that friendly chat, Duplica gave out a yawn so long that her eyes gave out some tears for drowsiness, "Yawn I think I'll go to bed now. Thanks for talking with me May. I feel a whole lot better now" the green haired girl recalled her Dittos and slowly made her way back to camp. May stayed behind for a little while longer to gaze at the stars which strangely appeared. She didn't realize that the snow storm had stopped already.

May quickly took a few splashes of water and washed her face at the stream. She looked at herself at the water's reflection and took out the pendant that Ash gave her during the time after they rescued Tracey from the ruins near Mauville city. She dangled the Moltres figure that decorated the accessory brilliantly with its shape and form. Just when she reflected it on the water… another face appeared. May looked up to see clearly what it was… but it was too late. She let out a scream that echoed through the night. Tracey and the others heard it and quickly rushed towards the stream but when they arrived… May was gone. The only things that remained were her foot prints and some tracks…

Swampert tracks…

**(Back at the other cave)**

"Phew, that's done" Richie wiped off the sweat from his forehead as he jus finished setting the fire place. He turned and looked at Misty who was still in her sleeping position along with her Togepi and Ash's Pikachu. A minute later, Max came in with some fruits in his hands, "Hey Richie, look what I found!" the boy held out several bushels of apples and laid it on the ground. "That's great Max!" there seemed to be a little hint of worry in the tone of his voice.

"I hope Ash comes back soon. He wouldn't want to miss dinner that's for sure" said Max

Richie nodded as he kept the fire place up, "Me too. And I hope he brings back some fire wood or we'll be having snow cones for dinner"

They both sat there for awhile and thought of what might happen to their beloved hero. Why don't we go and see?

Ash walked through the snow that was right above his knee level. He had a stack of wood on his arms and it seemed to be more than enough to keep a fire going for awhile. The only problem now was… if he could remember the way back to the cave. "Oh no… DON'T TELL ME I LOST MYSELF AGAIN!!!" he yelled out to sky. It was a good thing there weren't any mountains nearby or it'd cause an avalanche.

Just when Ash had enough of the snow luck seemed turn away from him. As the boy rest under a tree, the snow that hanged on the branch fell right on top of him. "Oh no! At this rate I'll never get back to the cave in time!" he moaned as he picked up the wood that he dropped on the ground. He grumbled and grumbled until he finally got moving again. "If only I had someone to tell me which way to get back" he moaned out.

After a few minutes of walking blindly in the forest he came upon a familiar sight. "Hey wait a minute… I remember this place" he should remember this place. This was where he found those woods. The boy sighed at his dilemma. Just when things were still turning down on him, he noticed the old foot prints that he made earlier. "Hey, maybe if I follow my feet, I might just make it back!" he quickly trailed off his own foot steps and ran as fast as he could. He toped that the snow didn't cover up his tracks when he was walking around like an idiot.

**(Back at the cave)**

Richie called out Zippo to make a temporary fire place. Any heat would gladly be welcome by all of them. "Brrrrrr The weather is getting worsttttt" said Max as he shivered through every word. Richie tried to warm himself by taking out some papers from Tracey's empty scrap book, "I hope Tracey won't get mad if I used his book heh heh heh Zippo, can you light this for us?" he immediately made a small fire which could probably last a few minutes but heck it was better than nothing.

Just then, Richie noticed that Misty was strangely red. Even though it was already night time she couldn't have fallen asleep that easily. "Hey Misty" he called out to her, "Misty? Misty, wake up" he tried shaking her but the girl didn't even respond. Max held the girl's forehead and, "Yeow!!!! She's burning hot!" he said. Misty had a heavy fever and she didn't bother telling them. "Zippo, get over here quickly! (Zippo approached them) Keep Misty warm as long as you can! I'll go get my first aid kit!" Richie got his back pack and quickly read the instructions on how to cure fever.

"Ok, first we'll need some cold water! Max, do you have any water Pokemon?"

"No, I don't even have a starter Pokemon of my own yet"

Richie: "Then we'll just have to improvise! (grabs a chunk of ice block and places it in a bucket) Zippo flame thrower! (the ice melts and turned into water) It's not exactly cold water but it will do! (he grabs a towel, soaked it and placed it on Misty's forehead) Now let's see (he grabs the first aid book) Well all she needs now is rest. Sparky, Zippo, Pikachu, stay with her and tell us if anything happens"

Right after he finished his sentence, Ash came in through the entrance all covered in snow, "I'm back guys and I got fire wood!"

Richie noticed him right away, "Ash! We got trouble! Misty is sick!" Ash quickly dropped the stack of wood on his arms and rushed to Misty's side. The poor girl's body was so weak that she could barely even move. "What happened to her?!" he asked. "She's got a high fever. I've done all I can but we don't have the right medicines for her"

Ash: "Well the first thing Brock always gave me when I got the fever would be some cold water. Totodile, Cyndaquil, I choose you! (Totodile and Cyndaquil appeared) Totodile, I need you to fill up this bucket with water gun. Richie, get some wood and let Cyndaquil start a fire. Max, get my back pack. There should be something that would help her"

Everyone immediately got to work. Ash got some medicines off of his first aid kit and scrolled through the pages of the first aid book. Richie started a fire with Cyndaquil and Zippo and immediately started making something to eat. Just when Misty's fever turned up even higher, Ash felt like he needed to do something and fast. The boy did everything he possibly could to halt the fever. He gave her warm food and a warm blanket to cool off but none of them seemed to be working.

A few hours later, the fever stopped increasing and the three of them were relieved. They were exhausted on making Misty's sleep as comfortable as possible. Ash took off his cap and placed it back in his back pack. At that point no one felt like eating. The food wasn't good to look at anyway. Richie wasn't exactly a cook and neither was his father 'Arthur' so they all just sat there with their Pokemons and stared at the fire.

Max noticed that Ash was giving constant worried glances at Misty. If she knew she had a fever she should've told them so they would bring her back to the hospital right away. Richie was already fast asleep and Max was dozing off but Ash could barely even blink once.

Richie snored

Ash stares at the fire

Max stares at Ash

Richie snores some more

Max stares at the fire

Ash pokes the fire with the stick

Ash glances at Misty

Pikachu and Togepi goes to sleep

Starring

Starring

Starring

And to everyone's surprise… they were still starring…

Suddenly, a strange sound echoed from the outside. Ash sprung onto his feet and prepared Pikachu for a battle. Max shook Richie to wake him up. Sparky jumped on his shoulder and also prepared itself for a battle just in case if the intruder would be hostile. The sound grew louder and louder as it came closer to the entrance. The towel that Ash placed at the mouth of the cave blocked the chill of the weather but he didn't think that it would hold off against a monster. But when the monster came in… they were a bit awe struck. It was Gregguru. "Hello? Is anybody here?" said Brock as he entered the cave.

"Brock!" the three boys said out in unison. The squinty eyed boy couldn't have made it in a better time. Anabel and Todd came in just right after Brock did. Anabel was pleased to see Ash doing well. Ash broke up this little reunion and quickly got to business, "Brock, you gotta help Misty she's in a bad shape!" Brock immediately got out of his jacket and went to Misty's side.

He noticed that Ash and Richie did everything they could to help the girl and it seemed like her fever had slowed down. Brock took out some herbal remedies from his backpack and quickly made it into a soup. After a few minutes he lifted Misty's head and let the soup do its magic. Sadly, even Brock's special medicines weren't enough to halt the raging fever, "This is bad!" he said

"Is she going to be ok?"

Brock shook his head, "I'm not sure. Her fever is increasing at a very fast rate. I don't have the medicines or the tools to helps her. If we could just bring Misty to a hospital they should be able to fix her up"

"I'll go get more blankets" said Anabel, "She's gonna need it more than us"

Todd immediately pulled out some pills from his bag and handed it over to them, "I have cold tablets. It should hold off the fever for awhile"

"Thanks Todd" Ash replied as he fed Misty one of the tablets, "Here Misty, take these tablets and we'll get you to the hospital as soon as we can"

Ash placed the tablets in the water and let the girl drink it through. The fever didn't go down but at least it wasn't going up either. They all relaxed a bit. Brock made himself at home since he wasn't going anywhere for awhile. The others did the same but Ash remained by Misty's side the whole night.

Anabel came up to him and shared a blanket with him, "You should rest Ash" she said with a slight hint of freezingness. "No thanks, I'll keep watch on Misty just in case something happens" he gave out his usual golden trade mark smiles that made the purple haired girl blush deeply. "Thanks for worrying Anabel. You'd better… get some… sle…ep… too" the boy was practically exhausted. The bags on his eyes proved that he had been awake for so long that he'd even forgotten how it was like to sleep. The boy fell right on Anabel's shoulder making her feel like… a dream turning to reality.

Ash's face looked so innocent and peaceful that looking at it almost felt like a crime. His hat slowly slipped right down on his face making it more childish. Anabel placed her head on top of his and slept as the fire that sparked finally died down after consuming the last piece of wood.

**(In a ruined watch tower not far)**

Loin sat on the steps of the tower taking a few sips from a soda can he got recently from a vending machine that was broken. "So? How does it taste like?" asked Azal in curiosity. Loin couldn't believe it. For two million years the first thing he ever really tasted was this soda. It was sweet and tasty at the same time that he couldn't help but drink it all, "Hey! Leave some for me!"

"Ahhhhhh!" Loin drank it to the last drop and threw the can away. "It's amazing what we humans can create in such a short time" Azal tinkered with the can a bit hoping to get at least a drop but sadly there was none. "So what are you going to do with the girl? Is she another… 'casualty'?"

Loin was visibly angry at his last comment, "NEVER! I will never use another life for such extents!"

"Ok ok, I was only joking"

"(sigh) She's only bait to draw Hsa out. We'll drop her at the nearest settlement when this is all done"

A few seconds later a Swampert jumped down saying something intelligible. Loin understood every word and looked at Azal, "He's close. We must ready ourselves. Where's Noeh?"

Azal was silent for a moment before he could finally speak. Every word he said had a great hint of fear buried beneath it, "He's reporting to… him… right now. Let's just hope that the weather holds them off until then"

"Let's just hope Galyoken doesn't discover out plans" said Loin

Azal nodded and agreed "We wouldn't want to repeat that incident two million years ago now would we?"

However, another voice answered that question for him, "I most certainly agree"

The two of them turned around to meet one of their comrades. "So how did it go Noeh?" asked Loin. Noeh sighed, "He took our excuse quite well but I'm afraid he suspects something of us"

"I'm not surprised" Azal snorted, "He should be suspicious since we are plotting against his plans"

"What of the guardians? Do they suspect us as well?" Loin was beginning to wonder if their actions were proving to be too conspicuious

Noeh shook his head and let out a small sigh of relief, "No… not yet at least. They've managed to muster a lot of Pokemons by their side and I think they have all five relics as well"

"The crown of wisdom, the staff of power, the sword of might, the vest of immortality and… the ring of chaos" Loin remembered them all like he just saw them a minute ago

"Correct…"

Azal frowned and folded his arms together, "Then all they need is his soul"

"Yes... but we can still prevent the end of humanity! We must hurry!"

And with that the three of them disappeared in a fraction of a second.

In a tower near a beautiful palace, a plot brews

In a cave a protected by stones, a king sleeps… eager to be awaken

In the temple of resurrection, a legion gathers under the banner of the guardians

In a dream of a far away place, a child awaits for his return

Hoping that the promise he had made… can finally be fulfilled

In a dark lair of ungodliness, a man sharpens his blade

To finish what he had began in ancient times

Now the pieces are in place, the moves are planned and the weather has cleared. The only question now is…: who will move first?


	25. The First Move

**Chapter 25: The First Move**

"May!?" shouted Tracey

"May, where are you?!" shouted Drew

"May, if you can hear us please give us a sign!" yelled Duplica and Dawn

The group have been searching non stop for their missing friend since this morning. The thought of the Swampert capturing her at this moment seemed dreadful. The snow storm cleared a few hours ago but now it seemed like it came back stronger than ever. The four of them had to find shelter fast or they'd risk getting frostbites much worst than what Anabel had experienced. Tracey led the group through the perilous woods where Pokemons have abandoned. This was clearly unnatural to Hoenn. The series of unnatural disasters had been accruing one too many times already. First was the a frequent rain, then tidal waves that neared tsunamis, earthquakes that ripped through the region and now this… this… blizzard! Something was definitely wrong and the gang could feel it.

"Tracey, the weather is getting worst!" Drew said shivering his body for some heat. The sketcher nodded in agreement as he turned to the rest of his companions, "You're right. We should find shelter fast!"

Duplica heard this and pleaded, "But what about May? We can't just leave her!" she was right. They couldn't leave her, but if they stayed any longer, no one would be around to find them., "We'll come back for her. If we don't get out of this snow storm, we'll be popsicles by then!"

"And I sure don't wanna be an ice prince right now!" Drew blew out his breath as they turned into snow clouds.

Dawn also wanted to help find May but she had to agree with the others, "Let's go Duplica. I'm sure she's ok"

Without another word they began traversing through the snow once again. Tracey pulled out his sketch books and used it as a shovel to get the snow off his feet. Everyone had the same idea but they still had nowhere to hide. A few minutes later, they came upon a cave with a towel covering it. There appeared to be smoke coming from the inside which clearly stated that someone was living there. "Look guys, a cave! Come on let's move it!" Tracey pulled his group together as they were nearly frozen to the bones.

**(Inside the cave)**

Ash and the others awakened from their deep sleep after a long night. Misty's fever continues to rise but now at a slower pace. Brock did whatever in his power to get the fever down but he was no doctor. The only medicines he had with him right now were only for Pokemons and there was nothing more he could do. The others felt powerless to aid their friend but no one felt more powerless than Ash. He was taking care of the orange haired girl 24/7 for almost two days now. The weather conditions cleared up from time to time but without knowing where they were or which way they were going they'd risk getting lost and getting caught in a blizzard all over again.

"Hmm…" Brock took out the thermometer off of Misty's mouth. Ash and the others looked deeply concerned. "Well how is she Brock?" the squinty eyed boy shook his head in disappointment, "Not good. It looks like her fever is starting all over again. This weather isn't clearing up too" he wasn't kidding. It's been snowing outside for almost two days in a row now.

"Well we can't leave her like this! I'm going out to see if I can find the main road!" before Ash could head on to meet the freezing blizzard, Richie grabbed onto his jacket pleading him not to let go, "Ash wait! You'll get yourself killed out there!" but the boy didn't listen. Right now, only helping Misty was all that he could think of, "I don't care! I have to do something before… WHA!!! (Tracey and his group enters the cave)"

"Ash, Brock, everyone! You guys are ok!" Tracey was surprised to see his friends in the most secluded spot in the entire forest

"Ash!" Dawn and Duplica said in unison

"Dawn? Duplica? Tracey?" Ash said their names as they entered

"And don't forget me" said Todd who poked his head in

Drew was the last person to come in, "And me brrrr"

Brock was glad Tracey was there. At least now they had a doctor in the house, "Tracey, you couldn't have come at a more perfect time!"

After explaining the situation to the recently arrived group, Tracey quickly pulled out his first aid kit and began mixing some other medicines. Even though Tracey was a Pokemon researcher, he was able to learn a thing or two from professor Oak about human anatomy. After a few mixing and boiling and other chemical words that I can't even pronounce, Misty's fever finally went down. Ash had never felt so relieved in his life. The colors on the girl's face was coming back to her cheeks and her breathing rate returned to normal.

Tracey checked her temperature one more time and nodded happily, "Well that should do it. Her fever's gone down" the gang sat back and was relieved by the news. It seemed like everyone was together again but then Ash noticed one particular girl missing from the group, "Hey, where's May?" Tracey went silent for awhile. He didn't know how he would explain it. Was she kidnapped by the Swampert or was she just lost? "We… don't know…" he said finally.

"You don't know?" Max said surprised

Duplica shook her head and said, "She was with us two days ago but then she disappeared"

"We suspect that the Swampert kidnapped her" Drew added which was replied with a yell

"WHAT!?" they all said in unison

"We have to find her!" Ash was once again on his hero mode and was absolutely ready to face off mother nature. It was then Dawn had to break the mood, "We've been searching for her all day now but no luck. And the snow isn't exactly helping either" They all sighed in defeat. It looks like the weather has gotten the best of them. As if Misty's sickness was bad enough now May's disappeared as well? This certainly wasn't a good day for any of them.

As the hours went by their supplies seemed to have grown thin. The decrease of temperature turned most of their food into icicles and growing fatter seemed to be the only option of staying warm. Their food dwindled faster and faster until there was only but a few bags of chips left.

Ash tried using his Pokedex/phone but there was no response. The weather must blocking all communication to the outside. Just as things couldn't get any worst, the fire went out and it seemed like they were out of fire wood as well.

"Someone's gotta go out there and get some more fire wood" Brock recommended

"And go through this?" Drew opened up the entrance of the cave which let in a powerful gush of cold icy wind. This made the gang thinking deeper to get themselves out of this situation, "No way! Not even a Groudon would wanna go through that!"

"Well if don't get more fire wood then we might freeze to death"

"Hmm…" they all began to think

"And Zippo is tired from using its flame thrower too many times. Do you think this weather will last all winter?" Richie asked Brock

"Let's hope not or we'll be stuck here all winter"

It was situations like these that brings the talent out of Ash, "Hmmm… I got it! Cyndaquil, Bulbasaur, come out for a sec! (Bulbasaur and Cyndaquil appears) Alright Bulbasaur, use your razor leaf! (Bulbasaur throws out a dozen leaves onto the ground) Good job, now Cyndaquil, use flame thrower! (Cyndaquil burns up the leaves and Bulbasaur continues to throw down more leaves) Great work you two!"

"Great thinking Ash! This will last for a day!" Brock spoke out as he got closer to the fire, "We can cook some of the food now"

"Great, cuz I'm starving!" said Dawn rubbing her stomach.

**(At the Temple of Resurrection)**

On the particular temple a few miles away from the cave that our heroes lay in waiting, Pallet prepares a chess board game to symbolize the battle field that was about to be created. He placed every piece at exactly where he wanted them to be.

Chaucer and Hagard observed closely at his every move, smiling along with him. Rosa entered the room covered with snow. Sha-hear looked at the visible expression that the girl had not been seen in a long time. Rosa was actually… smiling.

"He is here… I can feel him" the girl said. Sha-hear didn't really know if he should either be happy for her or be stunned, but he kept his face cool and his emotions controlled, "We all feel his presence Rosa"

"Then what are we waiting for?!" it was a demand rather than a question, "He's out there in the blizzard and are we to just stand here?" Chaucer was a bit taken back by her sudden outburst but gave out a good point, "We don't know exactly where he is right now. We'll let the illusions find him and take the glory for ourselves"

Rosa simply turned her head to the boy who was sitting comfortably on the chair, "Pallet, don't you think it's time to end this blizzard?" the boy thought for a moment and replied in a boring tone, "No… let it snow a bit longer. I think he'll manage" Hagard giggled at his expression and gave out some words of wisdom, "Toying with the weather has its way of back firing Pallet"

"……… Just a few more hours"

"Let the boy do what he wants Hagard" Sha-hear said out finally, "I doubt this storm would do anything but slow them down a little. We have an eternity so there's no need to rush"

"How long do we have to wait?! I'm getting impatient here!" Rosa was ready to brake the next object that comes within her reach

Chaucer took a slight step back and gave out his own metaphor, "You've been waiting for over two million years Rosa. You can wait a few more hours"

The whole room went into silence and Pallet continued to set up the old chess board. Oddly enough, he seemed to be placing the pieces of the set at a very different scale. His plans are now well in motion.

**(Back at the cave)**

A few hours later the weather continued to worsen. With snow pouring into the cave, the gang decided that it was time to move deeper into the cave so that they won't get chilled by the cool temperature. Ash used Pikachu's static powers to illuminate the way along with Sparky. "Looks like another dead end" said Ash with a sigh. The cave they were in seemed more like a tunnel since it had more than one route to follow. Tracey and Drew carried Misty on a man made stretcher since she was still too weak to walk. After several attempts to find a way out Brock had enough. "Alright, the longer we stay here the higher the chances that the snow will catch up to us"

"So what's the plan Brock?" asked Dawn who was still shivering.

"We took three tunnels already, that leaves four more to be searched. One of them must have an exit. So here's the idea. Dawn, Duplica, Anabel and Ash will go through to the end of each of these tunnels. If it's a dead end, come back and wait for the others. Agreed?"

"Agreed" the gang said in unison.

A few minutes before they entered Dawn felt a little uncertain about this whole adventure but after a reassuring smile from Ash, she gathered up her courage and went through without second thoughts. The darkness of the tunnel consumed their bodies within seconds. If it weren't for their Pokemons or gadgets they would've been wandering in the dark forever.

Anabel was the first who came upon a dead end, "Well, its not this way" she then starts making her way back to the main shaft

Duplica was the next who found another stoned wall, "Not even Brock's Onix will get through that" she turned around and started making her way back.

Ash also seemed to have the same luck as those two. "Well it looks like this one is a dead end too. Come on Pikachu, let's go meet up with Brock and the others. Maybe they found a way out by now. (Pikachu)" they turned around and began making their way back but it seems that the path they came through had suddenly been replaced by another stoned wall, "Huh? Wait a minute. I'm sure we came through this way (Pika pikachu) Hmm… maybe we missed a turn. Let's go the other way Pikachu" the two of them doubled back but just the moment they turned their heads, the path seemed to have gotten smaller. "Hey, since when did this wall get here?!"

Back at the main shaft Brock meets up with Anabel and Duplica but neither of them had any good news. All they were able to find were some mushrooms and dead ends. Since they had nothing better to do they decide to wait for Ash and Dawn.

Dawn let out her Pachirisu and let it use its spark attack to illuminate the darkness. She wasn't very fond of the dark and as a matter of fact she hated it. As the two of them traverse through the tunnels that seemed to have no end, they discovered something that they never wanted to see. "Huh? What is that?"

"Swampert…."

"Uh oh! It's a… it's a… a Swamp…p…pert?" the ice Pokemon gazed upon the girl with blood shot eyes. Each time it took a step forward, Dawn and Pichirisu took three steps back. Dawn wasn't exactly a seasoned trainer and if what Officer Jenny told them were true then she'd had less than zero percent chance to even fight such a powerful Pokemon. However… Ash's **risk taking trait** seemed to have rubbed itself onto her. "Ok Swampert, if it's a battle you want then it's a battle you'll get! Pichirisu, use iron tail!"

Pichirisu jumped off and attacked Swampert but the water Pokemon didn't even flinch. "Uh oh. This is bad! Ok Pichirisu, use spark attack!" Pichirisu unleashed a powerful electrical beam onto Swampert which drove it back a few feet but it wasn't done just yet. "Swammmperrrtttt!!!" the Pokemon used its focus punch but Pichirisu dodged it just in time. "Ok Pichirisu, use spark attack one more time!" the Pokemon obeyed and unleashed an even more powerful attack onto Swampert.

The water Pokemon did not look very happy, "What's with this Pokemon? Lightning is supposed to got against water so why?" she took out her Pokedex and see what it has to say.

"Swampert, a water type Pokemon. The evolved form of Marshtomp. Swampert lives in areas near water source and…"

Dawn didn't have time for a full lecture right now, "I know I know! Geeze! Is there a forward button in this thing?!"

"Unlike other water Pokemons, Swampert is also known as a ground type Pokemon. It has half the defense capability of any rock Pokemon"

"What?! A ground type? Now I get it. Ok then, Piplup, Buneary, Beyleef, I choose you!" the three Pokemons that she called out appeared in front of her. They all look a bit frightened by the Swampert but they were still determined to battle it out for their master. "Alright everyone, let's show this big bully what we can do! Pochama, use bubble beam!" the penguin like Pokemon released a wave of bubbles which slammed onto Swampert directly. Swampert was a bit dizzy but it recovered quickly and used another one of its focus punch on Piplup.

Piplup!" Dawn's Pokemon flung far from its original position and landed on the girl's arms. "Ok then! Buneary, give it a taste of its own medicine, focus punch!" Buneary leaped off and smacked Swampert right on its cheeks, "Beyleef, use body slam!" Beyleef jumped leaped in the air and fall on top of Swampert but sadly it missed by a few millimeters. "Go for a vine whip attack!" Beyleef unleashed its vine whip but Swampert caught it before it could do any harm.

Unable to move from its position, Beyleef had no choice but to go for a tug of war battle. However the Swampert seemed to know a few things about tactics. In a fraction of a minute, it unleashed a powerful watergun which sent Beyleef far off towards the wall. Swampert smirked at its triumphant victory but Dawn wasn't done just yet. "Alright then! Buneary, ice beam. Pachirisu, spark attack!" the two Pokemons attacked and then a real battle resumed.

**(Meanwhile)**

"Where in the world is the way out!!! (PIKAPIKACHU!!!!)" Ash and his little yellow friend were panicking as they were walking around in circles in the tunnel. It was strange. The moment they pass a certain point, the path behind them would suddenly vanish. It was as if someone or something was showing him where he wanted him to go. "I got a bad feeling about this Pikachu. Stay on my shoulders so we won't get separated" the little mouse gladly complied and rode on Ash's shoulders.

In a temple nearby, Pallet was having a little fun playing his game of chess.

After a few more minutes of getting lost and getting even more lost, Ash had enough. "Arrrgggghhh!! We'll never go anywhere if we go around in circles!" he slammed his right arm onto the wall and with his current rage, it glowed. Ash and Pikachu watched as his arm glow bright blue. He took off the arm length glove and let his arm work its magic or what he calls… miracles.

Pallet sat with a grin on his face but it soon faded when one of the chess pieces moved on its own. "It looks like he's getting stronger" he smirked and continued playing. Rosa was now getting impatient but that was really Chaucer's role.

Ash didn't really know why his arm was doing all this but it seemed to becoming more and more frequent. He didn't know if he should be excited or afraid to be having this sort of power but in times it had proven its use. He placed his hand on the wall and in a few seconds, the wall vanished as if it never existed. A new path revealed itself to Ash but this was getting more and more confusing with each passing moment he had this power.

As the boy and his Pikachu traverse the maze once more they began rooting out the areas by placing marks on the paths he crossed already with a marker. "Alright Pikachu, if we keep this up, we'll find our way out of here in no time" he said to his little companion as they traverse the tunnels.

After he finished putting on his fifth mark on the wall Ash began to hear noises coming from the other side of the wall. There were voices and explosions. He couldn't really make out what the voices were saying but he could tell that they were shouting.

**(On the other side of the wall)**

Dawn was doing a fighting retreat tactic which she learned from her old rival Nozomi during one of their adventures in Shinou. Beyleef, Buneary and Pachirisu were using long ranged attacks to keep the Swampert at bay while Pochama lay unconscious on her arms. "Keep it up guys, we're almost there!" she encouraged her Pokemons as they kept their fire on the dangerous Swampert.

She slowly back trailed through the path she came through while slowly giving new commands to her companions. Just before she took another step back, Swampert gave her a stare that made her body chill in fright. It then unleashed a powerful water gun attack. Hikari thought of nothing but the safety of her Piplup so she took the blast in full force but that was only a fraction of the pain that was going to come next. Her body slammed against the wall and Swampert took the opportunity to shoot out another wave of water gun attacks which caused some of the sensitive boulders to fall onto Dawn. The pain was too severe for any normal girl to endure but by some luck she was able to survive but just barely.

Dawn couldn't feel her legs and arms. It felt so numb that you could just die of numbness right here. Her mind was now drifting off to the light and but she wasn't ready to embrace it. "I'm sorry everyone… it looks like I won't be joining with you at the Valmarian stage…"

Beyleef gave its master a worried glance as it reminded her of how Ash would act if any of his Pokemons were in danger.

With renewed vigor coming out of its body, Beyleef unleashed a more powerful wave of razor leaves along with a combination of a vine whip attack. Swampert caught the vines again and prepared to use its water gun but this time Beyleef was ready. "Bey bey! Bey!" (Alright, get him!) the grass Pokemon yelled out. With its arms tied, Swampert had no defense against short range attacks. Buneary gave out a focus punch while Pachirisu used its volt tackle.

After a whole lot more beating, Swampert still refused to fall. Instead it just a whole lot angrier. Piplup recovered after Dawn fell unconscious on the ground, "Pi? Piplup?!" the little penguin was now mad. It stepped up and launched a drill peck attack on the other water Pokemon which sent it far off to the other corner releasing Beyleef's vines. "Piplup!, pi!" (GO ATTACK!) the other three Pokemons agreed and mercilessly bombard the Swampert with their attacks but even that wasn't enough to hold it down.

Swampert quickly got back up on its feet… or was it flippers? Anyway, it got back up and used hydro pump. Dawn's Pokemons were badly beaten but after that last attack, Swampert finally fell due to exhaustion.

**(Back at the main shafts)**

The rest of the gang were getting impatient. They've been waiting for almost two hours for the other two to show up and it took only fifteen minutes for Anabel and Duplica to find their way back. "Could they be lost?" Anabel thought as she grab a handful of chips and stuff it in her mouth. Drew took out a deck of cards and began playing with Richie and Max a game of black jack to past the time. Even at the most desperate of times you need to learn how to relax. Brock cooked up a small meal with the remaining fire wood they had left. After a swift full stomach, Richie thought that he had waited long enough, "Hey Brock, I'm going to find Ash and Dawn. I'll be back soon" Brock nodded in agreement because their supplies were now running dangerously low.

Richie took the tunnel Ash went through but after going following a single path for one minute, he came upon a dead end, "Huh? That can't be right" At first he thought that he took the wrong tunnel but it wasn't, "Hey Brock, are you sure this is the one Ash took?" he asked the squinty eyed man. "Yeah of course. Anabel took that one. Duplica took the one on the side. Dawn took the center and Ash took the one next to Dawn's. Why is there something wrong?"

"Well. There was a dead end here and I didn't see Ash at all"

"Well that can't be right. I didn't see him come out at all"

"I'll check the other tunnels. Maybe he took this one"

Brock tried to stop Ash's 'twin' but before he could say anything the boy was long gone. "(sigh) Hey Drew, can I join?" Drew shuffled the cards once more and dealt the cards. Togepi was still by Misty's side and the orange haired girl hasn't slipped from their minds at all.

**(Back with Ash)**

The boy walked along the tunnels (again) but this time… he could feel something. A sudden pierce came upon his brain making him face the other direction. "Pikachu?" (Is something wrong?) the little electrical mouse looked at his master and face at what he was facing. "I… can feel… them" Ash muttered out. What could he feel? Before he knew it, he was running faster than he had ever done before. Pikachu was hanging on for dear life as Ash was moving so fast that it made 'Extreme Speed' look like cake walk for him. Ash leaped over obstacles and dashed through the tunnel like he knew every corner already. After each time he breath he became faster and faster until he nearly broke the speed of light. After three minutes, he came to a complete stop which flung the poor Pikachu off.

In front of him was a pooped out Swampert and a few meters from it were four badly wounded Pokemons and right next to them was…

"Dawn!!" Ash rushed to her side and shook her hoping that she would respond. "Dawn, please open your eyes. Dawn!" the girl was breathing but it seemed like she was wounded by an attack. Ash's will power lost all hope. He hugged the girl and tears rolled down from his eyes, "Dawn...please" (Pikapika) (Pi... piplup) (Bey, bey) (Mimi) (Pichi) The Pokemons came to the two human sides even in their wounded condition. They didn't want to let the boy cry alone.

Dawn was slightly half awake. She could hear a feint voice and a pair of arms holding her gently around her neck and waist. He eyes fluttered a bit but Ash didn't notice. "Ash….." was all that she could mutter out before slipping to unconscious. He body may be inactive but her mind sure was.

During this time of silence and solemn, the girl's brain began to act up. Dawn felt herself floating over a small stadium where a particular memory lingered.

**(Dawn's Dream)**

_Dawn was floating over the stadium as a ghost. She could feel herself to be transparent, "Huh? Where am I?" she scanned her surroundings and quickly recognize the place, "This is… the Shinou grand stadium!" she then realized that she was actually above ground level, "Whoa! I'm… flying?!" just as she wanders out the place, Dawn noticed a familiar girl running around, "Hey… that's me!"_

Dawn was about to enter the Pokemon contest in Shinou. She just called her mother so she could wish her good luck. Ash didn't enter the contest since he was only aiming for the big prize for Pokemon trainers. He and Brock however came by to cheer her at the stands.

"_Now I remember. This is where everything began"_

"Hey Dawn, I heard you made it to the semi finals!" Ash congratulated his friend. Dawn was quite surprised to see them here. Since they were off on the other side of the region she never expected to see them for another three days or so, "Ash, Brock, what are you two doing here?"

"We came by to cheer for you" Brock replied which was then followed by Ash, "You didn't expect to go there all by yourself now did you?"

Dawn smiled back at her two friends, "Thanks you two. But my Pokemons and I are more than ready to take on Zoey" Brock and Ash obviously flinched as they didn't know who her opponent would be. Ash was astounded! He knew of Zoey's talents because he fought her before and she was not a trainer to go easy on that much was for sure.

"Whoa! Zoey's your opponent?" Brock said in surprise. The blue haired coordinator just gazed up and did a stylish pose, "Yup! Just watch me! I'll soon be standing on stage with my head held high!"

"I guess all that training with Ash was worth it"

Ash pouted at Brock's words, "Of course it was! I taught her every trick she knew! She'll win for sure!" Dawn was glad to hear that from the boy himself,: "Thanks Ash. That means a lot to me"

Brock placed his hand over his chin and decided that it was nearly time to go, "Well, we'd better not waste anymore time. You should put in what Pokemons you're gonna use for the semi finals"

They nodded and proceeded to the registration desk, "Good day… oh wait… I mean good afternoon...or was it good night? Oh anyway, can I help you? Oh hello there Dawn" the receptionist smiled at them, "Hi Nurse Joy. I'd like to sign up my Pokemons now"

"That's great, please put two Pokeballs on the tray please"

"Eh? Two Pokebals? I thought you only needed one Pokemon for the battle performance?"

Brock opened up his Shinou guide book and read out loud the Pokemon contest section, "Hmm… in the Pokemon contest, the semi finals and the finals will have either a two on two or a one on one match. I guess they must've picked the double performance battle this season"

Dawn sighed, "Oh... but I sent everyone back to professor Rowan's lab! Can you wait a moment Nurse Joy? I'll be back as soon as I got my Pokemons"

The lady simply smiled back, "That's ok Dawn. I'll be here all night checking up the other injured Pokemons" and with that. Dawn quickly made her way to the Pokemon center to get some of the Pokemons teleported to her.

"Hello, this is professor Rowan's lab. Who's speaking?" said the assistant as the video screen popped up.

"Oh hello. This is Dawn" she spoke softly in embarrassment. She knew that it was late at night and calling someone at this hour was rather rude. The assistant opened up the video screen and quickly recognized her, "Oh hey there Dawn. I heard you made it to the semi finals of the Shinou contest. Congratulations! I heard everyone from Twinleaf town are excited about your next match!" Dawn sweat drop, "Ahehe... is that so?"

The assistant nodded, "Yeah! In fact, I think your mother is inviting everyone to watch the match at her house tomorrow! Professor Rowan is going there himself. We all expect great things from you!"

_"Talk about no pressure"_ Dawn commented to herself, but then she quickly got down to business, "Umm, can I speak with Professor Rowan for a minute?"

"Oh I'm sorry Dawn. He left the lab just a few hours ago. He's probably sleeping right now. Can I leave you a message?" the assistant picked up a pen and a note pad and smiled at her.

"Actually, I need to have one of my Pokemons transported here"

"Oh my… oh dear" the assistant's face looked rather depressive and pale

Dawn gulped as she knew that something bad came up. The only time when the assistant says something was bad was when they let out Staraptor and Starly out of their Pokeballs, "Is something wrong?"

"Well you see… ahehehe. It's a funny story really. You see… about a week ago a new trainer came by to pick up his starting Pokemon and well… the Pokemons went wild again ahehehe. They really did a number to the lab and uh... ahehehehe I'm afraid that the transporter got uh… destroyed"

"WHAT! Then how am I gonna get my Pokemons now? I only have Piplup and Buneary with me! And Buneary already did the appeal round and the rules says that I can't register again for the performance battle! Not to mention that the last day of registration is tomorrow!"

"I'm sorry Dawn, but there's nothing I can do. You'll just have to improvise" the young man replied apologetically.

A few minutes later, Dawn hung up and join the rest of the gang at the waiting room. "Hey Dawn, so what Pokemon did you choose for next week's battle?" Ash spoke up. But then he noticed his friend's visible disappointment on her face, "Hey, what's wrong Dawn? Did something happen?" she didn't reply. She just sat there on the sofa and sighed. Brock and Pikachu didn't like where this was going. Dawn opened her soda can and gulp all the way down.

"I can't get my Pokemons from the lab" she said out in a depressing tone

"Why not? (Pika?)" Ash asked in confusion along with his Pikachu

Dawn decided to explain, "The transporter back in the lab is broken so I can't get my Pokemons and the last day of registration is tomorrow"

"That's bad" said Brock

Ash wanted to cheer her up, "Then maybe you can go and catch one tomorrow"

"That's good" Brock said again

Dawn waved her hands up in defeat, "But the nearest place to find a wild Pokemon would be miles from here"

"That's bad"

"Hey don't worry about it. Tell ya what, I'll catch a Pokemon for you and you win this round for me, deal?" Ash offered her a tempting decision, but in the end she declined.

"That's good"

"No Ash. I have to do this with my own Pokemons. I'll go and catch my own Pokemon and I'll be sure to win!"

"That's bad… or is that good?"

Ash sighed and smiled back at her, "Well… if you're determined then I won't stop you"

"Thanks Ash. I'll see you two later!"

The girl rushed off towards the nearest forest immediately after she finished her soda can. Brock tried to stop her but Ash held him back. He looked at Dawn and quietly remembered how foolish he was back then. Dawn was nearly a splitting image of him well except that she was girl and all. Still, she was hyperactive and would not let a day go by without a little progress. Dawn and her Pokemons would grow stronger and stronger by the day but Ash was getting stronger by each passing second. He never told anyone about his method because he didn't know how to explain it. It was awkward. Some people began to think that he had some sort of a secret training schedule but in truth he just trains like any other trainer. Perhaps it was his Pokemons, perhaps it was his talents, who knows…

"_I remember now. This was when I was entering the Shinou Pokemon contest!" the ghost Dawn said to herself _

Ash looked at his friend as she raced off to find a Pokemon worthy of being in the competition.As she went on into the distant horizon of the nearby forest, a hint of pride and honor seemed to steam out of his heart. To have an apprentice who was determined to improve every single day was like having a child of your own. _"Good luck Dawn"_ he sent out his blessings silently to the sky.

Brock yawned clearly stating out that he was tired, "Well, I'm going back to the Pokemon center. Let's go Ash"

"Sure Brock…"

The two of them made their way to the Pokemon center a few minutes later where Nurse Joy was taking a nap. This must've been one of the lazier Joys in the family.

If the pink haired nurse wasn't sleeping so peacefully, Brock would've been doing his usual catch up lines by now. He sighed and took the keys for the room that he rented, "Come on Ash. We'll need plenty of sleep before the morning ceremony" they slowly made their way towards the room. When Brock opened up the door, a sudden thought came to Ash's mind which made him stop on his tracks.

"Umm… Hey Brock, why don't you go on ahead. I have something to do. I'll see you in a few minutes"

"Ok, but I'll probably be sleeping by the time you get there"

The moment Brock was out of sight, Ash rushed to the telephone booth to call a certain old man for some help.

The line on the other side rang for a couple of minutes but Ash had faith that the person he was calling would answer. A few minutes later, someone did. "(yawn) Hello This is professor Oak's residence (yawn...) Who's this" the professor said grogily through yawns.

"Professor! I'm glad to see that you're awake"

"Actually, I was already sleeping. Do you know what time it is Ash?"

"Sorry professor but can you do me a favor?"

"Sure Ash but can't it wait till tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry professor but it's really important"

Once Ash explained the whole situation to Professor Oak, the old man let out his bright sunny side up smile appeared on his face.

"I see. So is that all you need?"

"Yeah, I know it's a lot but can you please do it… for me?" Ash pleaded

"Well paper works and files would take a few hours but if it's for your friend Dawn, then I have no objections what so ever"

"Thanks professor, you're the greatest"

"I know Ash... I know… hehehe"

On that very same night, Dawn searched all over the nearby woods for any Pokemons to capture. Sadly there was none in sight. By now, any Pokemon would do. Even a weak one would be acceptable if she was unlucky. "(sigh) I'll never catch a Pokemon at this rate" she groaned. Piplup was lying next to her as it perspired from all the searching. Unfortunately by this time all the Pokemons would be in their lairs and sanctuaries. Dawn however, wasn't a person who would give up so easily. She put Piplup backed into its Pokeball and once again searched tirelessly through the woods. It would be sunrise before she even knew it.

"_Oh geeze, what was I thinking back then?" Dawn followed her dream self through the forest and recalled all the bad memories in the woods. She saw herself tumbling over a log and falling down on a pool of mud. It was a good thing only her face went in or else she would've thrown a tantrum about getting her favorite dress dirty._

**(The next morning) (Still in the dream)**

Ash came out of the Pokemon center early to find Dawn. He had a hunch on where the girl would be and luckily… he found her on the bench in the park. _"I knew she'd be here"_ he thought quietly to himself. The blue haired girl looked exhausted and beaten. Whenever she was depressed or tired she would always go to the nearest park because she said it was peaceful and soothing for the soul. "Dawn" Ash shook the young girl as she moaned something about winning the competition, "Dawn, it's time to wake up"

"_Oh… it's Ash" ghost Dawn said to herself  
_

"Errrmmm? Five more minutes mommy" Dawn moaned again and curled herself to fit the bench, which made Ash sweat dropped, "Dawn, it's the last day of registration" The last sentence woke the girl up completely making Ash stumble back down. "WHATTTTTTT!!!!!! Oh no, I must've fallen asleep!"

"You didn't catch a Pokemon did you?" he said sarcastically. Dawn just nodded back hesitantly, "I guess I'll have to forfeit the round" she said to herself. But the moment she said that sentence, Ash seemed a little disappointed to hear her say that, "Hey don't talk like that. That's not what I taught you" he tried to cheer her up but it looks like he failed.

Dawn didn't change her mood. She just took a can of soda out of her rug sack and drank it all in one go. This would clearly look oddly similar to a drunken man in a tavern but instead of being drunk of alcohol, the girl was drunk and depressed with soda, "I was only having a few minutes break. I must've lost it when I closed my eyes" she said sheepishly.

"(sigh) Well, you can't catch them all in one day I guess" Ash gave out a hint of a joke

"What am I gonna do now?" the Shinou girl began to panic, "If I can't get a Pokemon in two hours, I'll have no choice but to forfeit the match. Maybe Paul was right, maybe I don't have what it takes to be a coordinator like mom (Paul is Ash's hated rival in Shinou region)"

"Don't say that! Paul will get what's coming to him sooner or later!"

"But what if… what if he was right? What if I wasn't born to be a Pokemon coordinator?"

"I said don't talk like that!!" the boy shouted out in anger and irritation. To see someone demote themselves to dirt was probably an act of insult to his name. But his anger seemed to surprise Dawn herself.

The girl was surprised and scared to see Ash angry at her. They've had their share of arguments before but this time it was different. The tone of his voice, the flare of his eyes and the words he said were very much different when he was calm and collected. "I'm sorry" he apologized for the out burst, "It's just when that… I can't have people backing down on their dreams" he said in an almost calm voice. "When I left Pallet town, I was probably a lot like you back then" he began.

"Back then, I was also reckless and believed that I could take on anyone with Pikachu. But then... I soon realize that no matter what happens... you can't always expect life to go your way. After I was beaten so many times by several trainers I thought I didn't have what it takes to be a Pokemon master" he sulked down slightly with his hat lowered to cover his face, "But then a friend of mine told something I would never forget: 'Move on and reach out for your dream no matter what!' After hearing him say that, I got all my confidence back. Remember the time when you lost to the appeal rounds a few months ago? (see Pokemon Diamond and Pearl episode 49 and 60) Even after you lost during those times, you still managed to make it here to the grand stadium! I don't know what other people think Dawn, but to me... you're one of the best coordinator here in the Shinou region.

Dawn let out a feint blush cross her face as the boy continued to praise her. Even though she looked down on herself, Ash continued to convince her that anything is possible. By the time the boy finished his story with a defining sigh, he took out a Pokeball and handed it to Dawn, "Here Dawn" he began, "As a sign of my friendship, I want to give you this Pokemon, Beyleef"

The green Pokemon appeared in front of them after it came out of its Pokeball. Dawn heard many things about Ash's Beyleef. It was practically one of his most trusted friends during his journeys in Johto. The grass Pokemon quickly jumped onto Ash and smiled with glee, happy to see its old master. Ash never liked being called master nor did he ever like the idea of calling Pokemons as things. Instead he referred to them as friends and equals as much as possible.

"But Ash, I couldn't possibly take it. It's your Pokemon" Dawn began to decline

"Not anymore. Last night, I had it registered to you" he explained

_Dawn remembered that day very well. She looked at the event that happened a long time ago and smiled. It's not everyday you get to see your happiest moments play back in front of you._

"No Ash… I can't. I want to win with my own Pokemons just like my mother"

"But Dawn..."

"I'm sorry, but I can't accept your Pokemon"

The boy felt a little depressed on what he was about to do. But she was right though. No matter how you looked at it, this offer was probably an act of pity rather than an act of friendship. To him it might seemed like a kind thing to do, but once he looked at it from Dawn's point of view, it looked more like an insult.

Quickly seeing his mistake Ash returned Beyleef back into its Pokeball and let out a sigh before speaking, "You're right. I guess I must've gone a little overboard. I just wanted to help that's all"

"I know you mean well Ash but this is just something I must do on my own"

Ash looked away from Dawn and slowly began walking away. But just as he took ten steps off, he suddenly remembered someone who acted just like her before, "You know… there was a friend of mine who always walked alone before. I'm not sure if he's still a trainer or a researcher but he always did things on his own. He didn't have too many friends except me" Ash clutched his hand and held it high above his face, "He and I were rivals and friends just like you and Zoey. I was able to beat him during the time in the Johto League but then he got stronger too"

"Y... you're talking about Gary aren't you?" Dawn replied which was replied with a silent nod.

"Yeah... he and I always fought each other. But then I remembered that we used to be friends back when we were younger. We used to help each other even though we didn't want it"

Dawn knew where the boy was getting at and she knew that she didn't have enough time to catch a Pokemon today. The tempting offer of Ash's Pokemon was hard to refuse but it was the right thing to do. "I can't rely on others to help me Ash" she cut the boy off, "Sometimes there are things you have to do alone. My mom said that if we keep relying on others, we'll never become strong"

"Hey, you're strong enough to me. You managed to beat me a couple of times before"

_Dawn turned into her chibi form, "That's because those stupid Team Rocket always get in the way!" she thought out a little loud but she was a ghost in her memories so no one could hear her._

"Listen Dawn, you and I have been through a lot and I think your mother would love to see you on that stage"

"But I… how can I be using one of your Pokemons?"

"Beyleef can be a little hard headed but she and I are almost like two peas in a pot. I'm sure she'll be a good friend with you too"

"But Ash…" she held back the tears in her eyes but was losing heavily

Ash cut her off, "You said once that your goal was to make your mother proud Dawn... and I want to help you fulfill that goal" he placed his hand on his chest and smiled. As the two of them looked at each other's eyes, Dawn was consumed by the strong gaze Ash was giving her. It felt as if she was trapped within a void of his own dimension or something. Her heart was beating rapidly and her cheeks were getting redder by the minute. "So don't throw away an opportunity"

With a move that surprised the girl, Ash grabbed her hand and placed the Pokeball on it, "Don't take Beyleef as a tool to accomplish your goals… but as a sign on my friendship… to you. I'm sure you two will be the best of friends" with those last words Dawn stared at the Pokeball on her hand for a long time before letting a single drop of tear fall onto it. She sniffed a few times before finally putting the Pokeball onto her chest like it was a part of her heart. "I… I'm not crying!" she turned away as she rubbed her eyes, "I just… I just got something in my eye" Ash was glad she accepted Beyleef. Though it was sad to see one of his Pokemons gone, he knew that Dawn would do well and he knew that the girl would never let him down.

After getting registered, Dawn began training with Beyleef. The first few days were rough since the grass Pokemon barely obeyed any orders from its new master. But after a little reminiscence from Ash and a life threatening adventure, Beyleef was now able to cope with Dawn as equals.

After six days of training and much needed preparations Dawn arrived at the stadium where the battle was held. Zoey was there with her usual child like grin and her fancy outfit. The battle was long and hard but Dawn overcame it all. On the last battle at the finals, Dawn pulled out everything she learned from Ash and her journeys to the test. Every move and every technique she put them and extended them through her own limits.

And in the end… she won.

Back in Twinleaf town, Dawn's mother, beamed with pride as her daughter graciously took the trophy ribbon from the head chief of Pokemon contest management. All her close friends and families came to her house just to look at the TV completely ignoring the food prepared for them. Right at that moment Dawn's mother would've been doing back flips just like that time in her first competitions but she had to hold herself for now. The whole town saw their precious coordinator won and had been partying all night long.

As Dawn looked upon the stands and glared at the thousands that cheered for her, she waved back at the crowd and smiled happily with two streams of tears pouring down her eyes. However one person among the crowd caught her attention.

Ash... the boy was sitting on the stands amidst the crowd with Brock by his side. The trademark hat and Pikachu on his shoulder gave away his identity. They both smiled proudly at their friend whiles clapping at the same time. She had taken a bigger step than the boy could ever could in the beginning, but the two of them knew that her journey had only just begun and who knows what exciting adventure awaits her in the land beyond?

With her hand raised, Dawn flashed out one of her prettiest smiles back at Ash and Ash alone. After all this time, she finally realized what she had been fighting for. At first she tried to convince herself that she was doing all this so she could make her mother proud. But now... she realized that she actually wanted to make Ash proud. She was the result of the boy's training and result of his persona. As of that point on... Dawn truly counted herself among the luckiest person alive... for she was one of few... who had ever truly met the boy.

_All these happy memories could be traced back a long time ago (actually… it just a few months) soon… the whole scene started to flash and Dawn..._

**(Back in the real world)**

Ash struggled to keep Dawn awake but the girl barely had the strength to even lift herself up. Without much thought, he lifted some of the boulders away that were five times heavier than his own weight. He let out some tears to fall from through his face but none of them could help the girl in his arms. It was probably the first time Ash felt so… so… useless. _"Darn it! What can I do!?"_ he laid the girl on a soft relaxing area and crouch down to think. "Come on Ash, think think!" he thought as hard as he could but no idea would pop up. "Pikachu, give me a good jump start!" he commanded his Pikachu to give him a thunder shock attack. Ash was a little stunned but the effect wore off quickly. It was then he recalled about what he did back a few days ago.

He starred at his right arm and thought of how he saved the badly wounded Houndoom from certain… well… doom. _"If I can do that to Pokemons… maybe…"_ he had no time to think, because now was the time for action. He immediately tried focusing his will power on his arm which caused the tattoo marks to change colors from blue to white. "Please… if you can heal the Pokemons then please help my friend. I don't care what it takes!" he ushered those words like some sort of magical words. In a few seconds the light on his arm cast itself onto Dawn making her glow as well. The wounds caused by the rock fall and the water gun attack immediately healed up. It was impossible, it almost seemed like magic or some sort of miracle and fortunately… it was!

**(At the Temple of Resurrection)**

The strong wave of psychic power flowed through the land as if it was part of it. Everyone who was in the altar room felt the power lingering on their throats like a thirst that badly needed to be quench. Pallet felt the strong aura as well and for the first time in two million years… he was worried. The four guardians looked at him, expecting a command to be given soon.

Pallet moved a knight to take a pawn before saying… "Go…" and with that, Rosa, Chaucer, Hagard and Sha-hear vanished without a trace.

Pallet resumed his game on the chess board and smirked. He wasn't certain what was about to happen but heck this is something only the future knows. The boy didn't realize that his hands were actually shaking from excitement and fear. In a few moments this temple where he sits upon would soon become the grand stage of his grand finale. He couldn't bare to hold any emotions since after waiting for such a long time… he was finally going to get what he wanted all those years ago. And whatever that may be… it certainly wasn't gonna look pretty on the world.

**(Back at the cave)**

"Erhh" Dawn let a moan slipped off her mouth. Her Pokemons quickly rushed to her side with joy and relief. "Piplup? Beyleef? Buneary? Pachirisu? What… happened…?"

Thud!

"Pikapi!" (Ash!) the little yellow mouse leaped as his master fell to the ground completely exhausted. Dawn looked at the boy and quickly recognized him, "Ash? ASH!?" her voice ranged with worries and sadness. "Dawn... you're awake... I'm... glad... zzzzzz" Dawn sighed with relief. The boy was only sleeping. She scanned the area they were in and quickly summoned back all of her Pokemons. _"Well… it looks like we'll be stuck in here for awhile"_ she thought as she rub the raven colored hair boy's head.

**(In the main shaft)**

Richie returned once again after another failed attempt to find Ash and Dawn. He searched through the caves three times already and Brock was really getting worried about them. Once Richie finished his last round a sudden thought came upon his head. Every cave he went in all had dead ends and if that's the case then the only way out would be back through where they came however… they can't leave until they find Ash and Dawn.

"Brock, I've checked all the tunnels and none of them seemed to be the way out"

"I checked it too. But where could Ash and Dawn have gone?"

"There could be some sort of a secret passage" said Duplica, "I mean, people just don't disappear into thin air just like that"

Right after she finished, someone else answered her question

"Actually lady… they do…"


	26. Gone and Back Again

**Chapter 26: Gone And Back Again!**

"Who… who are you?!" Brock demanded. The others thought that he was one of the White Bandits but it seemed like they were mistaken. "My name is not important at the moment" said Noeh with a slight smirk on his lips. The man scanned the room hoping to find the person he was looking for, "Where is Ash Ketchum?" he said in an almost cold tone. At first the gang would think that the first person they met would be their rescuer but it seems like the first person they've encountered was someone who was looking for Ash.

Brock didn't seem to trust the man one bit. He had no weapons or Pokeballs but the aura that resonated around him proved that he was indeed a dangerous man.

Since none of them answered his question, Noeh decided to find Ash on his own. He randomly selected one of the tunnels and left the gang. Richie decided to follow him. He and the man walked for a good long distance until finally reaching a dead end. Richie peeked from the corner as Noeh used some sort of spell to make another entrance appear. "Li thi neru eha!" he heard him say. Richie ran after the man and crossed the line just in time before the path closed up on him. "I don't know what's going on… but I'm gonna find out one way or another"

**(Back at the tunnels)**

Dawn had been sleeping on a pile of rocks along with Ash a few minutes after she was healed. It was strange. A few minutes ago she was nearly at the point of dying. She saw her most precious memories flash right before her eyes and she was ready to accept the light. Her soul nearly left the land of the living until… WHOOSSEE… she was pulled right back into her body with a warm gentle hand. The pain of the physical body was there for about two minutes before disappearing.

The last thing she could remember when waking up was Ash holding up his arm with a bright flash of light piercing out of it. She remembered how warm it felt and how gentle Ash's eyes were when he fell to the ground due to exhaustion. His cute childish face was so adorable when he sleeps. After looking at all the good traits of the boy Dawn felt like she wanted to be a Pokemon. She would no regrets being captured by Ash but as long as she remained by his side she didn't mind being turned into a Psyduck or a Slowpoke at all.

"Ehhh" Ash moaned out. Pikachu's ears twitched as he heard its master moaning. "Pikapi!" Dawn also rushed to his side. "Ash? Ash, are you alright?" she asked with tears in her eyes. The boy's eyes darted from one side to the other as he tried to remember everything that has been happening before he fell down. It was then he said, "Da...wn?" the girl he mentioned was happy to hear him talk, "I… I… I'm… hungry" for once no one was mad at him for being hungry. Dawn immediately pulled out her last bag of chips and fed the boy as he lay on her lap. This was indeed another memorable moment for her. Her heart skipped several beats before pounding again. It was times like this she wished she had the power to stop the great flow of time.

**(Back with Richie)**

The young trainer was following Noeh as he travels through the tunnels. It was strange. Even though Richie had been running after him, the man had obviously only been walking. No matter how hard he tried to catch up, Noeh would always be beyond his reach. Richie tried calling him but the man paid no heed to his barks. The man's mind was set and he was gonna find Ash one way or another.

"This is bad huff huff huff" Richie was panting heavily after giving that man a wild goose chase. He'd been tracking the man for roughly one hour before finally losing him at an intersection. "Do you see anything Sparky?" the little yellow mouse shook his head in reply. Another strange fact about that man is that he wasn't giving out any traceable scent. It was like the man was just a mere shadow of himself.

"Hmm… let's go this way!" and with that the boy just picked another random path and never look back.

A few seconds later, Ash and Dawn came upon the intersection on where Richie just left, "That's weird" said Ash in a tiring tone, "I thought I heard Richie's voice a minute ago" he sighed before picking another random path, "Let's go this way Dawn"

"Ash…"

"Yeah? What's wrong?"

"Why don't we take a break? You look a bit tired"

Ash gave her his usual trademark smile, "Don't worry. I'm fine really. I just needed a few minute nap that's all. Come on. The faster we travel the faster we can get out of here" (pikapikachu!) Dawn looked at the boy as he continued walking blindly around the tunnels. Well his guess would be as good as hers but still… something was really bugging Dawn. Even he doesn't express it through his face, she can tell that Ash was tired… no… exhausted… no… fatigued! Well… one of those words should be correct for this situation. However… she didn't want to mention it so she went along instead hoping that his stamina would run out soon.

The path they chose was a dark one with spider webs sticking at several corners. With no intentions of being separated Ash held Dawn's hand tightly with Pikachu lighting the way on his shoulders.

**(Back at the main shaft)**

"Hmm… they've been gone for a really long time…" Brock folded his arm as he waited patiently near one of the tunnels.

"You're worried about Ash and Dawn?" Tracey asked the worried companion. Brock shook his head in reply, "Not really. Ash can take care of himself and Dawn has some tough Pokemons with her. It's Richie I'm worried about. We're not sure who that man even was"

Max stretched out his arm and gave out a silver-diamond-gold question, "Didn't you say the tunnels had all dead ends? (Brock nodded) Then where could Ash and Dawn have gone?"

It wasn't long until Brock got impatient and decided to look for them, "I'll go and see. There must be a switch that opens a secret passage or something"

"I'm coming too" Anabel was about to get up when Brock stopped her, "No… I need you guys to stay here and keep any eye out for them just in case they come back. Also… I need you guys to keep watch on Misty"

They all turned their heads towards the orange haired girl and her Togepi that hasn't left her side ever since she fell asleep. "chu ki… preee" the little egg like Pokemon cried itself as it hid inside its shell. Duplica put down her stuffed toy and held the little Pokemon just like how Misty would.

"You guys go on ahead. We'll take care of things here" Duplica reassured them

"Right. Come on Todd"

"Huh? Why me?!" the photographer was bit shocked that Brock would pick him.

"No complaints! Now come on!"

Brock grabbed the photographer by his collar and dragged him all the way through the tunnels, "Whyyyyyyyyy meeeeeeeee?"

"Because your photographic memory will help us NOT get lost!" said Brock as he dragged the Todd through the ground.

"Just because I have a camera doesn't mean I have a photographic memory"

"Same word same thing! Now come on!" the man looked determined to find his friends at the end of this tunnel but when he arrived… there was nothing but a dead end, "Eh???? Did I choose the wrong one?" he quickly ran back to the main shaft with Todd still tied to his hand.

"Did you choose the wrong one?" said Drew as he played a little game of solitaires. Brock didn't listen to his whining so he just randomly picked another route and continued to drag his friend with him.

"Now I know this is the right tunnel!" said Brock in an almost desperate manner.

Todd got hit by sharp edges of stone and rocks as he kept being dragged through the ground. "I won't survive this!!"

"Eh? Another dead end?" and so again Brock did the same routine with all the tunnels over and over again.

"Still the wrong one? Man, you're like a Slowking. Only slower hehehehe" said Drew as he almost finished with his game. Brock got unremarkably annoyed and decided to… "If you think you're so smart, I'll just have to bring you along!"

"Wha? Hey wait! I was only kidding and WHAAAA!!!!" he didn't get to finish his sentence when Brock suddenly pulled his collar and dragged him to the next tunnel. "I don't care if you're joking or not we're going to find th-------emmmmmmm!!!!!" a sudden pit hole appeared and soon the three of them dropped in… to where? No one knows…

**(Back with Ash)**

"_Just how far does this cave go?"_ Ash was mentally complaining in his head. He and Dawn have been traveling for hours and tunnels seemed to pop in on every corner. Since getting lost was a big problem at this point they decided to make a plan to make them NOT lose their way.

1st PLAN!

They placed their left over chips on intersections and corners they have been and follow back the trail if they're lost.

COUNTERED BY!

The wandering Pokemons that reside within the cave come by and eat them, making it impossible to know where they are going and where they have been.

2nd PLAN!

Since edible things can be eaten they decided to place piles of rocks in a formation in certain areas just like PLAN #1.

COUNTERED BY!

When they came back to see the rock formations, some wild Pokemons decided to make it their nest thus ruining the whole formation

3rd PLAN!

Have Pikachu use thunder shock on the walls they've been through.

COUNTERED BY!

Pikachu lost too much energy and was unable to make anymore electricity.

After all three plans were a failure, Ash and Dawn decided to take a break from the 'Great Wandering' around the cave. No… this isn't a cave anymore, it's a labyrinth, like those 'hard-to-find-your-way-out-mazes' in stories that would always say 'You'll never find your way out' theme.

Ash shook away the thought as he chomp a handful of chips down his throat. As he reach down to grab some more, something didn't feel quite right. It was then he noticed that most their food supplies were already dwindling. The bag of chips were all that's left and their water canteens were nearing empty, "Oh yeah I forgot. All of our foods are with Brock and the others. I wonder how the others are fairing?" instead of worrying about himself he was worried about others. "I could really go for some of Brock's lazy stew by now. The meat and vegetables he makes. The juicy steak and… and… so much more" the more he thought about Brock's dishes the more his stomach rumbled. _"I really need to stop thinking about food or it'll be the end of---"_ his train of thoughts were cut short when a certain blue haired girl stopped on her tracks.

"Eh? Is something wrong Da... Dawn!!" the girl was once again on her knees in a little stomach pain. Dawn! Are you alright? Say something!"

"Huh? Oh sorry. I think I just fell and errrgggg!" she fainted.

"Dawn? Dawn! Pikachu, grab me my water canteen!" the little yellow mouse rushed towards his backpack and grabbed a green canteen. Ash laid the girl on a comfortable area and placed his canteen in her mouth. The girl drank every last drop until there was nothing left.

**(Back with Richie)**

The boy wasn't having much luck in finding his friends either. He already lost track of the white haired man but kept looking anyway. All the paths in the area looked the same. With no way out it seemed hopeless. "Just huff where huff is huff the huff way… huff out of here?" it almost felt like the boy was walking in circles.

**(Note: White haired kids and white haired men are different people!)**

After walking down the single lane a few more minutes he decided to stop and rest for awhile. He took a chocolate bar and broke it in half, he gave one half to himself and another half to his little companion, "Here Sparky. We need to keep our strength up if we want to make it out of here. But try not to eat it too fast cuz we don't know how long we'll be… (thud) Huh? (Pika?) I thought I heard something (thud thud) There it is again (thud thud thud!) What is thaAAAAAHHHHHH!!!" three heavy objects fell right on top of him.

Drew held his head in pain, "Oh… my aching head. Huh? We're alive! I can't believe it!"

"I told you there was nothing to worry about" Brock held his head up high.

Todd was the last to get up, "Yeah. It was a good thing we landed on something soft or else we'd be done for"

'Soft'?? They all look down on what they were standing and realized, "Hey guys" it was Richie

"AHH!! Richie!" they said in unison

After getting themselves sorted out, they decided to look for Ash together.

**(Somewhere along the skies and ground of the forest)**

The four Guardians searched tirelessly around the snow covered forest. Pallet had already dispersed the blizzard spell so flying Pokemons had nod problem in the skies. Rosa rode on her Articuno while Chaucer decided to tag along with her. Hagard and Sha-hear searched on the ground for any trace of that mysterious psychic power. It ranged further than anything they have felt before. A normal human being would already go mad if exposed with that P-wave for five minutes.

"Anything?" asked Sha-hear. It sounded more like a statement rather than a question since he knew what the answer would be.

"Nothing…" Hagard shook in head in response, "I've sent ¼ of our Pokemon forces to search the woods. If he's here, we'll find him" he said with confidence.

"I hope so. The illusions might do something that we all might regret"

"You worry too much. They're illusions nothing more. Besides, the torches are with Pallet. If they're doing anything suspicious he can send their souls back with just a blow from his breath"

It was then Rosa dropped by on Articuno's back, "What are you two doing? Tea party? Keep looking!" her voice rang with anger and so was her attitude. She immediately flew off looking rather annoyed with both of them.

Sha-hear shrugged, "Teh! When she's angry she often forgets that I'm the leader of the Guardians"

Hagard gave out a small giggle, "Well can you blame her? She was really close to the king back then. If I remember correctly, she began acting a little strange when that girl came… what was her name again?"

"Don't toy with me Hagard or I'll have your head as a trophy"

Hagard wasn't really sure if Sha-hear was joking or serious, "Ahehehehe Sorry, my bad. I'll send out my chosens to aid with the search" he quickly took out three Pokeballs and summoned out the three normal types, "Ursaring, Linoone, Kagaskhan. I want you to look for Ash Ketchum and bring him to me… ALIVE!" and with that they vanished.

Chaucer then came by on Rosa's Flygon, "Hey you two, did you find anything?" they shook their heads in response, "Oh boy… Rosa's really putting the Pokemon's back to work. She hasn't eaten anything after she felt that power a few hours ago"

The three of them giggled but their eyes proved their seriousness in the matter, "She's determined" Sha-hear broke the silence, "Even though I told her to put her feelings aside, it actually became her strength"

Chaucer nodded in agreement, "She must really want to see him again. If only Fre----" the other two Guardians gave him the cold stare that clearly stated 'you don't want to finish that sentence'.

"That name is not to be mentioned. You of all people should know this Chaucer" Hagard frowned and left the conversation. Sha-hear followed behind,

"Oh hey, hey! Come on! It was an accident!"

**(Back with Ash)**

Our hero wasn't having much luck himself. Dawn seemed to have fainted from dehydration. Ash had been telling her to keep a reserve amount of water but she seemed to have run out already. Ash spared no drop from his canteen. He let Dawn drank to the last trinkle. With no options left, he decided to carry Dawn on his back until he can find a suitable place to make camp. The place was crawling with wild Pokemons but as long as Pikachu was with him there wouldn't be any problems… yet.

After finding a seclusive spot in the labyrinth, Ash tried to think of a way to survive. _"Hmm… the mushrooms here look edible enough. I could try eating Pokemon… WHOA! ASH STOP! There's no way you're eating a Pokemon and that's that!"_ he mentally slapped himself to remove that thought forever. _"I guess we'll just have to go with fried mushrooms. I could ask Totodile for water but their water isn't drinkable. (sigh) If only Brock was here he'd cook up something (drool)"_ Ash quickly shook away another thought, _"Come on Ash focus! You can't rely on others forever! Come on think! What would Ash do? (wait a minute! You're Ash you nimb wit!)"_ Again Ash went to deep thought.

Think

Think

Think

Think…

"Grrrrr! I can't think under pressure!" he yelled out finally, "Pikachu, I need another jump start! Give me a little shock!" Pikachu complied and let out a good electrical surge onto him. It was then he got an idea! "That's it! Noctowl, Totodile, I choose you! (Noctowl and Totodile appeared) sorry to bother you at this time, but I need your help. Noctowl, use forsight and find anything that looks like a stream of water!" Noctowl did what it was asked and quickly scanned the rocks for any streams. "Kruuu kruuu!!" (Water water!!)

"Good job Noctowl! Alright then. Pikachu, use volt tackle! Totodile, use head butt on that wall!" the two Pokemons combined their abilities and strength to break the wall apart and after a few minutes, they succeeded. Ash did the rest and gathered the water onto his canteen. He gave it to his Pokemons first before giving some to Dawn, "Here you go Dawn. It should be enough for now" he emptied half of his canteen and used some of the water to cook the mushrooms growing in the area.

**(Back at the main shaft)**

Just as Duplica and Anabel sat around the corner sleeping, Max woke up and decided to use the little men's room. "Oh boy… (yawn) Where's the rest room in this place?" he quickly got up and head towards one of the tunnels but on the way… he noticed Misty's face in pain. He gasped and panicked, "Tracey! Tracey, wake up! Something's wrong with Misty!"

"Huh? What?" the young artist quickly got up and touched Misty's forehead. It felt like he was touching fire itself, "Holy Moltres, she's burning up! Quick! Get me come cold water stat!"

**(Back with Ash)**

The smell…… what was it? It smells like one of Brock's lazy boy stew but a little different. There was definitely mushrooms in it but there doesn't seemed to be anything else.

Dawn slowly opened her eyes as the feint smell past through her nose. It smelled wonderful. "Good morning sleepy head" she was greeted by the bright smile of Ash. He didn't exactly know either if it was morning, afternoon or night time but he remembered how good it felt when his mother used to say 'good morning' every time he came for breakfast.

"Wh… what happened?" she said drowsily.

"You were tired so I decided to make camp here. I made some breakfast… or was it lunch… or is it dinner time?" Pikachu slept peacefully on a corner with Totodile and Noctowl. Flying Pokemons didn't really like dark caves due to the limited flying space but Ash needed its assistance if they ever had the chance to get out of here alive. "Anyway, I made some mushroom soup. It's not as good as Brock's but we'll need to keep our strength up for now" he took a spoon full of soup and fed Dawn like a baby, "Now say ahhhh"

Dawn felt like this was one of the most embarrassing moments yet but she complied none the less. "Ahhh"

After a successful meal Ash decided to spend a few hours at the camp before moving on. This was bad for him and the gang. This was supposed to be a simple go in and find that Swampert and get out mission but now that the Swampert was defeated, they had to get themselves lost in this cave/forest/lair/maze place!

Just as Ash was about to put out the fire… an idea (which doesn't occur very often) slammed right onto his face.

'Fire' the smoke that rose from the fire… it was like a thought that just burst out into his head. If the boy actually paid attention to his classes he would recall something like this. Fire needs air and so the smoke will go to where air is. That means… there's a way out!

"Dawn! Dawn, wake up! I think I know the way out of here!" he shook the sleepy girl up and began packing immediately. He quickly took out a torch that Brock made for him and light it up. Hopefully the smoke would be enough to lead them to an exit.

Even though she might not show it, Ash could see that some of the wounds on Dawn's body needed time to heal. But right now they don't have time to lie around. He immediately dropped whatever unnecessary things that slowed him down and carried Dawn on his back. It's not because he wanted to leave the place so badly but it because the wild Pokemons were acting rather strangely and that wasn't exactly a good sign for him or his companions.

He carried her while he tirelessly traversed through the tunnels once again. The smokes lead him a good distance away from the wild Pokemons and for once he was happy to feel the cold chill on his skin. The air seemed lighter, which mean he was getting close to a point where air was coming through. An hour would past by until…

Crack!

Something was moving in front of him. _"Oh great, now what?!"_ he was mentally panicking along with his Pikachu. Dawn slept peacefully on his back like a little Koala. The travels seemed to have taken its toll on both him and his Pokemons and none of them were in a good condition to fight!

Crack! Bump!

The thing that was moving came closer and closer. Ash bit his lip but couldn't hold back his patience any longer, "Pikachu, give out a thunder shock!" (Pi… Kaaa… CHU!!)

The moment Pikachu let out a thunder attack, three voices were heard, "Yeow!" said the first, "I Can seee myyyyy boness" said the second, "My camera!!" said the third

"Brock? Drew? Todd?... Am I glad to see you!"

"Ash!" Richie was the first to speak out, "Where have you been, we've been worried about you!"

"Ahehehe Sorry about that. I got lost and everything well… it's a long story"

Brock rubbed the back of his head in pain and let himself go, "Well You can tell us all about it when we get out of here"

"We should try and find a way. This place has more traps and dead ends than your typical haunted house palooza" said Todd grabbing his back pack

Just when Drew was about to say something, a horrible sight caught his eyes, "Eh… guys?"

"I tried using the smoke to find a way out. I was hoping that it would lead me to an exit!" Ash explained his method of escaping which really impressed Brock, "That's a great idea Ash! It looks like I taught you well"

"Hey thanks Brock!"

"Eh… guys…?"

Todd then pulled out a flashlight from his pocket which had very little battery left, "I have a flashlight with me"

Richie then pulled out his reserve supply of food, "I have an extra bag of chips just in case with get hungry"

"Guys?"

They finally turned their attention to the young green haired boy, "What?" they said in unison

Drew was pointing at the large group of eyes starring behind them. The whole group froze in their tracks as they turned their heads slowly to each other. Brock was the one who gave out the plan, "Ok… when I count one to ten… we run" they all nodded.

"Ok… one… two…" Todd lost it, "TEN!!!!! RUN!!!!" they scrammed. They kept running and running as the wild Pokemons tailed them from behind. Brock got his jacket torn off by one of the bites a Pokemon managed to snare. They ran again and again and faster and faster till every bit of strength and stamina was gone. The gang had never felt so exhausted before in their life.

"Did we lose them?" just when he spoke up, a horde of Pokemons appeared. Todd gladly answered his question in a desperate tone "Not quite! RUN!!!!" Todd and Richie were practically screaming their heads off. It was probably because of a Pokemon that snatched a strain of their hair.

And so they were running

And running

And running

And to our surprise… they were still running… until they finally reach…

"A dead END?!" they screamed in unison. It's amazing that they were still surprised to see a dead end since this cave had an abundance supply of it. Ash stood ready to fight along with Richie and Drew but Todd (who was not a Pokemon trainer) started digging his way through in panick mode. The gang face faulted.

"We got no other choice! We're gonna have to fight! Are you with me Sparky? (Pikachu!)"

"You're not doing everything alone. Come on Pikachu, we'll show them who's the boss around here! (Pikapika!)"

Brock saw the two and decided to give it his all as well, "Alright! Let's do it! Let our band of brothers hold on till the last possible second

"YEAH!!!" they said in unison

As they prepared for a battle of their life, a rumble could be heard from a distance and for once it wasn't Ash's stomach. "Ash… please tell me that was your stomach…" Brock pleaded. The rumble grew louder and louder. The battle intent was dangerously amazing. They were gonna be battling a horde of Pokemons in just a few minutes… until Brock decided to pop in a little joke, "Ash… before we fight… I want to tell you that…… that…… I was the one who stole the necklace back in Celadon city"

"WHAT!?"

In a sudden urge of surprise, Ash released another strange power from his arm. A bright light filled the room and by the time the wild Pokemons got there… they were gone.

**(Back at the main shaft)**

A bright light filled the space above the remaining members of the gang as they desperately tried to suppress Misty's fever. Anabel quickly got into her battle stance and prepared for whatever opponent she was gonna face. At first… she was expecting a large Pokemon to appear but instead, she was greeted by a group of familiar faces, "WHAAA!!!" they fell to the ground in unison.

Anabel: "Ash, Brock, Dawn, Todd, Drew, Richie? You're all ok!"

"Huh? We're alive!!!!" Drew waved his hands as if some sort of miracle had just happen

Todd followed his example and bowed down to the ground, "We're not gonna be Pokechow!!"

But as they look back behind them, Ash was grabbing Brock by the collar in an angry chibi form, "It was you!!! It was you all along!" he looked so adorable in a chibi form, "It was because of you I got chased by Officer Jenny for two weeks!! And here I thought you were innocent the whole time you little…!!"

"Ahehehe… hey, how'd we get here anyway?"

"Don't try to change the subject! I'm not through with you yet! Do you know how much trouble I went through to get the police off me? Why I ought to!!!"

"But I paid them back in the end"

"Misty!" Duplica yelled out. Ash finally broke his attention off Brock and rushed towards the sick girl's side. "Hey Tracey, what's wrong with her?!"

"We're not sure but her fever's gone up again. I tried everything from medicines to water but none of them seems to be working. If this keeps up then I'm afraid…" he didn't want to finish that sentence.

"Darn it!" Ash pounding his hand on the ground. "Isn't there anything I could do?! Come on Misty, hang on! I promise I'll get you out of here in no time!" but what could he possibly do? He wasn't a doctor heck he barely even knows anything about science at all! He stared at the Misty's gentle face as it slowly loses color. Her breathing became heavy as if she was suffocating. "Help me remove some of these blankets!" he began ordering everyone to help the poor girl but despite his efforts, nothing worked.

The boy sat on a corner in defeat. He covered his eyes with his hat and crossed his arms. The gang couldn't do anything… absolutely anything to ease the red head's pain.

Hikari however… was still exhausted after running away from the wild Pokemons. Even though being carried on Ash's back it was still a traumatizing experience for someone so young. It was then an idea hit him.

Ash:" Everyone stand back!"

The gang, not trusting their mouth just complied to the rather serious Ash. They al wondered what he was going to do. Ash quickly took off his arm length glove and held it on Misty's forehead. At first the gang thought that this was some sort of purifying ceremony of ancient times but as the seconds past by… the tattoos on the boy's arms began to glow. Their jaws dropped to the ground as it changed into a majestic rainbow color shining brilliantly. None of them… not even Ash could explain how or why this is happening, but as long as it could save Misty… he could care less about the consequences.

Right after the strange spell was casted upon the girl, Ash fell in slow motion completely exhausted. Duplica caught him before his head hit the ground. "Ash, are you alright?" she asked worryingly.

Tracey went up to Misty and touched her forehead, "Incredible! (they all turned to him) Misty's fever… it's gone! It's completely gone!" the others sighed in relief. The one who was most relived was Ash himself. He refused to go to sleep until he knows that his friends are safe, "That's… won…der…ful… zzzzzz" everyone looked at him with smiles on their faces. Though one question may have been answered, a thousand more popped up. However… they decided to let him sleep instead.

**(In May's Dream/Vision)**

"Oh… where is this place?" May walked a dirt road in her dreams. She wandered aimlessly in a never ending road of time. "Hello? Is anybody there? Hello?!" she yelled out into the darkness hoping to get some sort of response but alas… there was none. "I guess I'm all alone here…" her faced saddened as she the sound of silence crept into her ears. "Oh wait! I know. I'll just call my Pokemons!" she reached out for her Pokeballs but before she even realized it… they were gone. "I… really… am alone…" tears began forming around her eyes. She couldn't stand the dark or being alone for too long. It was like a nightmare she just wanted to forget. She cried and sobbed endlessly until a voice echoed through the air… piercing the darkness with a beam of light.

"_You are never alone young human…"_ said the voice in a majestic tone.

May wiped away the water in her eyes and tried to focus on the person in front of her, "Who… who are you?" she could see the person smirk but not until he swayed his tail which stated that he wasn't human.

"_A friend… or should I say… your friend's friend"_

"My friend's friend? Who are you talking about? And where is my brother?!" the light grew larger and brighter, making it impossible for her to clearly see the creature.

"_Be calm friend. I am not here to harm you. Your brother is in good hands but he is quite worried about you"_

"That's good to hear. So… who are you?" she felt a great burden lifted off her shoulders and vanished into the darkness.

"_My name… is… Mewtwo… and I have come to deliver a warning"_


	27. Back to Where it All Happened

**Chapter 27: Back to Where It All Happened…**

**(Still in May's dream)**

"_My name… is Mewtwo… and I have come to deliver a warning"_ said the psychic Pokemon

May was still awestruck and deeply confused by his telepathic powers, but after all the adventures she's been through with Ash; nothing seemed to surprise her anymore. Telepathic Pokemons? That's nothing! My brother befriended the legendary Jirachi! That was probably what May would say if she wasn't so surprised to see an unknown Pokemon before.

"A… a warning?" she stuttered out like a little baby, "Wh… what… what kind of… a warning?"

"_One that shall be engraved upon your soul little human"_ it kind of sounded like a threat rather than a statement, _"Do not concern yourself human. I didn't choose you by choice"_

_Now listen carefully. I want you to relay a message to certain Pokemon Trainer"_ May was a little dumb founded on what Mewtwo was saying, _"You do not know who I speak of… do you?"_ the tone of his telepathic communication power was so dark and royal like that it could compare to a prince, _"Strange… I thought that he was famous. I believe you know this name…… Ash Ketchum…"_

"Ash?!" she yelled out in surprise

"_Ah… so you do know him. I think fate has played a part in our meeting after all young human"_ Mewtwo gave out a smirk… a creepy, evil smirk.

"I don't understand. How do know Ash?"

"_Let's just say he and I have a…… mutual understanding. But that is not important. What's important is that you know him, and if you know him, then I can entrust my message to you"_

"A message?"

Just before Mewtwo could speak again, his body began fading, _"It seems my powers are dwindling at an alarming rate"_ he turned his attention back to May, _"Listen to me! Tell Ash to stay away from the guardians. No matter what happens he must not be allowed to go back! Whatever the cost he cannot!"_

"Wait a minute! I don't understand anything you're saying!"

"_Do not worry…… you will know everything… in due time… human. The future… the present… the past… will be clear to you"_

"The future? The past? What?"

"_If the past should… repeat itself…… then the price…… will be high Argghh!"_

"(gasp) What's wrong!?"

"_My powers are spent… I can… no longer remain here…"_ and with that Mewtwo completely faded away into the darkness but somehow… his voice still lingered in the air, _"The future… the past… it is all… so very clear…"_

**(At the ruined palace not far from the watchtower) (Back in the real world)**

May slowly opened up her eyes and once again returned to the land of the living. "Oh…… where am I?" she looked around and noted everything that were in the room, "This isn't the forest" she said drowsily, "I know I must still be dreaming heh heh heh" she gave out a weak smile before going back to sleep.

"Did you hear something?" that was Azal's voice

"No, it's probably just your imagination" that other voice was definitely Loin's, "Come on. Let's get things ready. Noeh should be hear with Ash soon. Let's st up the trap"

"Alright I'm coming"

"_Trap… Ash?... no…"_ May overheard those words before dozing off

**(30 Years into the future)**

Mewtwo sat silently on top of a ruined building that used to be known as the Indigo Plateau stadium. With with powerful psychic abilities, he is able to cross through time and space and is able to go through the different futures on any planets. Right now… he is currently worried about one of the possible futures that remained as the ultimate outcome.

Finally recomposing himself after sending out a message to the past, he stood up and glared the ruins that laid before him. Snow coveted the land, landing a white blanket on top of the world. He looked upon an open plain that was once known as Varidian forest. All the trees were cut down by some sinister force, leaving nothing but a barren empty wasteland.

He took his time and looked at a small town a few miles from the plains. A once thriving, peaceful settlement known as Pallet town remained on the surface of the planet. Many of its houses were destroyed as if it was struck by an endless slaughter of decease, earthquakes and floods. Barely any humans remained in their homes. Life was rare in those parts… and smiles were rarer. A small band of humans struggle to survive under the cold harsh winter as it destroyed what remained of their crops. In the midst of all Mewtwo saw… two of his faithful companions joined his side

"Pikapika pikachu?" (Mewtwo, are you ok?) said the cloned Pikachu

**Note: When there is a clone Pokemon present, I will put a C. in front. (Ex: C. Pikachu, C. Blastoise, C. Charizard) ok? Good!**

"_It is alright my friend. I was merely having a break"_

"Pikapika!" (Liar! I can see you're hiding something!)

"Meow meowth!" (We don't need to be psychic to read your mind) said the cloned Meowth

Mewtwo gave out a weak laugh, _"I guess actions does speak louder than words"_ he said softly in a telepathic way, _"But you are right my friends. I was in communication with a human back at the present time"_

"Pikapika?" (Present time?)

"_Yes. Of all the possible futures this world has. This one seemed to be the most possible outcome" _he glared at the ruins of a once prospering city, a city named Varidian. The skyscrapers that nearly reach the clouds were torn block by block. Shops plundered and homes ransacked.

"Pikapika pika?" (Why should you care? It's not like humans did anything for us)

"_Are you certain of what you speak of?"_

"Pika!" (of course!)

"_What of the human boy that saved us? If my memory serves, he was the one who saved us clones from destruction. Am I not correct?"_ C. Pikachu wasn't able to answer that question quite right

"Meow meowth meow?" (Then, what are you planning to do?)

"_What am I planning to do you ask?_ (they nodded) _To tell you the truth, I don't know myself. I just… feel like… I need… to help them"_

"Pikachu!?" (Why are you helping the humans!?)

"_I seriously don't know. Perhaps… it was because I was created by humans… or perhaps… it is something else"_

"Meow meowth, meow meow" (You shouldn't linger on thoughts. It's bad for you)

"_Are you saying that I should make a decision?"_

"Meow meow meow meowth" (Time doesn't wait for anyone. If you don't make a choice now, you might never make a choice at all) of all the creatures in the world the C. Meowth seemed to be the sage of the cloned Pokemons. From time to time, he actually gives out some word of wisdom.

"_Perhaps… you are right my little cloned friend. But right now I need to know why I am helping them. Is it because I was created by humans or is it because a human saved my life? It is a question that would require some thought"_ he begins walking away towards a nearby woods, _"I will go and meditate on this situation" _after that… he vanished into thin air, leaving the cloned Pokemons on their own.

**(Back at the present) (At the cave)**

Everyone had finally gotten some peace and quiet. After all that's happened in this cave it felt like weeks had past by but when they finally had time to look at their watches, they realized that only six hours had past by. Even though it had only been such a short time, everyone felt as if they were up for days. Brock stared at Ash before heading off to dream land. He didn't want to wake the boy up since he just saved one of his friends from a high fever. But once he's ready, he's gonna have to answer a few questions.

First, that strange tattoo marks he had on his right arm. Second, the powers he had. Third, the white haired man that wanted to see him and now… strange things had been accruing around them!

(…)

(…)

Wait… scratch that… strange things always happens around them after all. But none the less, he was gonna get some answers from him soon enough. And with his mind set, Brock went straight to sleep…… or so he thought.

The cracking of the fire slowly died down, making the sound of silence resurfaced. The gang slept peacefully for several hours, leaving all their troubles behind them. The whole gang piled themselves on each others stomach trying to find that perfect position to go to sleep. However… it didn't matter what kind of position they were in. They just wanted to be safe and lie down for at least an hour or so.

**(At the Temple of Resurrection)**

A Swellow flew through an open crack on the wall. It entered gracefully with its wings flapping vigorously. The weight of the armor it carried seemed to have taken much toll on the little flying Pokemon, but as it scanned the room he flew to the side of Pallet. The bird like Pokemon whispered something onto his ears which caused Pallet to draw his attention away from the chess board. "I see… so they haven't found him yet. That's alright. As long as he is in this forest, he will be found. His presence cannon hide forever" he released Swellow back towards the crack and sent it flying towards the flock of its kind. Pallet then returned to his game and silently move another piece. Black knight eats white pawn. Two black knights and a bishop surround the white king as it moves for a checkmate. The boy began giggling manically before it turned into a sinister laugh.

**(Back in Pallet Town, Oak's laboratory)**

Professor Sam Oak was rudely awakened when a sudden yell echoed in the house. He recognized the voice as Delia. He rushed out of his bed room and quickly head into the guest room where Delia was staying. "Delia, are you ok?!" he opened the lights and saw Mrs. Ketchum in a pool of her own sweat. She had a dream… no... more like a nightmare… or a vision. Without thinking due to fear she hugged the old professor and sobbed on his shoulder. "shhhh… There there… don't worry Delia, you were only having a dream" Sam patted her back in an attempt to calm her down. It was probably the first time in many years that he ever saw the young mother cried like that.

The two Jennies entered the room with a golf club and frying pan (since their usual equipments were lost) ready to strike at any intruder. "Alright, nobody move! We're the Jennies and we're---" she was cut off when the other Jenny covered her mouth. They both stared at Delia as she sobbed herself to sleep. The professor's lab coat (seriously, have you ever seen him in any other outfits?) was getting all the water works. He was used to these kinds of situations because he remembered having Gary and Ash crying his shoulder everytime when they were small. He ran his hand through Delia's untangled hair and whispered some words of comfort. It would seem like it was going to be a long night before he can get any decent shut eye.

**(Valmarian city streets)**

Gary was walking alone along the streets of the city. The people recognized the boy in an instant since he's been making an appearance in many battles for quite sometime now.He was respected by few but feared by all. The boy showed very little compassion against his opponent. He would fight rookies and newbies with skill and tactics against professionals. Many of the Pokemons he battled were either badly injured or left half dead. Four Pokemons were already sent to the Pokemon center and won't be seeing combat for a few days. Gary loved this feeling. The feeling and sensation of being feared by others was overwhelming. He could feel their throats dry and sweat glands acting up like crazy. But he didn't care about the THEIR feelings, he wanted someone to fear him more than anyone else… Ash. _"Come on and get here already… so I can prove to everyone… that you're nothing but a loser!"_ he whispered silently in his mind.

"Hey boss!" Gary's thought was cut off when Jaques came by. The blonde boy was surprised to see Gary's Umbreon in this cold weather but he digress, "The others are waiting for you at the Pokemon gym. About thirty trainers came in this morning and they issued a challenge for you"

A challenge? The mere thought humored Gary to no end. He had been receiving challenges from almost every trainer that came into the city. He never backs down on a challenge no matter what the conditions are and no matter what the odds favored his opponent. He would win with his skills and improve them along the way. "Show me…" he then followed Jaques to the gym.

The whole gang was there dressed in winter clothing. Steve and Havic noticed them when they appeared out of the alley. An evil grin appeared on Havic's face as he raise his hand for a high five, "Hey boss, it's good to see ya" Gary ignored his hand and simply walked into the gym without a word. Havic knew that would happen so he didn't react much, "Teh… that boy never changes" a lot of struggling sounds echoed within the gym. The other four members waited outside patiently drinking and eating. They've already watched 37 challenges and Gary was able to beat them all without even removing his hands from his pockets.

**(Back at the cave/main shaft)**

A set of foot steps echoed through the cave like some sort of ringing tone. Even though he didn't want to get up from his sleeping position, Ash knew he had to. He rubbed away the morning glory from his eyes and listened to the foot steps as it approached. "(yawn) Who could be up at a time like this?" he wondered. He slowly got up, pulled his hat and walked towards one of the tunnels which he heard the foot steps coming from. As he progressed through the tunnels, he began to notice that the paths he took were much different than before. The tunnel became darker and it had some sort of sinister feeling in the air. He couldn't quite grasp the touch but Ash seemed to have felt this strange aura before. Just as he turned on the next corner, a white haired man stood before him with a grin that would shiver the boy's blood if they could.

"We meet at last… your majesty…"

"Hey… who are you?" Ash said in a calm yet cautious tone.

"My name is Noeh. (bows his head) It's a pleasure to meet you"

"Huh?"

Just as the man finally showed his face from the dark, his facial expression began to change. At first it was a sinister and evil look… but with a flick of a finger, his face turned from an evil look into a caring, loving father-like mood. Ash was caught a little unprepared but since the man meant no harm he dropped his guard down. "Hey, how did you get here? Are you lost?" asked the boy with a confused tone. Noeh shook his head in response, "No, I was merely looking for you"

"You were looking… for me?"

"Yes… you see, a friend of mine found a girl not far from here. She said something about you so I thought I came looking for you"

"A girl…?"

Noeh extended his arm and dangled a Moltres amulet from his hand. Ash quickly recognizes it and knew exactly who it belonged to.

"May!" he yelled out in joy. "May? So that's her name? Who would've guess" Noeh replied still smiling brightly, "How is she? Is she alright? Is she hurt?" Ash bombarded him with a barrage of questions which he hesitantly answered, "She's fine to say the least. She's with my friend at a tower nearby. We're camping there until the storm dies down" Ash let out a huge relief off his shoulders. "I've got to tell the others" just as soon as Ash was about to head back, the path behind him suddenly closed up, thus blocking his only way back, "Hey, what's with this wall" he tried using his right arm to see if there was any reaction but he digress. Noeh secretly grinned in his mind as he continued his fake act, "It appears that this cave has a mind of its own. It's no wonder why they called this the lost wonder"

"The lost wonder?" Ash overheard on what he was saying

"Yes, the lost wonder. It was used during the ancient times as a place to hold deadly criminals. But you don't want to hear some old history now would you?" Noeh said sarcastically, "Let's go back to my camp. We'll get the rest of your friends later" thinking that the man meant no harm to him, Ash agreed to follow him through the tunnels.

They walked for about five minutes avoiding confusing areas and highly unstable tunnels. Soon later, they came upon an exit…… a location which both Ash and his friends have been dying to find. "An exit!" he cried out. The young boy scampered through the exit and stretched out his arms till they couldn't extend anymore. Being cramped in a cave for so long can really give you one major crack in the neck. Noeh kept his smile up as he continued to lead on.

After scanning the area around him, Ash quickly noticed something was missing, "Hey… what happened to the snow?" he was right. A few hours ago, the weather was mercilessly bombarding him and his friends like crazy, now it's just a couple of snowflakes dropping here and there. Noeh knew that he would be suspicious so he tried to make an excuse, "The weather cleared up probably an hour ago. Let's keep moving. We wouldn't to keep May waiting now would we?" Ash nodded and shrugged off the weather, for now. He didn't really care if it was hot or cold. He just wanted to get his friends out of the forest and into a town as fast as they can.

**(At the Temple of Resurrection)**

Pallet was laying on a chair/bed with soft comfy pillows starring at the chess board in front of him. He had already moved several pieces to their respective positions. The two white rooks represented the watch tower and the palace. The white bishop represented Noeh, which was followed by the white king which represented Ash. The white knight represented Loin while the three white pawns represented Azal and his Pokemons. Pallet grinned as he slowly placed a few more pieces onto his side.

The two black knights represented Hagard and Chaucer. The single black bishops represented Sha-hear. The black king represented him while the eight pawns represented as his Pokemon army.

Pallet grinned even wider as he placed the last two pieces on the set. A queen to represent… Rosa... and another black bishop placed on the black tiles…… to represent…… an evil man that lurked in the shadows.

"It will begin… soon"

**(Somewhere near the watchtower)**

"Hey Noeh…" Ash spoke out suddenly, which caused the white haired man to get into a battle stance. He thought that someone managed to sneak up on him, "Y… yes?" he tried to recompose himself but was failing miserably. "How far is your camp? We've been walking for almost an hour now" Ash dusted off the snow that his hat managed to collect on his head as he complained. Noeh gave out a smile and said, "Oh don't worry. We're here already" Ash tilted his head confused. Noeh pointed to a small red figure on an open area near a campfire.

Quickly knowing that it was May, Ash dashed off breaking the sound barrier and rushed to her side immediately. "May, hey May wake up!" he shook the chocolate haired girl to bring her back to the land of the living. "A… Ash…" she said softly. The young boy let out a single tear of happiness slide out of his cheek. Once May regained conscious she quickly recalled what was happening, "Ash get out of here! It's a trap!" the moment she yelled out the danger, it was already too late. A force field suddenly enveloped around them, making it impossible to get out. "What the?!" Ash shouted as he was totally confused on what was going on. But soon… he will be getting all of his answers.

"We got you at last… your majesty"

"Hey! What's going on!?" Ash pounded on the force field again but to no avail

"This is an impenetrable forcefield created by the high council of the Empire. It was specifically made to keep things in and out"

The kind, caring and loving facial expression that remained on Noeh's face suddenly vanished, replaced by an evil grin and dark slit eyes. With a single look, you can tell that this man was just pure evil to the core.

"Why are you doing this?! What do you want?"

Another voice answered his question, "What we want… is what's inside of you… Ash" Loin appeared behind the woods with the same attire as Noeh and with a grin on his face. "What we want concerns you… and you alone" Azal appeared on the other side. The three men surrounded Ash and May, forming a V shape. Ash reached out for his Pokeball but suddenly… he realized that his Pokebelt was missing, "Looking for this?" Noeh held Ash's Pokebelt in front of him. His grin became wider and wider every time Ash would look at his face.

"Ash, run for it! Get away from here!" May yelled out but it was far too late

"I think she has served her purpose. Azal!" Noeh commanded his companion which he gladly obeyed

"As you wish. Kadabra, come forth! (Kadabra appears) Kadabra, use confusion and put her to sleep. (Ka…dabra!)"

With one look at the psychic Pokemon's eyes, May was suddenly hypnotized and put right back to sleep. Ash caught her before she fell to ground covered with snow. "Hey May, are you alright? Say something! Hey May!"

"It's useless boy" said Loin in an obvious tone, "As long as Kadabra remains active, she will not wake up. Even if she does wake up, she'll have no memory of what happened today. It will be as if everything here was nothing but a dream to her"

"Grrrr…"

"Now it's your turn to go to sleep" Azal gave out a mother of all grins and ordered his Kadabra, "Sweet dreams your majesty. Kadabra, use confusion one more time!"

Kadabra charged up and launched another psychic attack but when its eyes met Ash, his right arm began to glow furiously. The moment Kadabra used its powers, Ash held May tightly in his arms hoping not to let go and let her get hurt. Just as he closed his eyes and awaited for the impact of the confusion, a voice popped into his head with a loud yell, **"NO!!!"** it echoed through the dark corners of Ash mind making the word repeat itself over and over again. When Kadabra finished its attack move… it suddenly became dizzy and fell to the ground with swirly eyes.

Pallet grinned once again as he took off one of the white pawns from the chess table "Hehehe"

"What the?" Azal said in surprise

"It looks like he's not giving up without a fight" said Loin

"It looks like you won't be fighting today (puts Kadabra into the Pokeball)"

"Let us wait for now. It appears our young king is having a little trouble standing up" Noeh motioned them to look back at Ash

The three of them looked at the nearly exhausted boy. His eye lids were getting ready to close up and his brain was already in overheating from all the stress he had been through today. Just as he was about to fall off unconscious, he held out his arm and charged up a hyper beam. The three council member's eyes widened like never before. The barrier that they put up around Ash and May vanished as if it never existed. Smoke covers the whole field making it impossible to see anything beyond their hands. Without much thought or careful planning, Ash grabbed May and carried her to the woods. Azal was the first to spot them, "There they are! Over there!" without second thought, the three council members disappeared in an instant and gave chase to the young trainer.

Being chased by three mysterious and dangerous strangers with no Pokemons on his belt and a girl on his back, Ash felt like some sort of dejavu happening to him. It was like being chased by Team Rocket all over again except this one seemed to be much more serious. (No offense to you Team Rocket lovers though)

Ash kept running and running through the woods like a mad man. Even though fatigued was getting the better of him, the boy was able to squeeze some energy out of that body of his. The woods was an excellent place to lose the three white haired men but as he kept running for about twenty or so minutes… his pace began to slow down.

Pallet grinned as the white chess pieces moved on their own without any force at all. The knight, bishop and the two pawns slowly surrounds their own king as it makes it way to the white rook (palace). Once the pieces stopped, Pallet moved one of his pawns to take the other rook (watch tower) "This is too easy…" he said with a smirk. "A king flees from his subjects… (giggle) what a sight"

Ash ran and ran even faster but at some point he would get slower but when he sees May's face he would kick up that adrenaline of his and run even faster than before. Brock would've been proud to see him running and sweating in buckets, heck even Drew would think he should be an athlete instead. "If I ever make it out of this, I'm going back to training right away huff huff!" with the three strangers closing in on him, he put up whatever pressure he had on his feet and dashed off. "Wait! Stop! Come back!" shouted Loin. It sounded more of a plead rather than a demand or an order. This confused Ash greatly but his mind wouldn't stop to think. Right now he could only think of running and getting away unharmed.

Azal was about to summon his second Pokemon but Noeh stopped him, "No Azal! We mustn't use out Pokemons against him! It's useless to try!"

The man pouted "Hmph! I knew that…"

"Keep up the pace, he's getting tired…" Loin gestured them to quicken their speed.

Ash ruffled up his hair when a strong wind gushed out of nowhere. It became stronger and stronger until…

Crack… break…… crumble

The ledge he was standing on suddenly crumbled after the extra weight was placed on its surface. Ash held on tight to the ground with one arm while holding May on the other arm. The ledge slid down a slope nearly half a mile long… which is pretty far down. The moment they reached the bottom of the hill the two teens were jettison off the small piece of land and landed on an area not far. "Oh… my head" he dwindled along the area until his mind was finally able to focus. When his visions stopped blurring he gasped.

What he saw in front of him was not something that you would come across everyday. The ruins of an ancient palace stood before his very eyes making a magnificent first impression to its visitors. This would be an archeologist's gold mine. Many of its structures were definitely intact but upon closer observation it would appear that some sort of bomb dropped in this place a long time ago.

Ash shook away the distracting thought as he carried May and ran towards the castle courtyard. Even though Kadabra was knocked out, the effects of the attack seemed to have made a strong grip in the girl's subconscious. She was sleeping soundly while he was scared to heck out there in the world of the living. Ash looked around to see if there was any good spot to hide but when was about to move forward to the palace interior, Azal suddenly appeared from a puff of smoke like a ninja or something of sort. The boy took a few steps back before running back to the entrance of the palace ground. But when he nearly reached it, Noeh appeared and cut him off from his escape route. Ash went on to the last possible way out but then it was blocked Loin who suddenly poofed out of nowhere.

Ash panted heavily as he carried May on his back. He was surrounded on all sides and there was no way out. The three strangers approached him carefully with their eyes locked on to his figure. Ash slowly backed himself into a small corner on the wall. At first, Ash was used to being chased by Team Rocket because of his Pikachu, but these guys were different. They didn't want Pikachu or any of his Pokemons. They wanted him. Ash failed to conjure up a logical explanation on why they would want him but he figured that it would have something to do with his right arm. Just before he was about to touch the wall with his back, Ash remembered that he still had one Pokeball in his jacket!

He couldn't remember what was in it so he just hoped that it would be one of his strong ones. "Pokemon, I choose you!!" he yelled out as he threw it to the ground. What came out of the Pokeball wasn't exactly what he was looking for, "Snorelax?" the giant size Pokemon stood drowsily but soon came to focus when it finally woke up. "Snorelax… great, more interference" Loin gritted his teeth as he took a few steps back along with his other companions.

"Snorelax, I'm glad you're still with me buddy. Can you help me get out of here?" Snorelax nodded and quickly carried Ash on its curved shoulder. With his master safely strapped onto its shoulders the fat errr… I mean giant Pokemon leaped over the three strangers and landed on the roof of the palace. It wasn't long then that the roof began to crumble to the GREATLY extra added weight. Snorelax fell inside the palace but kept Ash on his shoulders. After looking left and right, Ash decided to pick one of routes quickly, "Hurry Snorelax, take the stairs!" the Pokemon obeyed and rushed up the damaged stairs It was amazing that the racks were able to sustain the incredible weight of the giant Pokemon. Even at a weakened state it stood just as strong as it was when it was finished.

The three white haired men followed closely behind hoping that the Pokemon would some how trip and fall off the staircase.

A few minutes later, they arrived at what seems to be an indoor pool of some sort. There was a fountain at the center of the room surrounded with beautiful but damaged life like figurines. Arches surrounded the pool showing great signs of craftsmanship… but this wasn't the time to be sight seeing. Ash once again shook away the thought but he couldn't shake the feeling that he's been here before. It felt like he was in a sequel of a movie that he missed.

Upon reaching a hallway pass the pool. Noeh appeared in front of them coming from a corner. He raised his arm and strangely launched an attack move that looked a hyper beam. Ash was awestruck and at the same time confused. These people had the same powers he had and tattoos that were oddly similar to his. Snorelax dodged every attack Noeh gave out but when he finally got hit, Ash had enough, "Snorelax, are you ok big guy? (Snore… lax…) Alright that does it! Snorelax, use ice punch on that wall!" Snorelax's paws began to glow as it struck the wall on the side. When he gave out another punch the whole wall crumbled down in an instant. "Alright Snorelax, let's get out of here!" relying only on pure instinct and his some what '6th-sense' Ash pointed at areas where they should go. Along the way, they encountered both Azal and Loin… who also have a knack of attacking him.

The attacks and running went on for about ten or twenty minutes. After finally having enough time to catch its breath, the three of them made it to a mother-size balcony. With all the running he's been doing Snorelax began to think that it just lost about five pounds and that would mean that he would become the slimmest Snorelax in the world. With Snorelax exhausted and May unconscious, Ash once again gave the impression of a 'knight in shining armor' "Snorelax…" the Pokemon quickly turned its attention to its master. "I want you to take May and run as far away as you can from here.

"Snore?" (What? Why?)

"It's me they want, and I head the other way, then there's a good chance they'll leave you alone"

"Snore snorelax!" (But Ash!)

"Please Snorelax, do it for me!" the giant Pokemon glared into those golden eyes of his master with a determined look. It was pointless to try and argue with Ash now. In a few moments, Snorelax held May in its arm and made its way to the nearby ledge. It took one last look at Ash with a visible frown forming on its face. A single tear slipped on Snorelax's round face. Before he knew it, Snorelax jumped off the ledge and landed safely on the ground. Ash stared at his chubby Pokemon as it runs off to the distance. A hint of happiness swept across his face but it soon vanished when a voice interrupted his dramatic moment, "We finally caught up to you…" Ash turned around and saw the three strangers glaring at him with unknown intent in their eyes. Just when Ash was about to make a break for it, Azal shot out another hyper beam attack from his arm which caused a huge puff of smoke to envelop. "Idiot! You could've hurt the boy!" Loin yelled at Azal with great anger in his voice. With smoke blocking their visions, Ash took the opportunity and decided to break for it.

As he finally came to stop, he entered a large dark room which appeared to be some sort of dining room. There was a large round table at the center and probably more than three dozen marbled chairs littered around the place. Ash once again had that strange feeling around him. A feeling of unease… an urge at the back of his head saying **_"I've been here before"_** or probably something close to that. Having lost some stress off of his body, Ash decided to take a stroll… probably to find a good place to hide.

**(Back on the first floor)**

"Did you find him?" Loin asked his other two companions. They shook their heads in unison. Loin cursed under his breath as the temperature suddenly began to drop. Sensing this odd change in the weather, the three of them took a look outside the nearby window.

"It's snowing… again" Azal noted at the weather

Noeh just realized and immediately knew what was happening, "I only know three people that have the power to change the weather…"

Loin's eyes widened slightly as he turned his head to the others "Oh no…"

Noeh nodded and spoke out in a soft voice... "HE… is here"

"Galyoken…" Azal said his name for him

The mere mention of that name seemed to freeze their very bones to ice and that doesn't even include the weather outside.

Loin regained him composure, "Come on! We've got to find him quickly before Galyoken does!" and with that he dashed off to the nearest room hoping to find Ash. There were about a hundred rooms in this palace and searching all of them would take all day to say the least. But Loin didn't care. He was going to find Ash and he was going to do it even if he has to destroy everything in his path to do so.

"Do you think he found out about us?" Azal hoped that he was wrong

"To tell you the truth" Noeh replied, "I don't really know. It's hard to even know what he's plotting. Not even a mind reader can read what that man is thinking"

"……"

"Don't be so nervous. Let's keep looking on the higher levels"

**(Back on the third floor dining room)**

Ash wandered through the dining room for a good amount of time. The weather outside had suddenly worsen and this made him very worried about Snorelax and May. "I hope those two are ok…" he said quietly. For the first time in his entire life, Ash had never felt so left out before. Pikachu was always there for him even through thick and thin. No matter what would happen, that little yellow mouse would be there for him to cheer him up or give him a thunder shock when he's down. But as he looked upon his shoulder… there was no one. Absolutely no one to comfort him in this desperate time of need.

Emotionally depressed and lonesome in this strange castle, Ash's right arm began to glow. Soon, the boy felt warmth and peace growing in his heart. He felt all the bad emotions slowly lifting itself away like a vaccine throwing away the bad virus in his body. He felt strangely… happy for some reason. So strangely happy that it scared him.

A tear flicked down his eye going some what uncontrollably. He wiped it off thinking that it was just snow melting… but who was he trying to fool? Himself? He was crying… and yet he didn't know why.

"Why am crying?" he grabbed a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped the tears falling drastically down his cheeks.

"**I'm home…"**

"Huh? Who's there?!" Ash jumped back on his feet and quickly scanned the room… but there was no one. "I guess it was just my imagination…" he convinced himself with his own theory.

Just as soon as he recomposed himself, a single plant stood up rooted on the ground, "A Time Flower? Here?" (Time flower came from the 8th Pokemon Movie Lucario and the mystery of Mew) he reach out and touched the flower and just like all Time Flower, it began to glow and soon covered the entire room with its mystical powers.

Ash watched as everything in the dining room were fixed in an instant. The holes on the walls were filled up and the door was repaired like it was brand new.

"_Your majesty, we must hurry!" a white Lucario appeared from the back of the room with three other Lucarios with different colors. One was embedded with the color yellow, the other one was given the color green and the last one was a little darkish pink, which obviously tells us that it is female . However, they weren't like the Lucario Ash met back in his travels. The white one wasn't using any telepathic powers. He was talking, he was actually speaking human language._

Ash slowly stepped up to see what was going on but when he turned around to see who he was talking to, he gasped and could've swore that his heart truly stopped. At the center of the room, a boy who looked EXACTLY like him stood there but with a different set of clothes. Ash wore a Pokemon hat, a black T-shirt, a jacket and a long pair of pants (excluding the arm length glove) but his look-alike was more on the royalty side. He had a crown, robes that reaches just below his knee, a pair of oddly shaped pants and a ring on his right hand. Another major difference was the color of their hair. Ash was dark raven while the other one was pure white silver.

_DA looked at his Pokemon friend as it pleaded, "Your highness, I beg of you, we must escape!" but DA didn't even flinch. He just glared at the giant iron door as something on the other side was ramming it like a hammer on wood. The W. Lucario visibly flinched as the door slowly breaks down into pieces, "Everyone, take defensive positions! Protect his majesty at all cost!" just when he gave his orders to the other Lucarios, a Scyther suddenly burst into the room with its claws ready to cut anything in its path. DA was caught unprepared by such an attack but just before Scyther sliced him to pieces, the white Lucario pushed him away and took the blow directly on his left eye. The pink Lucario unleashed a shadow ball attack and blew the Scyther to a corner while the green Lucario tended to his wounded kin._

_It was then, the king-like-Ash finally had enough, "Let's go everyone!" the Lucarios (except the white one) nodded. They moved to the back side of the room where it was barely visible to anyone. The pink Lucario gently pressed one of the loose bricks and in an instant, a hidden passage opened up before them._

Ash didn't know what to make of all of this. Was what he looking at really the past? Or was it some sort of magic trick that required a lot of special effects? He couldn't really tell the difference anymore.

_Just as the Lucarios entered the hidden passage, DA pressed the loose brick once more to seal the entrance. "Your majesty!!" the green Lucario turned around to see the path closed behind him. He started banging the wall on the other side with his paws as the king remained behind. There was a small air socket that connected the two sides so they were able to hear each other perfectly._

_"Your highness, please open this door. You'll die if you stay there!" the P. Lucario pleaded her master but DA couldn't bear to look into her deep eyes. He just looked away and said in a soft voice, "Forgive me Rosa…"_

_The Y. Lucario came by and bang the wall with its paws, "Your majesty! Open this door… please!" this Lucario banged the wall even harder than before._

_"I'm sorry everyone… please… take care of yourselves…" and with that. The king walked away. The P. Lucario (Rosa) begged the king to open but her plea was fallen on deaf ears, "Your majesty!? Your majesty, come back!"_

_The G. Lucario knew that this was bad so pulled the P. Lucario (Rosa) out, "Blast it, we don't have time. Let's go!"_

_"But…"_

_"His highness knows what he's doing. L-E-T's GO!"_

_As the Lucarios dashed away to safety, a single tear escaped the pink Lucario's eye. A great wave emotion of sadness lingered in the room causing a great deal of pain to DA._

Ash watched as the king like figure of himself bravely sacrifice himself for his comrades-in-arm. Even he felt a bit confused on why he looked exactly like him, he couldn't help but beam with pride that there was another person who had his beliefs.

_Right when DA was about to head for the higher levels, the door that held the attackers finally submit defeat and was destroyed with a hyper beam attack. Amidst the smoke, a single figure stood out. A figure that Ash had never seen before… but for some reason… it was a figure that he hated already._

_Without danger just around the corner, DA ran up the stair case with great speed but was soon chased by at least two dozen human soldiers and their Pokemons. And it was then…… the Time Flower ended its recording and quickly wrapped itself like a giant cocoon._

Pallet giggled once more as the white chess pieces suddenly came to a stop. He grinned even wider that before if that was even humanly possible. But when it was finally his turn, he spotted a gap in the white force defenses. Slowly he reach out for the bishop that stood at an undisputed corner and moved it dangerously close to the white king, "… Check…"

After recovering from the shock that the Time Flower gave out, Ash quickly dusted off the dirt his clothes managed to collect in such a short time. He tried making a camp fire with some of wood that were littered around the place. He gathered up good rock shapes and placed them a good distance away from the doors and windows because he feared that the chilly wind would blow the fire out.

"Alright, now if only I had a match or something" he tore a piece of paper from a note book in his backpack and began rubbing two sticks against it. In a few moments, he was able to get a small fire going to keep himself warm. _"I hope the others are doing ok"_ it was still amazing that he was still worried about his friends rather than himself. "_And… I hope Misty is ok…"_

His train of thought was suddenly cut short when a shadow loomed over him. Ash took a long leap towards the center of the room as he was startled. He reached out for his Pokeballs only to remember that it was with Noeh. The boy gritted his teeth and began thinking of a way to get out of this situation.

"And so… we meet at last… your highness" the sound of his voice was as cold as the winter blizzard behind him. His presence filled the room with a sickening aura, making it hard for anyone to focus.

At last… Ash confronts the leader of the counselors. But what does he want from him? And why are they after him? Will we ever find out? Find out in the next concluding chapter!


	28. Relive The Ending

**Chapter 28: Relive The Ending**

When we last left our young Pokemon Master, he had just encountered the head of the counselors. Does he come in peace or with another purpose in mind? Let us find out!

"And so… we meet at last… your highness" Ash quickly turned around to see the man who spoke up. His voice ran as cold as the snow outside. His eyes were like those of a killer and his white hair stretched down to his knees making him some sort of a prince (Try to imagine a Sephiroth instead). Ash quickly not trusting anyone with white hair nowadays quickly hopped to the nearest exit. But alas, the door he planned to use as an escape route was blocked by rubbles of the ruins. "Oh darn!" he cursed.

"There's no need to run your majesty. I'm not going to harm you" he said with his grin.

And of course Ash wouldn't believe that sly voice of his, "Yeah right! The last time I heard that I nearly got blaster to smithereens!" he yelled as he took up a defensive position behind the giant round table. The man was clearly giving out some sort of aura that had an evil vibe to it. You can really tell that the man was pure evil incarnate just by looking at his face. Though some people would say not to judge people by their first impression, Ash wasn't gonna take any chances.

The man walked into the room slowly, his eyes locked onto Ash and his hand roaming freely in the air. He rubbed the canvas on the wall and smudged the million year old dirt off the tapestry. It was gonna take more than a hundred maids to clean this place up. "So…" he began, "I see that you've met my colleagues. Loin, Azal and Noeh hmm?" Ash didn't respond. He just looked at him, keeping a safe distance away. When the man is far enough, he would make a break for it at the gate. If there was anything he needed right now, it would either be one of his Pokemons or a water canteen, because his old canteen was already empty.

"Now now, don't give me the silent treatment. I just want us to talk like two civilized humans, that's all" Ash could really tell that this man was lying. This guy wouldn't be able to tell the truth even if he was saying it. As he kept walking towards the backside of the dining room, Ash saw a small opportunity to escape but he had to wait for it get to get bigger. Every second he calculated might just determine his life and/or death. His leg and feet were so tense that the moment that man gets his eyes off of him he would dash away to forest and take his chances in the snow rather than in this trap infested castle.

"Doesn't this place bring back memories your majesty?" the man continued as he continued to smudge the wall with his hand. He left a trail of his hand swiping both vertically and horizontally on the wall. It was as if he was trying to create a picture of some sort. "Ahh… it feels like it only happened yesterday. When these walls were filled the sounds of both humans and Pokemons alike. They were such happy times, don't you agree?" if it was any possible, his grin actually grew wider than a normal human being. It was really creeping Ash out. The man noticed the young trainer was visibly trembling in fear.

Once those pair of red eyes finally tore itself off his body for just a millisecond, Ash dashed towards the entrance, hoping to make a clean getaway. But sadly, there was an invisible force blocking his path. A green barrier surrounded him that kind of resembles of a Safe Guard defensive move. Ash knew this barrier well. It was practically the same one Noeh used on him in the watch tower a few hours ago except it was much stronger and had some sort sickening aura clouding its inhabitants. "Now now… it's rude to leave your guests unattended your majesty"

"Who are you!? And what do you want from me!?" Ash finally snapped. After feeling like a Raticate trapped in a box, he panicked. The man drew closer and closer. Each step he took was like a countdown timer for something big to happen. "I only want what we all want your majesty. I want you… or should I say… your essence…" he chuckled with a grin. The man raised his arm and to Ash's surprise, he also had the tattoos quite similar to his embedded from his hand right to his shoulder. Just as soon as the long white haired man began chanting some intelligible words, his arm soon glowed purple, creating a disturbance in the atmosphere. Ash was awestruck and yet scared at the same time. He couldn't what the man was doing but by the time he finished, an invisible sword struck the boy deep within chest (not literally)

Ash could feel… something… something… that was not him. Something that was in him, but it was more of a guest rather than an intruder. It wasn't anything alien… but it sure wasn't part of body at all. He felt his body slowly drifting into sleep. His aura (the one named in movie 8 Lucario and the mystery of Mew) was leaving his body. His whole life force was being drained into the man's hand like some sort of vacuum. The boy's breathing became shallow and his whole body was feeling numb. The first few seconds he couldn't feel his feet but after a minute he couldn't feel his arms and legs. After five minutes past by it felt like his heart was about to go right out of his mouth. The man was taking not just his soul but his whole body with it.

Even after all that pain and torture, Ash was still conscious enough to see what was happening. An essence of him, made of pure white light was leaving his body. It struggled to stay but no matter how hard it tried, the man's powers were too strong to resist. It was then…… by some sort of unknown force, Ash's arm began moving on their own. His lips were moving but the boy wasn't exactly talking. Ash felt a like puppet controlled by a puppeteer.

"**NO!"** said Ash's body. His voice changed dramatically. The soft caring tone was replaced by an royal, majestic and demanding voice, "**You will not take me away again!!!"** his arm held on to the essence like it was his own life. The two of them stared at each other's eyes unwavering in their fight. The man's expression finally turned upside down. He was now being more serious in the matter at hand. His grinned disappeared in a flash turning into a frown. He gritted his teeth as was now using both his arms to pull the essence off the boy. "I will take you, even if I have to kill you to do so!!!" he screamed out to Ash but there was no response. Ash held tighter to the essence with both of his arms as well but still, he could control what he was doing.

"Curse you Hsa! Why don't you just submit defeat already!?"

**"It's not in my nature to admit defeat!" **Ash's voice turned from a calm and caring tone to a more matured voice

**(Back in Valmarian)**

Emma was walking on the streets near the Valmarian gym. She had just persuaded five more trainers to retire and come back during the next Valmarian league. She used human psychology to persuade them using her elusive speech and depressing thoughts to make even the strongest trainer weak like maggot. After being in the city for so long, the people began to call her Dark Queen because of her specialties of dark Pokemons. She has a Shiftry a Pokemon that was part grass and part dark. It was her main power horse for battles and has known little about defeat. Her other five were Mightyena, Houndour, Sneasel, Sableye and Murkrow. She says she likes dark type because it suites her hidden agenda. As she gazed around the gym, she noticed Steve still at that lap top of his. It was hard to see for a computer geek to be in love with nature at the same time.

Steve's favorite types of Pokemons were grass type. People have come to known him as 'Bad Mix' because he was a computer freak as well. He knew every detail of a super computer from top to bottom and had some sort of green thumb as well. He loved flowers because he says it lightens up his day every time he sees one. If it comes from my point of view, he would be a modern hippy in our society if I do say so myself. As you all know his most trusted Pokemon would be his Grovyle, a powerful mid-evolution Grass type that is effective against both long and short range. His other Pokemons consisted of a mixture between grass type and several rock types. Venusaur, Breloom, Graveler, Rhyhorn and Aggron were in his arsenal. Emma ignored the freaky nerd and continued into the gym. From there she saw Jaques with his Pokemons.

The blond man was more into flying types, which was kind of obvious since most of his Pokemons were mostly sky lovers. Strangely however was that his favorite Pokemon was a Claydol. His other Pokemons are, Fearow, Aerodactyl, Skarmory, Ninjask and Altaria, all flying types. Unlike other trainers, he never reveals his face to anyone except his eyes. He caught attention to many girls and was even having a fan club of his own. His dastardly charms works in many ways here in Valmarian city. Emma sighed and turned to the stands where she encountered the gang's ex leader……

Havic, or as the people call him… 'The Spiked Armor'. He focuses on absolute defense and absolute offense at the same time. His usual tactic is to wear the opponent down to nothing while also dishing out great amount of damage. His favorite Pokemons are a mixture of all elements. His so called buddy is an Armaldo. A killer monster of a Pokemon and with some miniature abilities of a bug type. The rest of his arsenal are Golduck, Ninetales, Duskull, Manetric and Farfetch'd. In all his years of training he has been known throughout Johto as an excellent Pokemon trainer but also the most ruthless. He shows no mercy in battle and has a terrible reputation for overworking his Pokemons. He has been known to do several transactions in the black market and other shady businesses.

"Hey Havic, do you know where Gary is?" Emma asked her ex-boss with a smirk. Havic looked back at her with a still grin locked upon his face. "Gary huh? Hmm…" he thought for awhile thinking at where could his boss be at this time, "I think by now… he should be at the docks. He's probably waiting for that Ash kid. Why do ask?"

"I should've known. He asked me to keep a watch on the Pokemon center" she sighed

Havic giggled, "Well, that would be the first stop for every Pokemon trainer don't you think? Seems to me that our so called 'Fearless' leader and that boy Ash have a lot of history together and if what Gary said is true, then they must've gone wayyyy back. I mean, come on… diaper?"

"Geeze, that guy can be such a pain in the rear! I'll go and check him out" she turned around and head towards the main exit. Havic gave out a grin as she slowly made her way out. His shades hid his eyes so you can't really tell where he's looking at, "Careful now… he's not in his best moods today" he chuckled.

"Yeah yeah, I heard ya"

**(At the Valmarian docks) (Gary's POV)**

"_Come on Ash… where are you? You should've been here ages ago! Are you so silly that you can't even make it to competition on time? And I thought that you've outgrown being late?"_ these were the thoughts that were running through my head. I've been watching the sea come up and down endlessly while checking on every boat that comes to port. I check up on every passenger and every trainer that comes by. I knew Ash would be in one of these boats that's for sure. He always loved to make a dramatic entrance even though it was unintentional. I was surprised to hear that he crossed the ocean with just a raft just to make it to the Indigo stadium on time. I remembered that there was one time that he just launched himself from a helicopter all the way from Mahogany town just to make it to the Johto league. And of course there's everyone's favorite. There was one time that Ash was escorted by a fleet of warships just to make it to the Hoenn stadium. I remembered my grandpa's eyes opened up so wide that it was amazing that they didn't fall out of their sockets.

"Hey boss!" I already knew who that voice belonged to. I didn't even turn my head as I replied, "What do you want Emma?" I was planning to a little time on my own to get away from all the troubles but this girl just can't seem to stop bothering me, "The gates will be closing in an hour. The Pokemon center is full but I didn't see anyone who looked like him (Ash)" her report was simple, quick and defined. "I see… I guess he won't be coming today" I replied back to her.

**(Normal POV)**

After giving out her brief report to Gary, Emma noticed that the young trainer was holding something in his hand. "What's that?" she pointed at the small object. It looked like the bottom half of a uninflated Pokeball. "This thing? Oh it's nothing. Just a memento of myself" (if you're wondering where he got that half of a Pokeball, watch Pokemon episode: 275 'Gotta Catch Ya Later!' to know) He raised the piece right above his head and prepared to throw it into the sea. But for some reason… his hand refused to let go of that memento. There was a strong bond in that half Pokeball. It held such a strong tie to his soul that throwing it away feels like throwing away a part of your life.

"I'll be the hotel room if you need me"

"Just don't be late tomorrow. You have four new challengers to battle"

"Yeah yeah, I hear ya"

"Sheesh! What a troublesome person"

**(Back at the main shaft)**

Rumble rumble…

"Hmm? What was that?" Misty yawned as the sound of rumbling earth woke her up. She rubbed away the sand in her eyes and tried to focus where the sound was coming from. After a while, the whole gang woke up from the quake. "Brock? Tracey?" she was still probably half asleep when she spoke up.

"Misty!" Brock leaped onto his friend's position and hugged her like sister, "Are you ok? Do you feel any aches, stomach pain, anything?" the whole gang came by to see their friend up and finally cool and collected. Misty couldn't explain why they were acting like this so she was a little confused, "No, not at all. Why? Did something happen when I was asleep?" Brock was extremely relieved. For a moment there he thought he would never see Misty wake up ever again. Having her talking and breathing felt like a huge burden was lifted from his shoulders. The gang went through the whole process of explaining what happened. From when they arrived at this cave, to her fever, to the Swampert battle to the time when they all got separated.

Misty was still having a hard time processing most of the information they were giving out. She just woke up from an eight hour sleep and she was already getting bombarded with info of what happened when she was unconscious. Tracey handed her a cup of tea which she drank all the way down in one gluck.

Richie: "Well anyway. We should probably wake Ash up"

When they turned around to see the boy in question. The sleeping bag which he was supposed to be in was empty. "Hey… where'd he go?" Todd asked to no one in particular. "Did he go into one of the tunnels?" Dawn said worryingly. Ash may be silly at times, but going back into those tunnels would be more than suicidal. Pikachu looked a little worried too because he's never gone anywhere without Ash unless it was either the bathroom or unless unusual circumstances occurred. It was then a thought popped into Drew's head, "Hey! Do you think that white haired guy kidnapped him?" the gang was now even more worried. They completely forgot about that man who came looking for Ash a few hours ago. "Oh come on now, let's not jump to conclusions. Maybe he went to find the men's room" Duplica then tried to reassure the gang but failed.

Their conversation was cut short however, when the stampeding foot steps rumbled around the cave. Small particles of stones broke off from the top of the ceiling. It wasn't enough to hurt them but if one of those sharp ones should come crashing down that would be whole different story. Before any of them could say anything, Anabel decided to use here telekinetic ability to find out what was going on.

In her head, she could hear voices… of Pokemons, talking and yelling. The first few voices sounded calm and peaceful but when the voices multiplied over and over again, she could barely tell what they were even saying at all. When the sounds multiplied about a million times, her head was about to explode. She quickly broke off her psychic communication and knelt on the ground with one major headache. "Anabel, you ok?" Richie leaped to her side the moment she began to fall, "Yeah… I'm ok. But there's something happening outside" she replied weakly at them. Right before they even knew what she was talking about, the jagged rocks on top began to fall down on them.

"Oh no! The place is gonna collapse! Everyone, gather your things and let's go!" Brock ordered his gang to move out before the place collapsed, but Misty was more worried about Ash, "Wait, what about Ash?"

"Don't worry about him, he can look after himself! Come on let's go!"

The eight tunnels behind them quickly caved in, causing the whole group to go to only way available. The entrance on where they first came. Since the cave was crumbling so fast, the gang had to leave behind several equipments that were disposable and in disposable including Max's Pokenavigator and laptop (gack!)

**(At the entrance of the cave)**

After running for their precious lives, the gang made it out of the cave just by a small millisecond before it totally crumbled. For everything that's been happening today, I guess it's safe to say that this hasn't been the day for the gang. First, May was kidnapped, second, that rogue Swampert attack and now a death trap in a cave. Can anything else happen? The answer?

**YES!!! ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN IN THIS WORLD ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE TRAVELING WITH THE HERO OF THE STORY FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!! DO I NEED TO EVEN ANSWER THAT QUESTION HAAAAAAAAA!!!!?**

Ahem…

The moment the gang had enough time to recover from that life threatening cave in, what was waiting outside was a sight that none of them could truly imagine even in their wildest dreams. What lay before them were hundreds… no… thousands of Pokemons, all in full battle gear and all marching at the same location. It didn't matter if they were water, land or air Pokemons, because nothing and I mean nothing could stop them from reaching their desired location.

"What's going on?" Tracey asked to no one in particular

Drew looked amazed on what was happen, "Where are all the Pokemons going?"

Before anyone could conjure up an answer or even conjure up some sort of a sick joke at a time like this, a bright golden light illuminated in the distance. It came from behind the thick forest and to make it even more bizarre, it was exactly the destination of all of those Pokemons.

"Wherever they're going, I can bet that they're heading for that light over there" Max pointed out to a big giant beam of light coming from afar.

Brock then recommended, "Let's follow them. Maybe there might be some sort of clue of what's going on around here (Snore…) Huh? (Snorelax…) A Snorelax? (It was Ash's Snorelax) (sees May on Snorelax's shoulder)"

"May!" they all said in unison

The gang quickly rushed towards the girl but sadly she was still unconscious. Although they were glad that one of their friends was alright, they were concerned on why Ash's Snorelax was out of his Pokeball. However…in a move that wouldn't surprise even the rookie trainers, Snorelax was totally exhausted in running and soon fell asleep on its back.

**(Back in the ruined palace)**

Hsa was having a moment of his life (literally). He was struggling to keep his soul within Ash's body and refuses to let it go anywhere else. However, the long white haired man wasn't making it easy. He was pulling out every ounce of his natural strength to get whatever he wanted. The man didn't care if he had to lose his arm in the process but as long as he get what he wants, nothing else really mattered.

Ash was confused, no… he had absolutely no idea what was going on. His mouth and body were moving but he wasn't doing them. It was like a second brain popped into his head, taking away every command and control inside. His mouth was moving and words were coming out, but his brain wasn't saying anything. Ash couldn't feel pain, heck he couldn't feel his own neck. The only things he could feel are his eyes and nose but that was it. The soaring light that was coming out of him was like a non-luminous fire except it was cold rather than hot.

As the battle went on for about five minutes, Hsa could feel his grip on his soul getting weaker and weaker. He was losing his focus and whatever was left of his strength was about to be diminished any second. The man grinned as he knew that Hsa stood no chance against him in that weakened state. Ash's vision became blurry and he could feel his life force slowly lifting away. It wouldn't be long until he sees the gate keeper of the after life.

"It looks like this is the end for you… your majesty" the man once again gave out a grin but it later disappeared when a voice yelled out from behind, "NO!!!!" The two of them turned to whoever shouted, but before the long haired councilor could react, Loin tackled him down to the ground thus making the man release his grip on Hsa.

"Azal, Noeh, get his majesty out of here now!" Loin ordered his companions

Hsa quickly swallowed up the soul back into Ash's body. By some luck, he was able to squeeze some strength out of the boy's body and quickly shifting control of the arms legs and torso back to its original owner. "I… I can feel my arms again!" while Ash was slowly regaining his bodily functions he wasn't able to enjoy it when Azal and Noeh grabbed the boy and carried him up the stairs with great haste.

Ash was now even more confused than ever. The ones that he thought that were his enemies looked like they were now helping him, but why? With one question answered, probably a thousand more popped up to replace it.

"Do you think it was ok to leave Loin behind?" Azal asked

Noeh simply didn't care right now, "Don't worry about him. He has a talent of escaping tight situations before"

"Let's just hope he still has that talent!"

The two councilors ran even faster up the parapet, avoiding all loop holes and weakened areas so they don't fall back down. By the time the two of them reached the top floor lobby, they placed Ash down on a corner to help him recover a little bit of his strength. The boy breathed heavily as his throat dried up quicker than a drop of water heading towards the sun. Noeh saw this and offered the boy his water canteen, "Here, take this. You'll need it more than I do your majesty" Ok that was it, why are they calling him 'your majesty' all the time? He was hearing that from the White Bandits and now them. As if today couldn't get any weirder. Ash wanted to ask why but he was too busy drinking from the canteen to speak.

**(Back in the dining room)**

"TRAITOR!" the long haired man shouted as he pushed Loin away with his foot.

"I am not a traitor!" he denied the accusation, "The only traitor I see here is you Galyoken, no one else!" The man who was now known as Galyoken gritted his teeth as he pulled a sword from the back of his coat. Loin knew that he was going to have a tough battle so he pulled out his quarterstaff from his jacket.

"You are a traitor to the human race Loin! Your punishment shall be your salvation!"

"And you Galyoken are a traitor to the empire and to the world. Your crimes will be paid with our sacrifices! Hya!"

The two once faithful comrades now clashed against each other in a battle that would probably determine the fate of world. Loin managed to parry several of Galyoken's attacks but he was badly being beaten into a corner. Galyoken had inhumane strength, stamina and speed that would probably match to that of a Hitmonlee. But Loin would not back down. He would defend the stair case even if it should cost him his life. "You will have to do better than that Galyoken! You will not get pass these stairs!" he quickly removed the bandages on his arm and used a hyper beam attack on the parapet. The whole area fell apart, leaving only rubbles in its wake. "Now you can never reach his highness!"

Galyoken smirked as he ran towards the balcony. Loin gave chase but he was too late. Galyoken already vanished from sight, leaving him behind to pray that nothing bad would come to Ash.

**(Back in the Temple of Resurrection)**

The chess pieces were moving on their own once again. A black bishop and a white knight stood side by side, not letting each other out of their sight. The white king stood next to the white rook with two white pawns and a white bishop defending it on the fronts. Pallet moved all of his black pawns and pieces and prepare to engage when the white pieces formation is broken. There was no visible emotion in his face, but if you look closely, you would see that there is a slight bit of sadistical joy forming on his mouth. "Almost there… just a little bit more ahehehehe…"

**(Back in the palace, fifth floor)**

"Darn it, there's no way out Noeh!" Azal yelled at his partner as they finally reached the large room on the fifth floor. It was a bed room fit for a king indeed. There was a private pool, a medium sized dining table, a garden built on the balcony and heck, there was even a living room built inside the bed room. If the place wasn't so old and messed up, it would've been a place where a whole family could live comfortably without any repercussion.

Noeh: "I guess we'll just have to hold them here. Azal, help me barricade the door!"

"Oh that won't be necessary Noeh" the two councilors quickly drew out their quarterstaffs and got into their combat stances. Galyoken stood next to the door that was carelessly left opened by the two of them. The long haired man gave out a maniacal grin to Ash which left him shaking in his shoes.

"I see… you two betrayed me as well?" Galyoken accused them right on the spot

Noeh denied the accusation and let out an aura of hatred to focus on the man, "We did not betray you. We merely opened our eyes to truth that was blinded by your lies. We were fools to follow you Galyoken and I will not make that same mistake ever again! Azal, take his highness out of here and go!"

"I won't leave you Noeh!" Azal refused to leave a man behind

"I gave you an order! Now do it!"

Noeh pushed Azal towards Ash and charged against Galyoken with his staff. "I will hold as long as I can. Don't worry about me just run!" Azal hesitated at first but he knew he wouldn't be able to tip the scale against Galyoken. "Your majesty, please follow me" Ash dumbly agreed to follow him to the balcony. "Try to get on that pedestal over there. Hurry!" Ash walked against the railing with his back against the wall. He and Azal slowly made their way through a long stretch of ledges but by some miracle they were able to make it.

"Hurry sire, we have to make it to the top floor. In there you will be safe!" he pointed at the top of the palace. There was a chamber right on top with a broken gate. The reason why they didn't know about the extra floor was because the staircase that connected to that chamber was destroyed. Ash tried to make his way to that place through the jagged roof tops and slippery marble stones. It was hard to maneuver through the place without hurting yourself.

**(Back inside the bed room)**

Galyoken just got smacked on the chest by Noeh's staff. It didn't do much damage but the recoiling of the attack left him stunned. After regaining control, he lifted up his right arm and blasted Noeh to the balcony with a thunder shock attack. "You are nothing but a nuisance and a traitor to the human race Noeh…"

"_Darn it… come on Noeh… move your body, you got to move!"_ Noeh was mentally cursing himself as he sat on the railings of the balcony paralyzed by the electrical attack. Galyoken ignored him and quickly went after Azal and Ash. It would take about ten minutes for the paralysis to wear off.

**(Somewhere along the roof top)**

"Careful your highness, that plate is slippery" Azal was making sure that nothing harmed Ash one bit. He carefully pushed the boy to higher grounds just so that they could make it to the platform where an angel statue was once placed. Only the lower part of the statue was left after the destruction that caused all this massacre. "Come on you're majesty, we're almost there!" he pulled Ash a few steps closer to the higher levels, hoping that he would get there safely with him. But alas, it was not meant to be.

"How touching… a once proud councilor helping the king to safety even at the cost of his life" Azal pulled out his quarterstaff and moved in front of Ash, "You do know that your actions are punishable for treason Azal?"

"You can judge me later, after you answer for your crimes Galyoken. Ash, go on without me!"

"But what about you?"

"Don't worry your majesty. I have plenty of tricks up my sleeves. I promise I'll catch up with you. Now hurry! HYAAA!!!"

"AZAA**AALLL!"**

Before Ash could jump out and help him, the boy slipped on some slimy marbles and fell to the other side of the roof. "Oh… my head"

"HYAAA!!!" Azal charged up to Galyoken like a true warrior. He showed no fear and no openings for him to counter attack. Of all the councilors he fought so far, Azal was indeed the strongest out of all of them. Every time he dished out an offensive move, Azal would pull out some crazy stunt just to catch him off guard, "I may not be as strong as Noeh or Loin or Furo, but no one has ever beaten me in a fair fight Galyoken!" Galyoken smirked and quickly moved in on the offensive. The two of them clashed their weapons again and again until they finally came to a dead lock mode, where strength and stamina determines the winner. And sadly for Azal, he didn't quite have those traits. His staff was snapped away from his hands and fell to the snowy earth below.

With his primary weapon gone, Azal decided to switch to his second weapon choice of fighting, his fists. Galyoken dodged every blow and blocked every kick he gave out skillfully. But after awhile, he got bored with him and decided to kick him away with on hit on the stomach. "Now that with you out of the picture, I can focus on my mission" and with that he vanished in a blink of an eye.

"_Curse him… I must go and save him… come on move you idiot! There isn't much time!"_ Azal cursed under his breath as he tried to move his arm. He put all of his strength to get up but as he slowly made progress. After finally getting back on his feet, he suddenly realized that his body was fading away, "Oh geeze… oh man is it my time already?" he ranted out disappointingly, "This sucks…" he said calmly with a giggle. He quickly relinquished himself to his fate and dropped to the ground like a sack of meat. He looked down on the ground with tears pouring down from his eyes. He was sad, but for some strange reason, he was also laughing.

"Azal!" the fading man turned his attention to Loin who called out his name, "Oh hey Loin. It's nice of you to drop by" he said in a cheerful expression. Loin noticed that his comrade was slowly fading and he knew that this was the fate of all illusions, including himself.

"It's your time huh?" Loin said jokingly. But behind the voice, you could hear the sadness buried deep within

"Sure looks that way" the vanishing man replied with a laugh

"Where is his majesty?"

"I managed to send him up the top level. The hidden chambers over there" he said pointing to the top floor, "Heh… it looks like I won't be able to see the party crasher go into action huh?"

"…… I'm sorry Azal"

"Oh don't be… besides… I won the bet. I told you that would go before you do"

Loin then remembered the bet they made a few days ago on who will disappear first, "Heh… I guess you're right"

"You owe me a drink when we meet up"

"Strawberry or apple?"

Azal simply smiled back and said, "Heh… give me one of every flavor hehehe (cough cough)"

"…… Deal"

"Here…" Azal took out the last Pokeball from his belt and handed it to his last companion, "It's the party crasher I promised you. Don't let it go to waste!... ok…… friend……"

Before Loin could even reach for the Pokeball, Azal vanished into sky, melding itself with the air. A tear escaped Loin's eyes, dropping right onto the Pokeball before he picked it up. He held the white and red gizmo tightly and muttered in a few words before moving on, "I promise friend… it will be a party to remember" he then made his way towards the top floor, hoping to catch up with Ash and Galyoken before he kills him.

**(In the Temple of Ressurection)**

A white pawn vanishes from sight, replaced by a black bishop. "So Azal is defeated… so soon? This makes things so much easier" he slowly moves one of his black pieces at a time, all moving towards the white rook. With such overwhelming numbers, it would only be a matter of time until all of this ends. "Just a little longer… my friend. Just wait a little longer… and I promise… we will be together again"

**(Somewhere along the roof top, near the top floor)**

"Oh man… you have just got to be kidding me" Ash panted heavily as he slowly made small progress in reaching the top floor. When Azal was with him, he was able to get to higher grounds with no problem, but now that he's alone, he could barely reach the next floor without risk of falling. Most of the pathways through the roof were inaccessible due to holes and rubbles but after awhile, he was able to get there with any major difficulties. "I wish Pikachu and the others were here. He'd know which way to go" the moment he finished speaking to himself, he saw a flash cutting through the air like Swiss cheese. Ash quickly knew what it was and skillfully dodged the blade.

"So… you still know how my sword sounds like after all" Galyoken grinned as he removed his sword from the stoned roof. The marble he just cut through was neatly sliced in half with no flaws. Ash gulped in his fear and quickly dashed off to higher ground. "Oh come on Hsa, don't make this any harder for me" he said in an almost bored tone. Ash hid behind walls but they were easily crushed by Galyoken's power. Ash tried to crawl into hard to reach places but Galyoken can reach to him by just making his own entrance (literally) Time and time again, his sword would reach the boy's throat only to be slipped away by some sort of chance and luck. The chase went on for about six minutes until Galyoken became quite annoyed, "Doesn't this bring back memories Hsa?" he said in a maniacal tone, "Come now. Don't you remember that we used to chase each other here before? I chased you all the way up to that room. You hid like the cowardly king you truly are and let your precious Pokemon do all the fighting"

Ash heard what the man was saying but he couldn't understand a thing. Why in the world were they calling him king, majesty, and his highness, what was really going on? His thoughts however short lived, when he suddenly spotted a path leading towards the secret chambers. He scanned his surroundings hoping that the man would not see him moving around. After moving carefully and with some stealth, he was able to reach the top floor without much difficulty. Luckily some of the stair cases were still sturdy enough to hold his weight before crumbling to the ground.

The boy panted heavily as he tried to catch up with his breathing. But… the moment he gazed into the room he was in, a blurry vision came to his mind.

He could see a crystal on a pillar at the center of the room. He saw himself grabbing it and holding it onto his chest like it was his most treasured item. The scene blurred once again, skipping the scene like some sort of video, which could be played forward and backward in that of a VHS player. Ash saw himself… or at least a person who looked like him holding the crystal even tighter. A tear slipped across his face, dripping onto the blue jewel that he held so dearly. A few seconds later, the tattoos around his body began to glow, emanating some majestic light. In an instant the scene changed once more to an aerial view outside the palace. A single beam of light emanated from the highest floor and within ten seconds, everything around the castle… was destroyed.

It felt like some sort of a horrible nightmare being played in front of him. He wasn't watching just someone's demise and sadness…… he just witnessed the destruction of an entire civilization!

"Now do you remember?" Ash was brought out of his trance when a voice crept up from behind. Galyoken was smiling sadistically at him, giving out a sickening aura. "This is where you ended the lives of thousands. You took the power of that crystal and used it to destroy everything that we've accomplished" Ash took a step back each time he took a step forward, "If only I was faster, I would've caught you and probably save them" he clenched his fist and slammed it against the wall with anger burning in his eyes, "I will finish what I have begun…" he took a swing at Ash but missed, "I will not fail again…" he took another swing but this time it was much close, "I will go down in legends…" again he swung his sword which cut some of Ash's hair, "I will not be denied… my destiny!" he took one last swing at Ash, which made the boy stumble back, falling on his rear.

Galyoken placed his sword upon Ash's neck with a deathly grin on his face, "I will… save the human race… from you!"

"Not if I can stop it!" in a fraction of a second before Galyoken could stab Ash. Noeh broke from the other side of the room and tackled Galyoken.

"Get… get off me Noeh!" he struggle to break away but failed

It was then, Noeh began chatting some old religious prayer. It sounded holy yet at the same time it sounded like his final words.

Galyoken tried to pry himself off and yelling at him at the same time, "GET. OFF. OF. ME!"

The two of them wrestled each other tirelessly with no side having any intention of backing down. They threw several punches at each other but all of them landed any severe damage. After fighting for about two minutes, Noeh finally came into a dead lock with his opponent. He tackled him again on the chest leading both of them dangerously close to edge of the roof.

After one last look at Ash, Noeh knew that his time was up. His body was already beginning to fade from existence and soon he will blend in with the air around him. "It looks like my time is finally up" he thought.

"It looks like your time is up Noeh, you of all people should know… that the future is inevitable" Galyoken said sweating like a bear

Noeh had no choice but to agree as well, "True… my future, your future, his future (Ash) and the future of this world can't be changed the way we want it to be. We're just as powerless as we were two million years ago. Of course… you held all the power. You held all the cards in your hands while we looked down kissing your feet"

"So you resign yourself to your future?"

"Oh… I can't change the future Galyoken…… but I can make sure, that you're not going to be a part of it! YAHHHHH!!"

In a move that would even surprise the most legendary of Pokemons, Noeh, the council member of the old empire pushed himself and the Galyoken off the roof. With every bit of strength he had left. The two of them fell off the platform in slow motion making every millisecond of the moment dramatic and majestic. Ash's eyes made contact with Noeh's. The last thing he saw before both of them fading into thin air, was a smile. A smile that held both pain, sadness and a slight bit of joy.

"NOOOOOOO!!!!!" Galyoken gave out one last defining yell into the night sky before he finally disappeared along with Noeh.

**(In the Temple of Ressurection)**

The black bishop that has been plaguing the white king was finally taken out, but at the cost of one pawn and one white bishop. Pallet smirked even wider when he finally set in motion his attack, "Check……" he put the last of the pawns in place and readied them for battle. The two black knights, a single bishop and one queen stood side by side, making an impassable blockade. Now only a rook, a knight and a pawn stood in his way of victory.

**(Back on the top floor of the palace)**

Ash stood there… in the secret chamber of the palace. A man just sacrificed himself to save his life. But why did they vanish into thin air? Another question popped into his head cramping itself onto his category of unanswered puzzles. People were fighting for him, and yet he did not know why. Why was he so important that the whole world must come after him? This was probably just one of the questions that prioritized to be answered.

His list of questions to the world was so long, that Santa's good kids and bad kid's list would probably look like toilet paper role.

His thoughts were then again cut short, when an Articuno flew above him. But it wasn't just an Articuno that was flying up in the sky around the palace. Hundreds of Pokemons were assembling at the palace grounds, filling the ruined place up down to every corner.

They were starring at him. Looking up to him like some sort of living god, or at least he thought that way. "Your majesty!" a voice broke his attention off the Pokemons and towards a girl who revealed her face. It was Rosa… member of the guardians. She had white shoulder length hair and blue eyes. She looked about the same age as Ash but for some strange reason, she seemed older than what she actually looks like.

Ash couldn't really place this strange feeling building inside of him, but he some how recognized her from somewhere. "Your majesty… I finally found you…" a tear rolled down her cheek, dripping onto the cold marble of the roof. Who was this girl? And what does she want from Ash? And why was she crying? No matter what the reasons were, the tears she gave out were indeed made of true emotions and heart felt relief of his own safety.

Before Rosa made any move on Ash, Loin appeared out of the darkness and stood in a defensive stance in front of Ash, "You will not take Ash Ketchum Guardians!" for once he wasn't called his majesty or his highness. Rosa's face quickly changed from her sad, calm and hopeful smile to an aggressive monster pack expression. "Ash, go back into the chamber quickly!"

"Not this time councilor! Flygon, hyper beam attack!"

Flygon hovered over Loin and unleashed a powerful beam out of its mouth. The attack missed, but that was only the beginning, "Articuno, ice beam!" as if the cold blizzard wasn't enough, Articuno just had to make it even colder than usual. Hopelessly outnumbered and out matched, Loin gave out one finally attempt to turn the tide of this battle. He took the Pokeball that Azal gave him from his pocket. "Alright Azal… let's see what party crasher you brought me. I choose you!"

**(At the Temple of Ressurection)**

Pallet's grin mysteriously died down after a sudden rumble on his chess board, "What the? What's going on?" the pawn that stood in front of the king was morphing itself… slowly changing its form to a… white queen, "What!? Impossible!" the boy finally got serious in his so called 'game' and slowly moved the pieces for a direct attack. One by one, the paws in front of him fell victim to the new super weapon of the white army.

**(Back at the palace)**

Ash, Loin, Rosa and the rest of the Guardians and Pokemons who were in the vicinity of the palace were at awe. What lay before them was probably one of the legendary Pokemons in the Hoenn region. It's claws were as sharp as swords. Its teeth were so deadly, that it could break a tree in half with just one bite. What stood before them… was black, and red. Its skin were like scales of metal plated armor except much thicker than the ones the White Bandits used for their Pokemon. The Pokemon stood there… its eyes red as if it was possessed… and it breath blowing fire off to anyone that dared try to disturb it.

That's right… it was none other… than Groudon… the legendary fire Pokemon of Hoenn


	29. Stale Mate

**Chapter 29: Stale Mate**

They couldn't believe it… what stood in front of them was probably the most terrifying Pokemon Team Magma (the bad guys in Hoenn series) had been trying to capture. Groudon, one of the most powerful Pokemon in the entire region was now under the command of Loin. The last remaining member of the councilors was still shocked to see what Azal had promised, "When you said a party crasher, you really meant a party crasher" he said softly to himself, "Alright then… Groudon use fire blast now!" the miniaturized Godzilla Pokemon unleashed a fire so hot, that every snow flakes within a three mile radius melted away, leaving nothing but a scorched land in its wake. The Pokemons that were NOT under the influence of the Guardians that were in the vicinity were hastily withdrawing from their sanctuaries and homes when the first signs of trouble occurred.

Rosa jumped back onto Articuno's back and prepared to fight to the death. Nothing… and I mean nothing was going to stop her from getting Ash. "Articuno, use ice beam now!"

"Groudon, counter it with another fire blast!" the power of ice and fire clashed right in the middle of the sky. The explosion caused a huge chilling mist which blocked all visions from seeing anything beyond their eyes. With everyone blind, Loin decided to use this opportunity to get Ash and get away as far as possible. Luckily, the boy in question was right next to him, "Ash, quickly follow me!" Ash dumbly followed him since he barely even understands the situation he was truly in. "Groudon, hold them off as long as you can!" the giant beast nodded in reply and prepared to lay its own life for Loin.

With the fog clouding her visions, Rosa decided to put the Pokemons under her command to good use, "First battalion move in! Find his majesty and the traitor and bring him to me!" the first few hundred Pokemons that heard the order immediately began to search the palace grounds, but with the Groudon firing its attack every once in awhile, it was hard to focus without getting hit by a fire blast or a hyper beam. "This is getting us nowhere. Articuo, use gust to blow away the mist!" Articuno did what Rosa had ordered. After a few minutes, the wind began clearing up the visions of every living thing in the vicinity. Groudon was soon exposed to the natural eye, "Now Articuno, use ice beam" the ice bird Pokemon and fire breathing Pokemon clashed their long ranged attacks at each other once again, only to have another draw in power. Groudon knew that this was going to be a tough opponent so he unleashed a hyper beam attack instead. It was not as effective as fire blast but it was definitely more accurate.

"Articuno, use agility!" the hyper beam attack missed them by a few seconds when they both vanished and reappeared near Groudon, "Now use ice beam!" Groudon was hit but luckily one of its paws was blocking the attack. With only its arm frozen, Groudon released another deadly attack on Articuno which slammed at her directly on the chest. The legendary ice bird… (kinda sounded like iceberg doesn't it?) fell to the ground like a comet falling into the atmosphere. Groudon was sure that he was victorious but not until he felt a presence behind him, "You're pretty good… Groudon. It's a shame that you put under one of the councilor's spells" Rosa stood behind him. She must've have jumped off her Articuno before it fell. Before Groudon could unleash another fire blast, she slowly removed her Pokemon league cap (they all dressed like Ash, remember?) and glared into the beast's eyes without any signs of fear or any emotions, "Now…" she said quietly, "Who do you serve…?" the question rang into the Pokemon's head giving it a major headache. Groudon shook and roared endlessly through the night firing any attacks from its mouth and cutting the marbles on the wall like it was nothing but paper. Once the pain was gone, the beast glared back at Rosa and spoke in its own language,

"Rrrrrrraaaarrrr…" (I serve the one true king…)

Rosa gave out a smile

**(Back in the Temple of Resurrection)**

The white queen finally submitted to the power of the black queen but at the cost of five pawns and a lot of wasted time. Pallet was now even more serious on the matter since the white king and the knight were already escaping at the edge of the game field. The sadistical grin returned to his face as the pieces were getting along just fine. "Come on you fools. Do I have to do everything!?" he cursed silently under his breath as he moved the stronger pieces together, creating a trap for the white king. "Come on… just a little further and it will all be over"

**(Back inside the palace)**

Loin was pulling Ash by his wrist through a series of hallways and passages through the inner parts of the palace. The place was much bigger than the boy had expected. Forget the bed room, there was a ball room the size of a mansion. If someone had lived here than that guy would've been one spoiled kid. Once they past through that magnificent place, they passed through the servants quarters which was large enough to hold at least half a thousand people living comfortably under one roof. "Please keep up your highness, we're almost there" just when they were about to cross through an intersection, Loin released his grip on Ash and pulled out his quarterstaff. In a fraction of minute, an Ursaring came by and used its claws as its weapon. Loin parried the blow nicely but he was still suffering from the battle against Galyoken. They both came into a tiresome deadlock which was won easily when Loin decided to use his hyper beam attack from his arm (Now that's just cheating!)

The man limped down to the ground, completely exhausted on the whole situation. His quarterstaff broke a twig against the mighty paws of the Ursaring. He threw it away and slowly got on his feet. As he tried to stand up, a sudden pain came across his leg, making it impossible to move. He must've received it when Flygon attacked him a few minutes ago. _"Curses… I can't move in this situation!"_ he screamed in his mind, "It looks like our efforts were for nothing after all… my friends" he said quietly to the night sky as the cloud slowly revealed the beautiful glittering stars above. "I guess… we couldn't change the future… after all" The councilor had finally resigned himself to fate's hand and let the wind take it course through the flow of time. He could hear the sound of Pokemons ranting around the palace hallways and none of them sounded very pleasing. It would only be a matter of time till they discover his location.

Ash was still confused on what was going on. The plot of the event that was going on was kept hidden from him. His mind was telling him to stay put and wait for things to die down, but he was never one to listen to his mind. He only listened to one thing and one thing alone… his heart. In a move that would surprise even the gods up in the mighty heavens, Ash stood up from his sitting position and carried Loin on his back. The councilor was shocked. "Your majesty, what are you doing?!" he yelled out in surprise. Ash gave back his trade mark smile and said, "What do you think I'm doing? I'm helping you up!"

"But… why?"the man said in a very confused manner

"I don't know. I guess you could call it human intuition. I can't stand seeing someone hurt on the ground like that"

The councilor was awestruck. For the first time, the boy actually spoke up to him… and in such a polite manner too. After what he and his companions done to him he was expecting a yell of some kind. But the boy wasn't like that. He loved his friends and his enemies (well at least some of them) He didn't care if they were Pokemon or human. As long as they live, breath and speak like a normal living creature, he could care less on what the consequences are.

"Leave me…" Loin said suddenly breaking the silence. "What?" Ash looked at him confused on what he just said, "Leave me and go to the throne room. I will only slow you down" Ash got annoyed easily by that statement and decided to put some sense into him, "No way! I'm bringing you along weather you like it or not!" he yelled out as he put some extra energy into his arms. "So, which way is it to the throne room?" he asked dumbly.

Loin snickered, "Heh… it's on the third floor through the main stair case. It's the last room in the hallway on the left. It has gold and silver bars, you can't miss it. Now leave me…" Ash refused to listen to that man's rambling. He refused to leave someone behind especially when there are rampaging Pokemons out to get him. He dragged Loin through the stairs and followed his directions exactly like he said. A giant gate stood at the end of the hallway. Its size hovered over Ash like monster. It gave out some sort of bone chilling aura. Ash doesn't really know why he was feeling strange inside his stomach, but for some reason, he could feel that something very important happened in this room. He pushed the large gate but its size and weight was more than he expected. The rusted sockets that made the door spin inwards were so damaged by the elements and the cruelty of time that the rust held it place like a lock.

"Grrrrrr!" even after everything that the boy had been through today, the boy still had the energy to push the door, just to make a small opening for him and Loin to slipped through. Once they were in, Ash closed the door and barricaded it with a chair (yeah right, use a chair to hold off a gate from an army of rampaging Pokemons) "Now what?" the boy asked his wounded 'temporary' companion. Loin was amazed that Ash still had the stamina to stand up and breathe without falling. The two heavy bags hanging down his eyes were a clear state that this boy wasn't going down without a fight.

Loin mustered up his strength to stand up and scanned the room for any Pokemon that might have snuck in. The throne room was large as expected by both of them. Six pillars stood on both sides of the magnificent chair decorated with gold and diamonds, balancing the weight of the room. Torn down banners hung from the wall which would make any tailor sad to see such artistic features go to such good waste. Loin slowly touched the talisman he and his comrades placed a few days ago on each of the pillars. He limped on one leg towards each of them, making sure they were in place and that they would fly off just in case some wind broke through the windows. However… his major concern right now was the large banging coming from the gate. Both he and Ash could hear the roar of thousands of Pokemons crunching through the access wood weakening the door until they could bust it open.

Loin hastened his pace towards the next pillar while Ash continued to put whatever weight he could find to further strengthen the gate. It didn't matter if they were historical artifacts, right now his life was probably on the line. "Ash, quickly! Stand next to me!" he shouted. The boy dropped the table he was going to put on to fortify his position and quickly rushed to his side, "So what now?" he asked worryingly. The man just looked around once more to see if everything was in place, "Don't worry. We'll be out of here in no time"

**(In the Temple of Resurrection)**

Pallet grinned a mother of all grins as he finally placed the last two pieces in the right positions. The moments he placed the two black knights down he said to himself, "Check… mate" he smirked and snarled at them, giggling all the way. Victory… was his at last.

**(Back at the palace throne room)**

The six pillars in the room began to glow in a truly majestic color. Ash could no longer feel the coldness in the air. It was as if he was in a new area far away from Hoenn. He began to see the room slowly changing into some sort of grass land and wheat fields. Just then he could suddenly see…

"Mom?"

**(Pallet Town, Professor Oak's back garden/Palace grounds???)**

After sobbing so hard on Sam's shoulder, Delia decided to take a little walk at the back of the house. She was wearing her usual gardening clothes and her summer vacation hat. It was so peaceful and quiet that even the slightest bit of sound could cause a panic. That nightmare she just had was a terrible one. A boy a few years younger than Ash with white strain hair was laughing manically in her mind. The sound of that laugh sent chills in her bones like a needle through skin. The professor suggested that it was a reaction happening in her brain. He said that she just misses her son so badly that her brain is acting up against her natural abilities. She took it that he was right. He was never wrong before so why should he be now?

The beautiful night sky and cold breezing wind was all she needed to calm herself down. By the time her mind relaxed, the professor came by with a hot cup of coffee to sooth the soul. "Here Delia, its decaf" He then placed a small sized blanket over Delia, "You shouldn't be out at night. You might catch a cold" he gave out his own trade mark smile.

"Thank you professor. I'm sorry about what happened earlier"

"Oh don't worry about it. I handled that kind of situation all the time when you were younger"

"……"

"I know you miss Ash Delia, but I know some how, some where, your son is as safe and sound. **(YEAH RIGHT!!!)** I think by now he's probably just sleeping somewhere in Valmarian city, tired from all the training with his friends. So you see? There's nothing to be worried about"

For the first time in a long while, Delia finally gave out a smile which relieved the professor greatly. "Thank you professor… You always know what to say in times like these" she giggled. The professor blushed brightly but he hid it when he took a sip of his coffee, "You know what… Ash would even think of you as a father when he was younger" Samuel choked on his coffee and saliva and spat everything out like crazy. Did Ash really considered him like that? I mean he always dreamed of having Ash calling him papa when he was still a toddler but hearing that from Delia leaped his heart wayyyy up onto his throat. Before letting the worried mother say anymore, Samuel decided to retire to his bed, "I think… I'll go back to sleep now… the wind is uh… making me feel cold hehehehe" by the time he was out of sight, Delia giggled and nearly broke a laugh at the old man's expression. She always wanted to see how he would react if she said that.

However… her giggle short lived when a familiar voice caught her attention, "Mom?" she quickly turned around, wondering who spoke up, but there was no one. She turned her whole body around and spoke up, "Hello? Is someone there?" she asked the wind.

"Mom… is that you?"

She turned around again but saw no one. "Ash?" she said quietly.

Ash and Loin were seeing two sights at the same time. The first one was the throne room and second one was Pallet town… and Ash's mother. "What's going on?" he asked the man.

"This is a teleportation spell your highness. Please hold on until the spell is complete" he replied in a very serious tone.

The walls began to crumble as the roar of the Pokemons began to grow more violent. When the circle feature around them was glowing, Loin was relieved. _"It looks like our mission here is finally complete"_ those were his thoughts when the spell began working its magic. Ash saw his own mother appearing and disappearing frequently like he was watching a video movie or something. But he could tell that it was real. His mother was calling his name and she looked very worried, "Mom!"

Delia turned her head around and saw Ash in a transparent way along with another man wearing all black. She put her hands in her mouth and gasped. Was this real? Was Ash truly there? Or was it her mind playing tricks on her eyes again? It didn't matter though. She didn't care if it was an illusion or real thing. She just wanted to hold her son in her arms one more time and now was the time. She rushed towards Ash as quickly as she could. She took off her slippers and hastened her pace. The pain of jagged pebbles on the ground didn't bother her one bit. Tears flowed down her eyes and cheeks like two waterfalls interacting with each other. "Ash… Ash!... ASH!!!!"

When Loin saw the boy's mother coming his way, he could feel the the essence of her care and love flowing through his soul like wild fire. He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth in anger as the thought of the Guardian's plan ran through his head. The boy had a wonderful life and if those Guardians had their way, then this boy's life would change drastically for the worst. When he thought that everything was going so well, he was wrong. An explosion occurred. He looked at the main gate but it was not open. He looked at where the blast originated from but the sound of the teleportation spell blocked off his hearing aid.

"You're not getting him!" Loin looked up to the ceiling and saw Rosa riding on her Flygon in a graceful way. "Flygon, use hyper beam!" the Pokemon charged up and fired a powerful attack. However… she did not aim it at them… she instead aimed for the pillars. "NO!!" Loin yelled out, "Guardian, stop this at once!" he pleaded but Rosa didn't listen. She continued destroying the pillars one by one until only one was left.

Delia was getting close to Ash. Getting close enough to touch him and feel his warmth once more. But as she got closer, a great wind envelop, making her fall to the ground silently in pain, "Mom! Are you ok?!" that was it. There's no mistake. That was her son. That was the Ash she truly longed for all these times. She ignored the pain in her ankles and continued to make her way to her boy. She desperately reached out for him but as she got closer, the visions began to fade, "Ash! Ash, come back!" the boy reached out for his mother with all of his might but he was still inside the domain of the palace.

"Darn it! It's now or nothing!" Loin pressed his palm against the center of the ground in the room on where he and Ash stood. There was a great big flash of light coming from his arm but as time went on, the magic that the pillars gave soon died down.

Ash and Delia's hand touched one another. They could feel the warmth of their fingers and the gentleness of their soft hands. He definitely inherited his hands from his mother, because the softness of the touch was unimaginable. For the first time in many long weeks, she was finally holding her son. She could see him smile, his raven colored hair flowing through the wind and those little Zs under his eyes. The boy's cheeks emanated some of its baby fats which she always loved to hold and sometime even considered it to be cute. They felt one another for about two seconds until Ash slowly vanishes through the air, "Ash?! Ash no!" she begged her son to stay just a little longer. She cried out to him but he could not see the tears in her eyes. The woman ran faster and faster through the empty plains as Ash became more and more transparent. "Mom!" the boy yelled out. She reached out to feel his hand once more but this time, it was only going through, like she was chasing a ghost. When a bright golden light flashed in her visions, Delia fell again on her knees. She looked up to see Ash but when he eyes finally focused… there was nothing. And so… with the boy gone, she did the only logical thing a mother would do.

She cried…

Ash could no longer see his mother. He savor the moment when his hand touched hers but the sight quickly vanished when Loin finally used what's left of his magical energies to teleport him and the boy out of there. Rosa grabbed Ash's hand for a bright mere second. She gave upon his eyes with tears running down her cheeks. "Your majesty… I've come for you!" she tried to pull the boy out of the circle but Loin wasn't about to let that happen. When the spell was activated he pushed Rosa away with what little strength he had left. By the time she touched the ground… they were gone.

A great big flash of light emanated from the throne room blinding anyone who could see with its magical energies. The magic circle was destroyed… and only an empty room was left in its wake.

"No…" the girl said softly as she stood up from her position. "NOOOOOO!!!" she slammed her fist to the ground making a small earth quake. "No no no no no no no no NO! ARGGGG!!!!" with each word she spoke, she would slam the ground again and again until she would reach the cores of the earth. Chaucer was close by and he could see her dilemma more than anyone. Rosa was now making a crater in the throne room burying herself in a never ending wave of hatred and guilt. After all the anger was let out through her arms, the girl pressed her face onto the broken floor and let the tears drain into the ground. Her cries were followed by weak sobs and sad words that were perhaps intelligible.

**(At the Temple of Resurrection)**

"NO!" Pallet slammed the chess board onto the wall breaking it into pieces, making it irreparable for anyone. The sight of his grin vanished as he stormed out of his room and smashed whatever was in his way. When he moved in several pieces onto the right blocked, he was sure that he had it check mate. But when the white knight made a move, it turned out to be… a stale mate. Pallet was obviously angry about the situation and decided to throw his anger to any objects he could find.

**(Somewhere in Valmarian city)**

Gary couldn't sleep. He had some sort of ominous feeling that something big just happened. And he was rarely wrong about these predictions. His Umbreon was sleeping next to his bed in the Pokemon center. Far off in the distance, Gary could see a bright golden light churning around the Hoenn region. He thought that it was just some sort of party going on so he decided to go back to sleep.

**(Somewhere in the forest)**

"Wake up…" said a voice, "Wake up your highness!" Ash slowly opened up his eyes to the world of the living and slowly saw who was speaking to him. "Your majesty, you're awake!" it was Loin who was speaking. "Five more minutes mom…" just when he said those words the flow of memories flooded his brain non stop. He remembered just what happened a few minutes ago and got up to scan the room. It was then he realized that he was no longer inside the palace throne room. Instead, he was now in the forest of where this whole mess started. "Thank goodness you're awake! I thought I'd lost you" a great worry and burden lifted from his shoulders as Ash rose from the ground with a defining yawn.

"Huh? Where am I?" Ash took a look at his surroundings and noticed that he was no longer in the throne room

"We're at the outskirts of the palace grounds. Unfortunately the spell was interrupted before it had a chance to fully transport us to the desired location. I had no other choice but to use the spell to go as far we can away from the premises"

For the first time in many long months, Loin gave out a smile to the boy. It was a soft, caring and gentle smile. One that you won't be seeing very often in this world. Once that he knew that Ash was safe, he made his way back to a tree stump to rest for whatever challenges ahead. Ash could see the obvious flinch of his leg when he saw the bleeding wound near his knee, "Hey, you're hurt!"

"Oh it's nothing. I've had much worst, trust me" Loin protested but Ash wouldn't listen to any of it. He ordered the man to sit down and relax while he cleaned up the wound with some alcohol. The man winched in pain as he never had modern time treatment before. Especially from… HIM.

After washing the blood away with some alcohol and bandaging it completely, Ash wiped off the sweat on his head and check if he made any mistake. "There, that should do it" Loin was amazed. It took only about two minutes until he couldn't feel the pain anymore. Although it was slower than the healing process he used to do million of years ago, it was still amazing that the boy knew his own basic survival skills. He moved his ankles around to see if it was still ok. "Hmm… the pain is gone" he said out. Ash just smiled and took out the half empty bag of chips from his back pack. _"So this is where Richie hid the last pack"_ he thought. The mere mention of his friends name in his head made him worry constantly about them rather than himself.

"Here… have some" he offered some chips to Loin with a bright smile on his face. The man hesitated at first but the sound of his growling stomach was embarrassing so he took some and ate it. For the first time in two million years, he was actually eating something to fill up his stomach. "It's…… delicious" Ash smiled back in reply.

"We should probably get out of here. Those Pokemons might try and find us"

"I doubt it your majesty. Right now they're probably scrambling around the palace like a bunch of ants that just lost their queen. It will take them a long time to reorganize properly"

"So… why are they after you anyway?"

"(stunned) After me? Oh no your majesty… they're after you"

"Stop calling me that! Why do you guys keep calling me your majesty? The name's Ash! Ash Ketchum and I'm from Pallet town!"

"(scratches the back of his head) Oh yeah… sorry about that… Ash"

"But wait… did you say that they were after me?"

"You mean all this time in the palace, you didn't notice?" Loin said in disbelief \

"Nope. I thought they were just after you"

_"You've got to be kidding me! This kid doesn't even have a clue what was going on in the palace?!"_ Loin gave out a weak laugh "Well… I guess you shouldn't worry too much now. They won't be able to detect us as long as we don't do anything hasty. We should get some rest while we can your highness"

"Why are you calling me that?!"

"You mean…… you don't know? (Ash looked confused) I'm not surprised. This night must be very confusing for you"

"You don't know the half of it"

"Well then… I guess I should first introduce myself"

The white haired man gently removed his gauntlets and bowed to Ash on his knees, "I am Loin… the last remaining member of the high council of the empire. I have waited long and hard for your return" Ash looked at him now even more confused than before, "Aheh… I guess I'm not making much sense. But anyway your ma--- Ash. My name is Loin and please understand that what I say to you… is only the truth" Ash nodded in reply, "But first… I wish to confirm something before I continue" he walked to Ash and took his right arm. He removed the arm length glove and stared in amazement, the tattoos that almost resembled his. The man sighed, "I knew it. My theory was correct after all"

"Do you know something about this?" the boy asked.

"Tell me Ash… how long have you had this mark?" he ignored his question and made his own.

"About two months I guess. Why?"

"Longer than I thought…… This is the mark of the elders. Tell me, have you experienced anything unusual with this arm"

Ash went through explaining the whole thing to Loin. He told him about all the powers but left his visions and DA off the topic. After he finished Loin sighed. "I'm amazed Ash Ketchum. Mostly youngsters like you wouldn't be able to use the power of the arm unless you turned 20"

"The power? What do you mean?"

The man sighed as he knew this was gonna be one long story to tell this boy, "Tell me Ash…" he begun, "What do you know about… the Pokemon king?" Ash was a little dumb founded. Why was Loin asking him about a fairy tale, "Umm… not much? I never heard a lot about the story so I don't really know. But what does that have to do with this?"

"A whole lot Ash… a whole lot" he turned back towards the tree stump and sat down. He drank what was left of his canteen and coughed a few times before beginning, "Ash… what I'm about to tell you will perhaps be the most farfetched story you will ever come across in your life. But I will let you know that every word I say is true" Ash sat down on the soft snow next to him and listened intently, "You, Ash Ketchum… you are the new Pokemon king…" the boy gave out a 'what' face, "Well… not exactly you, but what's in you at least"

"Ok, now you're just making no sense" Ash interrupted him. It was hard to explain the whole situation in just one go.

"Well…" he sighed, "Tell me something. Has anything strange been happening lately? Have you not noticed the Pokemons acting strangely towards you?" Ash thought for a moment. He was planning to deny until some thoughts hit him in the head. There was that incident in Cerulean gym where a Gyrados came out but that little detail was sketchy. Then there was the Water Pokemons that came to aid him when he was on board the S.S Notilus. Again, that situation was also sketchy. Another minor incident when several Chanceies lowered their heads in respect. The last one he could think of was when Norman's Slaking bowing his head in fear. "Well… there's been some… but I…"

"Then that is all the proof I need" he cut the boy off, "Listen to me your high--- Ash. (sigh) I can't explain this here. It would much better if I showed you instead" he scanned around the woods as if he was searching something, "Aha! Over there!" he pointed to a small parch of trees. The harshness of time seemed to have taken its roots on a particular structure, hiding it from the naked eye. Only those with keen sense of perception could possibly penetrate the camouflage and see what lay beneath the woods. Ash helped Loin up on his feet by carrying one of his arms on his back. The land around the hole they were supposed to crawl in were dark, meaning that this placed was once a burning forest. They walked for about five minutes, dodging away any suspicious acts before crawling in the small hole.

The room they were in was dark… no wait… it wasn't dark… it was pitched black! Anyone who comes in here would already believe that they were blind but Loin digressed. He raised up his arms and shortened his sleeves so that they wouldn't get burned when he called up a fire ball onto his hand. Once the room illuminated with his act, Ash could only say one thing in his head… "Whoa!"

Once the darkness was chased away by the sudden urge of light, the room finally showed out its true colors. The whole place was an artistical master piece. Every inch of the room was carefully calculated and the stones looked as if they had not been touched by the aging of time. The painting and tapestries looked so surreal, like everything here was made just yesterday. He wandered through the giant cave-like structure in awe so badly that he didn't see the wall that was in front of him. BANG! "Ouch… my face" Loin lighted up one of the abandoned torches in the room and extinguish the magical fire in his hand. He then helped Ash up back on his feet before finally explaining where they were.

"Come on Ash. We're almost there" he led our young hero again through the small ruined tunnel. There was some ai blowing through the other side but he still couldn't see anything but the fire on Loin's torch. The pass was narrow so the only thing he could see was Loin's back and even with that, it wasn't exactly bright. They walked for about a minute and a half until the white haired councilor stopped making Ash bump into him, "Hey, why did you stop?" he asked while rubbing his aching nose. He did not get a response from him, "Hey, are you ok? Hello? Helloooo?" he patted his back to get his attention but so far nothing worked. Annoyed by being ignored, he decided to push him a little harder, but before he could do that Loin spoke up, "Welcome home… your majesty" Loin shifted side ways to reveal the path in front of him. If it weren't for the marks he had on his cheeks Ash would know that the man had been crying just a second ago. The moment his eyes shifted to the open field before him, his heart gapped up to his lunges nearly coming out of his mouth.

An ancient city hidden behind a series of mountains laid on the wide open field before him. Buildings that were made of wood and stone were torn down leaving only a few scraps of rubble in its wake. The open plain that was once lush and green were now forever scorn by the fire that purged it. There were many more things that were left to be described but Ash wasn't able to name them all. Instead, he turned to Loin, the man who looked like he had the answers. Ash tried to take a closer look at the city but the councilor stopped him and shook his head in a gesture than he cannot go, "I'm sorry Ash, but I cannot allow you to go in the city" his tone was blunt and serious.

"Why not?" he asked. The man wanted to explain but instead he showed him the reason. He took a stone from the ground and tossed it into the outskirts of the entrance. Before the stone could even reach the ground, it burned up so fast that it landed… it became nothing but ashes. "That's why…" he said jokingly. "The land around here is affected by an incredible power. It's the same reason why nothing lives here anymore. There are many cities like this scattered all around the world and all are affected by the same power. It was meant to be used as a defense system against invaders…… but as fate sought its power… the inhabitors were taken by the very same power that was supposed to protect them"

"So… what happened here?"

"The king happened. I was such a fool to listen to him! Why did I listen to that traitor in the first place!? WHY?!"

"Loin!"

The man was brought back to his normal self, "Huh? Oh… sorry Ash. I was… lost in thought"

"Tell me Loin… what really happened here?"

"(sigh) A war happened Ash. But it's not your typical war. It was a war… between humans and Pokemons"

"Humans and Pokemons?"

"That's right… it was a war so great and terrifying that no one lived to tell the tale" Loin pointed his torch onto the tapestries on the wall of the cave. "This tapestry was carved by Pokemons long ago to tell us of what happened here"

Ash listened carefully to every word Loin was going to say and tried NOT to interrupt him when he was speaking. The man pointed to the first set of tapestries. There was a picture of several humans and Pokemons bowing their heads down to a single figure with light shining in the background, "This picture here tells of a time when humans and Pokemons used to live together under one roof. They were all under the influence of the great Pokemon king, Hsa" he then turned to the next picture which seemed livelier than the last one. "The two races were joined together hand in hand, settling their differences aside to bring the world into a new age of peace" he again turned to another wall carving which kept getting better and better. This one had the picture of crops growing under the sun and Pokemons of different races helping humans with everyday chores. "As time grew older, the bonds between our two worlds strengthened even more. Our ties with nature were so strong that we could actually communicate with Pokemons. There were even marriages between them as well!"

As Loin rant on and on about the ancient history, he finally came to tapestry that was near the edge of the entrance. This was where the pictures began to change drastically. It showed the picture of withering crops and dead trees covering the horizon. The humans and Pokemons looked at each other but now their faces were replaced with a more sinisting anger and hatred. "And suddenly…… on one faithful harvest day… the crops began to wither. No one knew why the fruits of the land were all rotten and mold, but if it should continue, then the empire would soon be facing starvation" the next batch showed the picture of Pokemons and humans talking to each other, "The two races began to due whatever what was left in their powers to stop the plague from spreading further, but nothing seemed to be able to stop it"

As he moved on to the next set of tapestries, his heart began to sink. The picture showed the two races now openly yelling at each other, "As the food supply of the empire continued to dwindle, the Pokemons and humans began blaming each other for their misfortune. They began to throw stones at each other, cursing their names and even provoking them into a fight" the flames went on the next one, "The king of all Pokemons and humans tried to calm his people with his words…… but of course… that was only a delaying strategy"

Loin stopped for a moment to gather his breath. The last and final set of wall carvings would require all of his strength just to explain. It was somehow emotionally disturbing to him.

The moment the flames reflected upon its pictures… Ash gasped. The tapestry showed the carvings of Pokemons and humans fighting with each other. With his eyes locked onto the wall… visions of that particular memory flowed back to him like wild fire. He could see and hear the screams ringing in his head. The heat of the flames burning in his skin and the roar of battle clashing in his ear. Ash placed his hand on his ear hoping that the sound would stop, but sadly, it just became louder and louder until Loin spoke up.

"At the end of the result… a war broke out between the two races. Conflict and hatred spread throughout the empire. Even small families fight for small scraps of food that lay on the floor. The Pokemons held the obvious advantage due to their natural talents……… but that changed almost immediately when the humans developed…… the Pokeballs" he inhaled, "The war waged on… and in such a short time… many lives were lost… leaving a great scar across the empire" when he finally moved to the last set… his heart sank deeper than the bottom of the ocean. At the end of the tapestry…… there was nothing…… it was left blank, which could only mean that the person who carved this great masterpiece… never got to finish his work. But that didn't mean there wasn't any witness… "In an attempt to stop the war from spreading throughout the world… the king of the empire… erased… everything…"

**(Back in the Temple of Resurrection)**

Rosa literally kicked the door of the temple so hard that it broke off from its sockets. Pallet ignored her unintelligible ranting and continued to work several old scrolls as the furious girl head into her room in anger. The other three Guardians followed in but with much less emotion than Rosa. Right now, they were more afraid of her than the Groudon that they were able to capture.

"So… you failed…" Pallet said with anger hidden between the words. Chuacer rubbed the back of his head and sighed, "Yeah… the councilors beat us to him"

"They used a powerful teleportation spell" Hagard explained, "We were able to disrupt them, but we cannot trace their location. But if my guess should be correct… they should still be somewhere nearby"

"When you say 'nearby', do you mean the tree next door or the next continent?" Chaucer asked sarcastically

"Quiet! Both of you!" Sha-hear ordered his companions before he turned his attention to the boy, "What are your orders Pallet?"

The boy simply scowled before speaking, "Well… we can't stay in this temple any longer. We'll move our operations to the island fortress of Gregro. I have a good feeling that we will encounter them there"

Sha-hear nodded and then turned to his companions, "Understood… you heard him you two. Go pack up. We're moving"

Chaucer nodded before speaking to his partner, "Yes sir………… Hagard…… you go get Rosa"

"Oh I uh…… you do the honors" Hagard gave out a sweat drop

"No please, after you"

Sha-hear got annoyed and yelled at them, "Well one of you will have to do it!"

"If you're so tough, why don't you do it!?"

Hagard agreed, "Yes… the leader always looks after his own pack"

Sha-hear was taken back and immediately waved his hands off, "Wait a minute! I…" but then Rosa came by and yelled at all of the,m "ENOUGH!! I can hear you guys all across the forest!"

The others were stunned to see the girl in question starring straight at them with a killer intent so strong that it would have them shaking in their boots. Pallet still had his calm and collected face but it was slowly slipping as he too was also getting a little annoyed by his companion's child like behavior.

**(Back in the ruins of the ancient city)**

"So now… Ash Ketchum… I have given you the history of my people. All of this land… belongs to you" Loin's heart was lightened as he finally left the ruins of his past.

"It's all great… but what does it have to do with me?" Ash asked still oblivious to the world around him. The man just laughed. "Hahahaha… After all that explaination, you still don't understand? Ash… you are the king of Pokemon reborn!"

…

…

…

"WHAT!?"

"It is true Ash! In a great sense of coincidence, the king had chosen you to be his host!"

"His host?"

"Allow me to show you…" Loin waved his hand in a circular motion, casting some sort of spell. In an instant, a single soul lifted from Ash's body projecting itself in a human figure. Ash could see it clearly as the sun in his eyes. He could see himself, but slightly different. The image projecting in front of him was…… well… him! The only difference was the color of the hair, the tattoos and the clothing. His was more of royalty rather than his slagged pants and t-shirt. Once he saw his face, several things became clear. But right now, he had more questions to ask.

"So… you're saying that I'm him?"

"No Ash… you are him… yet you are not him. His soul resides in you, making you a host for his own personal use. Even now, he sleeps in you… waiting for the right moment to resurface"

"So… the White Bandits are after… him… not me"

"No Ash… if they want him… they will have to take you as well"

"Who are they anyway?" Ash was now getting a little impatient with the slow yet steady answers.

"They are the Guardians… members of the royal guards of the imperial palace. They are Pokemons in human form, so they could disguise themselves from other. They have sworn an oath to bring back the fallen empire but to do so they would require… him"

"Him? For what?"

The man looked at the boy with a dead serious gaze. His words would perhaps shake the very foundation of the world, "To begin the war…"

"War?!"

"In order to bring the peace between humans and Pokemons, the king decided to lock away all the hatred and memories of the Pokemons into a single box. A box that only he alone… may open. The Guardians are searching the globe endlessly to find him and when they do… they would unleashed upon the world… an endless cycle of chaos" Loin looked back to see the shock on the boy's face, "I see that you now understand your position" he cancelled his image projection spell the moment he heard some Fearows gawking near the edge of the ruin. He knew there wasn't much time left until the Guardians send out a search party for them. With no more time to explain he approach Ash hoping to give him one final word of caution, "Ash… listen to me… no matter what happens, do not let them capture you. The fate of the empire… no… the world hangs on your shoulders!"

"But Loin… I'm just a kid, what can I do?"

"A kid?" Loin said mockingly, "I've been watching your progress over the years when I was but an essence in the air Ash. Did being a kid stop you from doing what is right? Did being a kid stop you from helping Lugia stop the titans of water, fire and lightning? (see Pokemon movie 2000, the power of one) Did it stop you from fighting the Unowns even against great odds? (see Pokemon movie power of the unown) Did it stop you from saving the northern lands from the powers of Jirachi? (see Pokemon movie Jirachi Wish Maker) Did it stop you from saving the world from the wrath of the Rayquasa and Deoxys? (see Pokemon movie Destiny Deoxys) No Ash! Your courage had proven its worth time and time again and his has never failed you… ever"

Ash recuperated from his barrage of praise and decided to finally speak up, "But why now?"

"Because the time is right!" Loin knelt down on his knee and held the boy's shoulders, "Every two thousand years the planet aligns itself with each other causing unnatural calamity. These Guardians have waited two million years for you to appear and they will stop at nothing to get what they want!"

"Then what should I do?"

"That is simple. You are not to approach the Guardians or and of their chosens in any way. Now that the soul has chosen you as its host, they have become more aggressive"

"Chosens?" the boy asked bluntly

"Servants of the Guardians. They usually come in a group of three or more. I believe you have already encountered some of them"

"That won't be a problem. I have my friends to---"

"NO!" Loin cut him off with a defining yell. He tightened the grip on his shoulders and lowered his voice so that he wouldn't scare him away, "My lord, I'm afraid you cannot bring others into this matter"

Ash looked a bit confused, "Why not?"

"If you are to bring your friends and love ones to this conflict they will become targets for the Guardians. I'm sorry to say this your majesty, but this is a path which you must walk alone" the man pleaded for him to listen and heck, he was ready to get on his hand and kiss the boy's feet just to get him to listen. "Sire… if you won't listen to me then listen to yourself…… would you truly risk bringing your friends into such danger?"

Ash recalled the memories of what happened a few hours ago when May was still by his side. He remembered the danger he was in and if he did not send her away with Snorelax then he would be in a very tight situation. He didn't care about his own safety… he cared more about the safety of others than his own life.

Just as his mind wandered off to the past, a sudden rumble came from the surface. A thousand foot steps could be heard banging against the ground like an army marching from one area to the next. Loin made sure that the tremble stopped before deciding to take a peek through a small hole. "It looks like they pass through already" he confirmed it with a slight bit of relief.

"Forgive me sire, but we must part ways from here. Here, these are your Pokeballs correct? (hands Ash his Pokebelt)"

He then began making his way towards the exit, but before his feet could feel the heat of the light, he stopped.

"Wait! Before you leave… tell me… why are you doing this?"

The man looked back to the boy giving out a confused glance.

"Is helping mankind not good enough?"

"No…"

"Teh… I guess I can't hide anything from you after all…… You remember that there was a war between humans and Pokemons yes? (nod) Well…… you're looking at the man who started it"

Shock

That one word says it all. The war that claimed the lives of thousands was all his fault… this man's fault. "But… I thought you said that war happened two million years ago"

"Surprise? I thought so… to tell you the truth my king, I'm actually two million and twenty six years old. I have live just as long as the war has been waged"

"But then… I thought you said that it ended---"

"Ended?" he cut him off, "I never said that the war ended my king. It was merely… postponed for the better" he took a few paces towards him. Ash was now a little frightened of the man now. He didn't know if he should trust him or deny him of everything he just said. If he was the one who started the war, what would persuade him to think that he would want to end it?

Loin noticed the slight hint of distrust brewing onto Ash's face and it hurt him badly. That face, that frown of raging anger was so similar to the king's that he could barely tell the difference. In an attempt to earn some trust to him, the man got onto his knees and bowed. "My liege… if you do not trust me then trust in my words…… I know I have lied to you in the past… but that is why I am here… to save… to redeem myself! I am here not to seek your forgiveness but to try to undo what I have set in motion. I know what I speak maybe hard to swallow, but it is all I have………"

A respectable silence went by. It was odd yet it was definitely needed at a time like this. A moment of peace was all that they needed for them to think.

"Now you must leave Ash… your friends are waiting for you" Ash looked at where he was pointing. In a small part of the woods, he could see Brock, Drew, Dawn and… Misty?!

"Misty? Brock?" he walked up to the ledge and waved at his friends, "Hey guys, over here!" the gang quickly recognized his voice and head towards his direction. Ash turned around to see Loin, but the man was now moving through the shadows. "Remember Ash… this is a path which you… must walk alone. Oh… and one more thing. Do not attempt to use your powers, because the Guardians will surely find you" and with those final words… the man vanished into the shadows like a true ninja.

Ash still couldn't believe what was happening. When he left home in Kanto he was just supposed to head for Valmarian city and compete in the tournament, but now the fate of an entire war perhaps the fate of the world was once again resting on his shoulders. Once his friends were in range he quickly ran towards them to make his usual greetings.

"Ash! We've been looking all over for you! Where have you been?" Brock said with relief to see the boy safe and sound

Ash apologized and said quietly, "Oh well… I was just… getting some firewood and I kinda got lost hehehehe" _"And not to mention I have the soul of a king inside of me"_

"Well at least everyone's alright. By the way. Would you mind explaining your Snorelax and how it found May?"

"May?" Ash had to make an excuse quick or risk suspicion, "Oh yeah! I found her when I was out gathering firewood. She was unconscious for a moment so I sent Snorelax back to him"

That pathetic sentence of an excuse was so lame that even a child could see through it. But the gang didn't mind. If the boy wanted to hide something they would respect his privacy…… for now.

But Misty had another thing in mind, "(WHAM!) Well I hope your happy mister. We just ran for our lives from that cave a few minutes ago while you were taking a morning stroll!"

"Hey, what was that for? Huh? Misty? (a short pause) Misty, you're ok!" all the anger that was building up immediately vanished as Ash realized who it was. Unable to control himself, Ash lunge himself to her and hugged to orange haired girl tighter than your average screw.

All the girls in the gang (except May who was still unconscious) were giving out a silent threat in their mind as they watched the love of their life hugging the red head. "Hey get off me Ash! Get off!" Misty yelled out while prying the boy off her neck. By the time she was able to get his hands off of her, the boy's fatigued finally kicked in! His brain went into an immediate shutdown which caused him to into a quick sleep. Can anyone truly blame him? The gang didn't know that he was chased by a pack of Pokemons vying for his power. They didn't know about the great chase and the strange danger that he was in a few hours ago.

"Looks like he's pooped" Richie stated

"And I thought I was the lazy one" Drew smiled

They gang laughed and decided to find a nice suitable place to start up another camp. Their quest to reach the city of Valmarian… continues!


	30. Another One In The Gang

**Chapter 30: Another One In The Gang**

After that bizarre incident in the forest the gang finally continued their journey towards their ultimate goal in Valmarian city. Brock and the others had begun bombarding Ash with questions beyond his capacity to answer. He never told them about the power in his arms or where he had been in the past few hours. His only excuse was that he was out getting food and firewood but everyone could see that he was lying. That boy wouldn't be able to lie his way out even if it cost him his life. I guess that's what makes him an honest person.

Instead of prying more information out of the boy the gang decided to drop it. If he wanted to tell them, Ash would tell them when he feels that he needed to tell them. But I doubt that he would. He cares too much for his friends. Heck he would even quit the league if it would save his friend's life if need be.

"Hmmm…" May placed her hand on her chin as she thought heavily in her mind. Ash became worried and decided to see why she was looking so upset, "Hey May, what's wrong?" he asked with his usual smile. The girl looked back but kept thinking heavily, "I'm not sure. I feel like I'm forgetting something"

"Well you were asleep for a very long time. Though not as long as Misty. I guess the trauma must've made you forget something" said Brock

"I guess so, but I feel like I'm forgetting something… something really important. I was supposed to tell Ash something but I just can't remember what (Mewtwo's message)"

Ash didn't really know what she was trying to remember but then he decided to let her leave it, "Don't worry. Maybe if you ate something, it might just come back to you. Its probably nothing important" _"I guess that psychic attack really wiped off her memory"_

"Yeah, I guess your right"

"Huh? Hey guys look!" Richie said pointing to at the truck coming their way, "Maybe we can ask for a ride to Slateport city!"

Tracey thought for a moment and agreed, "It could be worth a shot"

The gang began waving their hands to get the attention of the driver. They did everything they could to get the truck to stop and by luck, the vehicle began slowing down. Duplica and Dawn congratulated themselves when they thought that they were finally gonna get a quick ride. The driver lowered his window and showed the lower part of his face to the gang. He looked like he was in his mid forties. The paperboy hat covered his hair and eyes and the smoke pipe looked somewhat familiar. He looked like a creepy man but his voice sounded friendly. "Can I help ya fellas?" he asked in a cowboy-sailor accent.

Ash stuttered for awhile but he managed to muster up the courage to speak up, "Umm sorry for asking, but can you drop us at Slateport city sir?" he asked bravely. The man looked at the boy's traveling companions thoroughly to see if any of them were crooks or criminals. But then one boy caught his attention, "You!" he said pointing at Richie. "M… me?" he replied with a little stutter. "Yeah you! Come closer…" Richie reluctantly complied and slowly approached the man. A slight hint of fear was visible in his face but Richie tried his best to suppress it. The man took a good look at the boy for about a minute before he gave out a wide smile, "Well I'll be kissing my grandma's foot! Look what the cat dragged in. How ya doing son?" Richie's face brightened up as he looked closer to the driver's face.

"DAD?" he yelled out.

The man removed his hat and smoke pipe and grinned back at his son. "Hey there my boy! I never thought I'd see you in a place like this!"

Brock and Misty came by to give their greetings as well. Brock went first, "Hey Arthur, are you eating well?"

Arthur quickly recognized the young cooking master boy, "Oh Brock, nice to see you too. I've been eating very well. I even made some meals of my own. You should try them out sometime!"

"Heh, I'd be happy to Arthur"

"And this young lady must be little ol'e Misty. How ya doing Ms.?"

The red head smiled back in return, "I'm fine and it's good to see you too Arthur. But how did you get here?"

"I rode a ferry here. I had to deliver this shipment of clams myself. This truck is a rental hehehe" the four of them let out a small laugh, "So, are you gonna introduce me to your friends over there?" he pointed out to the rest of the gang who were clearly wondering who was their new found friend.

Richie introduced them, "Oh right. Arthur, I'd like to meet some of my friends. He's Tracey, professor Oak's assistant. Over there is Todd, he's a photographer. And here is Anabel, a member of the Kanto Battle Frontier. From left to right is Dawn, a trainer from Shinou, Duplica, the ace duplicator from Johto, May and Max Maple from Petalburg city, they're Pokemon coordinator and Drew, also a Pokemon coordinator. They're all traveling to Valmarian city. Everyone, I like you to meet Arthur my dad" each member gave out a respectable greeting to him and smiled.

"Nice to meet ya'll. Now I hear you guys are heading for Slateport city? (nods) Well it's a bit out of the way but I think I can make a little detour. Hop in!" the gang cheered and quickly boarded the truck. But when they got in… they were already regretting their decision. "Hope you guys can hold your breath. Its gonna be an hour trip to the city hehehe!" the smell of the clams were absolutely horrid. Pikachu and the others plugged in their nose and breathed through their mouth the whole way. The clams looked like they were just taken out of the ocean and placed in the truck thus making them very stinky. The truck made a U-turn on the opening plowing away all the snow in the process. It looks like they were gonna be having a quick trip to their destination after all, "I know, why don't we have a little sing along? I brought some great music for a long road hehehe"……… the gang sighed when the first song played on the radio. It was an old classic cowboy square dance song. Richie blushed with embarrassment as his father began to sing along as well. It was a good thing that he was the only one in the front row, because if his friends were with him, he would be so crushed.

It looks like this trip might just be longer than they thought.

**(In the Fortress of Gregro)**

Pallet and the other Guardians were settling into their new base of operation. The Pokemons were bringing in supplies and provisions into the storeroom while the stronger ones repair the broken part of the structure hoping to get this place back into its natural impenetrable state. Sha-hear and Hagard were coordinating them efficiently and effectively but as they went on, it began to become a little boring to say the least. The same questions were asked over and over again and again probably a hundred times that they were just about to pull their hair out. "Where do we put these?" or "Where is this room" and "Do we do this in this order or that order?" it was really getting on their nerves.

"How long do we have to do this Sha-hear?" Hagard whined as he placed the last set of equipments down on a corner. It had already been more than three hours since they finally settled in and they have been doing nothing but helping in with the manual labor.

"As long as it takes until Pallet decides to give out another order. Besides, we have no idea where the councilor had taken the king" Sha-hear replied coldly as he dropped the basket onto the ground, "To tell you the truth, I'm getting bored myself. We will wait until the king uses his powers again. Until then… we help out"

Hagard sighed, "Well that was unexpected from someone like you" the two of them gave out a childish laugh. Even though they look like two young teens, their way of speaking truly brings out the adulthood in them. "Hehehehe Very true my friend… very true" Sha-hear replied.

As the two of them picked up their baskets, Chaucer came dropped by from the roof like he was looking for something or someone. "Oh it's you Chaucer. What do you want now?" Sha-hear asked his companion. The boy hesitated to say it but eventually he spoke up, "I'm looking for Rosa. She wasn't on the boat when we arrived" Hagard and Sha-hear looked at each other as they thought of where the girl could be at this moment.

Oh no…

**(Valmarian city) (1 month before the competition) (Gary's suite)**

"Well?" Gary asked his female subordinate, Emma about her report on the Pokemon center. "Same… no Ketchum… yet" her report was brief and simple. The boy just nodded and dismissed her from his room. After being in the city for a long time, Gary had managed to get himself a lot of info of his more challenging opponents. They were all good and posses acceptable skills for his standards and they've even begun forming gangs of their own. But probably 75 of the reason is because they wanted to beat Gary's gang. Steve suddenly came by to give him the latest report on each of the tougher groups.

"Oh… what do you want now Steve?"

The chubby man waved off his hand, "Hey boss. I've been doing some snooping around the city and it looks like we're not the only gang in the game"

"I've beaten many gangs in this city Steve, but tell me what you've found"

"Well checking with all of their usual standards. I was able to get four gangs in the list that would probably be our toughest obstacles"

The Report:

The first would the Voltegoths. A gang of electric Pokemon users. Their group leader possessed a powerful Raichu which proved to be efficient in battle. The only weird thing about them was that they were all music rockers. They have the hairstyle and the guitars to prove it too.

Another gang to worry about would be the Bicento Brothers. A gang of four… two of them are brothers and the other two are cousins. They specialize **in and only** flying types because their family came from a generation of pilots. (Gary smirked as they kinda remind him of Jaques but the blond man could easily take them on without much effort) Still… they have proven to be quite an effective team when they work together.

The third gang would be the Bail Outs. A gang that probably consist about a hundred and fifty trainers. The strongest in the ranks called themselves the Elite Five because they are the strongest within the group. Though the ability to posses such a large number of trainers are unknown their lower minions consist mostly of rookies and wanabes. However, they are not to be underestimated.

The last and most threatening gang would probably be the Loners. Not much is known about them but the leader of the group was an even match of Gary Though their battle was a tie it was also somewhat unnerving. The gang only consisted of two trainers. The boss, and her partner (yes, the boss is a girl)

Gary tried to get an even score between him and the girl but no matter what kind of trick he tries to conjure up the girl always manages to pull some crazy bizarre stunt to even up the odds. She was a girl version of Ash which proved to be a good thing for Gary. If he could get the feeling of battling Ash then he would train himself more until the day they finally meet.

After finishing with the report, Steve showed himself the way out.

Gary meditated under the pressure of his breath. But it was then cut short when there was a sudden change in the air.

"Any new challenges?" he didn't even look back when asked the ex-boss of the gang who was standing idly on the window. Havic just grinned back as he turned to gaze the sun above with his shades, "Only two. It looks like the Bail Out goons want to settle a score with us hehehe"

Gary just laid down on his bed and shrugged, "Deal with it"

"Sure thing… boss" in an instant, Havic dropped himself off the window and head towards the battle arena. Where a small group of his opponents lie and wait for him.

"Where's Gary?" asked the ring leader of the group. Havic just gave out a mother of all grins showing his teeth and side fangs to strike fear into his enemies. "He's busy right now. He sent me to deal with you peons hehehehe" he fluttered his brown leather jacket and grinned again. Just when the leader of the group was about to bring out his Pokemon, Havic removed his shades and glared back at them with such a killer intent that it would left them peeing in their undies. "Now… let's get wild…"

**(Back with our heroes along the road)**

"Oh grab your partner with piggyback wrist, swing around with your hand as a fist woooweee!" Arthur was practically making no sense with his country music. Instead of plugging their nose the gang had to plug their ear just to get rid of that horrid music. Richie on the other hand was used to the smell of clams and his father's rambling but still it was still terrible no matter how many times he heard it. "Come on son, why don't ya sing along?" he pat Richie's shoulders but the boy just shook his head in response. The drive took about half an hour till they finally came across an impassable terrain. "Uh o…" was all the expression Arthur could conjure.

The gang looked up to see what was blocking their path. A crevice laid before them, there was supposed to be a sturdy looking bridge in the area but for some strange reason… it wasn't there anymore. "Did we take a wrong turn dad?" Richie asked his father. The old sea dog scratched his scalp and blew smoke out of his mouth, "I didn't see any turns when we came by. The bridge must've been torn down by the snow storm"

However… there was nothing that would be able to stop this group from continueing on their quest. Brock stepped down from the back of the truck and checked the distance of the gap. He calculated with precise precision for about two minutes before nodding back to everyone. "It's ok Arthur. I think we'll be able to make it from here" he said to the old man. "Onix, I choose you! (Onix appears) Hey buddy, do you mind being a bridge for a few minutes for us to walk? (roar)" in an instant the giant Pokemon reached out to the other side and bit the other end of the gap with its mighty jaws. The gang quickly understood and began walking out of the truck.

"Thanks a lot for the ride Arthur, we really appreciate it" Ash thanked the old sailor

"Hey no prob. You just take care of Richie when he gets to Valmarian city ya hear?"

Richie blushed in embarrassment, "DAD!"

Brock gave out a laugh before realizing, "Hahahaha" _"He really is just like Ash's mom. Over caring and always embarrassing their son. What a coincidence"_

Dawn stepped down from the truck and said, "Well, I guess we'll have to part ways here. And thanks again for the ride sir"

"Always a pleasure to help my son's friends. Now I got to get to Oldale town quick or these clams will go bad hehehehe. Later boys and girls"

With their goodbyes said and done, the gang made their way through the crevice via Onix's back and quickly made to the other side without any problem. Once they were through, they were now officially on the outskirts of Slateport city which was now an hour walk away. Brock put Onix back in his Pokeball and joined the gang.

Along the way half of the gang's stomachs grumbled. Ash would be the first person who would obviously complain, "Oh man… when we get to the city I'm gonna have to find myself a good restaurant and order a triple cheese burger"

"Add spaghetti as a side dish" said Drew

"With extra mushrooms and meat on top" said Tracey

"More cheese…" Ash continued his love for cheese

"Don't forget to put some ketchup and extra seasoning (Pika)" Richie came into their fantasy

"And not to mention some extra pancakes for desert…" said Max.

"Ahhhh……" they said in unison as their fantasy meal was up in their minds. The girls at the back just giggled and sighed at the boys.

"And the only thing that would make that meal perfect is when a pretty girl is eating it with you!" Brock spoke up with a dramatic pose, which was only returned with deathly glares from the girls.

"Excuse me?!" said Duplica, "What is that supposed to mean?"

Misty continued for her, "Yeah, don't we count as pretty girls?"

"You should consider yourself lucky when you have all of us pretty girls eating with you almost every day!" growled May.

Anabel and Dawn tried to calm the rampaging girl from beating the pulp out of Brock but they were having very little effect. "Speaking of food" stated Todd, "How much do we have left Tracey?" the Orange island Pokemon sketcher quickly scanned his backpack for their supplies. "Well… all we have right now would be………" there was a long pause.

"Would be what?" Todd asked

"Yeah Tracey. Just a bag of chips would be ok" said Ash rubbing his stomach

Drew followed next to him and grumbled, "Or even just a slice of bread would be nice"

Tracey gave out a fake smile and turned his bag inside out, "Actually guys…… there's nothing left hehehe"

"WHAT!" the gang said in unison

"You mean we're out of food?!" Max pleaded hoping that Tracey would pull out something from his bag. "Sorry guys but we left all our food during the cave in. I don't have anything in my bag at all. What about you Todd?"

"Nothing" was his reply. The gang began to panic as the thought of starvation caught their attention. It wasn't long when Richie suddenly spotted an apple tree on top of a steep hill, "Hey guys look! Apples!" the gang cheered and quickly made their way to the tree. In probably two minutes, the entire tree was completely harvested. The gang shared with their Pokemons their food as they too deserve some of the credit but then it became a mistake when Ash called out Snorelax. What remained of their reserve was now completely gone. With their food supply running dangerously low, the gang hastened their pace towards Slateport city to soon fill their stomachs with a warm meal and perhaps their back on a nice comfy bed.

**(In the abandoned temple of Resurrection)**

A single figure walked upon the once crowded temple of the Guardians. He could still feel the intense aura of thousands of Pokemons that resided here a few days ago. Now it had once again been emptied, hopefully one day an archaeologist would find this place and tell the history to the new generations that were yet to come. The last of the remaining councilors walked aimlessly through the hallways as he tried to recall some of the more pleasant memories in his mind. He tried to remember the laughs and the peaceful echoes that once sang through this magnificent structure but for some reason… those laughs would die down only to be replaced with silence.

He opened the chamber where the five relics were placed. He could feel the essence of the crystal and the staff it was placed upon. He could feel the chill of the iron sword that hung upon one of the altars. He could smell the history tainted across the crown that he so unjustfully taken from its owner and he could even feel the odd presence of the Guardians that lingered here during their operations. It would be a matter of time before the war resumed itself. In the past two million years the war had been waged over and over again with no sides claiming victory. But before the week is done… this war will bring out the best… and the worst on both sides. The war will end… but who will win?

Loin tried to shake away the feeling as he remained focus on his primary goals. In an instant, the wind began showing him the way to his objectives. He crisscrossed through stairs and intersections around the temple time and time again but when he finally reached the room…… he let out a sigh of relief.

**(At the gates of Slateport city)**

The gang had finally made it to the city of Slateport. When they walked through the gates, the only thing they were able to think of was food. Ash head for the nearest restaurant with his friends behind him and ordered a feast. Caroline and Norman's credit card finally made its use in times of need. The gang ate and ate again until Ash was forced to order a second course. The other customers glared at them like they were some sort of hungry cannibals who haven't eaten in days. Just by looking at them feasting on their food made them lose their appetite but the manager of the restaurant didn't mind them at all. As long as he got the money he could care less about what the others thought.

Their meal went by uneventful since neither of them wanted to talk with their mouth full. Once lunch was done they decided that it was time to put their Pokemons in the Pokemon center and get a room for the night. They didn't plan on doing anything that day and Ash himself was too tired to even complain about anything right now. They followed their plan and decided to do it.

"Hey nurse Joy, would you mind taking care of our Pokemons?" Dawn asked the receptionist with a yawn at the end. She was holding everyone's Pokeballs and placed them neatly on the tray. Pikachu and Togepi however remained outside of the Pokeballs and decided to sleep with their masters. Ash ordered up individual rooms for everyone. Since Slateport down was a truly developed city, it had more rooms in a hotel to fit a small population of an entire village. Without much movement, the gang split up into individual and slept silently into the day. But our hero still had something to do. Just when he was about to hit the bed, the images of his mother ran through Ash's mind. He immediately lifted himself and forced whatever strength he had to reach the phone booth outside (His Pokedex was out of battery)

The phone rang on the other side and Ash really hoped that someone would pick it soon. Pikachu was staying at his usual spot on his shoulders. He wanted to go to sleep so bad that he already just sleep there. Ash's patience however soon paid off when someone answered, "Hello?" he spoke up to the receiver.

"Ash?" a soft female voice came from the other side. The video screen popped up to reveal a badly tired woman, "Mom? Is that you?" Delia glared at her son with amazement written all over her eyes. Was her mind playing with her again? "Ash… it really is you…" she touched the screen with her hand which Ash did the same. They both could feel each other through the screen. Pikachu also smiled back to see his master's mother (Pikapikachu!) Though they could not hold each other physically they were able to touch each other hearts mentally. If it weren't for the make up the boy would realize that his mother had been crying. She let out a deep heart warming smile to her son but said nothing. No words could possibly describe what she was feeling now. Her heart and mind were relieved of all stress while her soul was release from its unnatural torment.

"Hey mom… how are you doing? I haven't seen you in a while hehehe" Ash tried to cheer up the mood but he failed. Right now he really did miss his mother more than ever.

"I'm fine sweetie. Did you want to talk to the professor? I'll put him on right away"

"No mom" Delia was caught by surprised by her son's words, "Actually… I was wondering if you would want to… uh… talk" Ash never really had a long conversation with his mother before. At least not until he left for his Pokemon journeys. Delia glared back at her boy as they traded their smiles with each other. They talked about random things like what they eat or what they do or even some of Ash's adventures (except for the recent one). Delia then told him about Burno, her new pet Houndoom. She always did want a puppy but then a fully grown Pokemon wasn't bad either.

On the other side of the room, professor Oak eaves drop on their little conversation. After seeing Delia crying on his shoulder and on the field later than night, he decided that it was time she and her son had a little mom and son talk. It felt great to see that smile on her face again.

The two Jennies that were staying with him also had the same reaction. The smile on Delia's face seemed to be more peaceful then they would anticipate. Whenever she smiled, it would seem like the whole world wanted to smile with her. At least that was their though.

**(At the entrance of SlatePort city… again)**

Four unlikely crooks shivered as they walk up the gates of the city. The trip to the town had been hard even for them since their last Meowth balloon was mysteriously stolen from them (read chapter 19: A Family Sticks Together) they had to walk all the way from the forest to the nearest settlement they could find. "We finally made it" said Butch who was abandoned by her partner Cassidy

"I told you we'd make it ahe ahe ahe" shivered Jessie

"Now I'd like a nice hot meal…… and a good place to sleep now thank you" said James as he tried to suppress the cold from his torn shirt

"And a nice hot spa would be nice too" said Meowth

The hugged each other in victory as they successfully made it through the cold weather without dying "We did it! We're actually alive!" they shouted in unison. However… that group hug was cut short when Jessie's eyes spotted something in the distance, "Eh?" she looked closely at the phone booth. Spiky hair, Pokemon league cap, blue jacket and Zs under his eyes. "Hey guys, doesn't that kid look like the twerp we've been chasing around?"

"Hmm you're right Jess, he does look a lot like him" said James along with Butch, "I guess those two must be related or something"

Meowth popped out a vein from his head and scratched their faces,: "You idiots! It is the twerp!"

"But I don't see his Pikachu anywhere" James clarified, "Maybe he's a fan of the twerp and probably just dress like him. I saw many of them in Cerulean city remember?"

"My instinct never failed me before so let's get him already"

"Uh… Meowth"

"What?" Meowth glared at where Jessie was pointing and immediately dropped his jaw

What lay before them was a Pokemon convention being host only this week, and it wasn't just any convention, it was also an Ash Ketchum fan club. There were Pikachus of different size and Ashes as far the eye could possibly see. Team Rocket was indeed very stunned but also very happy for some reason. "Well since we can't find the twerp" Jessie began, "We'll just steal from those who look like them" James continued, "And the boss would probably give us a bonus that's for sure" Butch added but Meowth just sighed. "I guess we'll just have to wait till the real twerp shows up" and with that they began plotting and building a new machine to help them in the process.

**(Back in the phone booth)**

"Really? That's great mom!" Ash had just finished another conversation with his mother. He never knew that she had several adventures herself without him knowing.

"I know sweetie. The next day, the professor had to use your old bike just to get to the market now tee hee" she giggled as she told Ash about the professor's car. It had been severely damaged when the White Bandits came to their town but at least at that time no one got hurt. "Anyway Ash how about you? Where are you right now?" Delia asked with a smile. She was now acting like her old self again with that smile and everything. "We'll be heading to Valmarian city in two days. I hope I get to see you there"

"Well actually mom. We're kinda stuck here in Slateport city. The trip of Petalburg was a dead end but I think we can get a boat here. I'll try and get the earliest boat but it still might take some time before we even reach the place. Oh and (scream!) Huh? (Pika?)"

"Ash, is something wrong? What was that scream a minute ago?"

Ash tried to find where the source of the scream came from. He looked through the window of the phone booth and saw a girl chasing a Pidgeot that just stole her bag. "Nicetalkingtoyoumomloveyabye!" the boy talked so fast that his mother could barely understood each of the word he was saying. Ash hung up the phone and pulled out the loose change before heading out of the booth. He tried to get a better view of the incident but in the process he tripped via pot hole on the ground and fell with a defining thud. "Owee my head…"

He stood up and patted his jacket to remove the dirt but when he looked up in front of him, the Pidgeot came flying his way. "Pika pikapi!" (Look out Ash!) "WAAAHH!" the bird like Pokemon's claws were caught within the boy's T-shirt which made it fall onto him. The boy and the Pokemon tumbled back and forth over and over down a short hill. As if his day couldn't get any worst than this.

A few moments later, Ash recovered from the fall along with the Pidgeot and with the girl's stolen backpack in hand. "What happened?" he asked himself. But his question remained unanswered when a girl came by panting heavily. Her shoulder length hair was bright yellow blond and her eyes were as blue as the sky above. She wore a bright stray green jacket with and a blue belly showing T-shirt inside. She wore knee running boots and fingerless gloves to give her that adventurous girl type. She tied her hair at the back giving it a traditional ponytail style. The only thing that was original about her fashion was the tattoo of a thunder shape on her left cheek.

"Are you ok?" the girl asked. Ash nodded groggily, "Thank you for stopping my Pidgeot. He can be quite a pain sometime"

"Is this your Pokemon?" Ash asked pointing at the bird.

"Unfortunately it is (quark quark!) Yeah, I know you're hungry! But so am I!" she yelled back at the Pidgeot with a slight rumbling stomach. "Ahehehe. I'm so embarrassed hehehe. I haven't eaten for quite awhile"

Ash pulled himself up and patted his pants of the dirt and dust. He pitied the girl because he knew how it felt when he and his gang arrived at the city as well. "Are you new in town?" he asked. The girl just nodded back in reply. "Well why don't I show you around? And after that I'll treat you for something to eat" the girl's mood brightened up like a newly born star, "Really?! Oh thank you (x3) You have no idea how much this means to me! Come on Pidgeot, let's follow the good uh…… what's your name again?"

Ash gave out his trademark smile, "The name's Ash, Ash Ketchum. I'm from Pallet town"

"Ash Ketchum? Hmm… I've been hearing that name for awhile now. (gasp) Are you like some sort of celebrity?" she yelled out at the top of her lunges.

"_She doesn't know who I am? That's something I haven't heard for awhile"_ Ash thought as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Well yeah you could say that heh heh heh"

The blond girl gave him a giggle, "Well my name is Roselane. I came from…… somewhere hehehe and my friends just call me Rose" she softly hit herself in the head and stuck out her tongue in a chibi manner. "I came from another region, and I'm trying to find my way to Valmarian city hehehe"

"Oh…" Ash said in amazement, "Are you a competitor?"

Roselane shook her head in response, "Nope. My friends say that I should go and observe them. They say that I might learn a thing or two from the pros"

"Well if you're heading for the Valmarian league then you could come with me and my friends. We're all heading there to compete" Ash said proudly to his new found friend.

"Are you sure? I mean, I just met you and all"

"_Hmm she's right. I only did meet her a few minutes ago. But why do I get the feeling that I've met her before?"_ Ash thought of his recent actions but then again, he kind of met all of his friends the same way. He just meets them for a second and then bang! They're his friends already. It was probably one of his special traits that he doesn't know about. "Hey, are you traveling alone?" he asked. Roselane just nodded her head in reply, "Well why not come with us? It's much better if you travel with friends. The more the merrier hehehe"

"Hmm…" the girl did a little brain storming before gladly shaking the boy's hand, "Ok Ash. I accept your offer! So when do we leave?" she asked with excitement.

"Well uh…" he should of thought the trip before yapping out, "We kinda just came to the city too so we don't have plans of leaving yet. Why don't we get something to eat first?"

"Yes! Food it is!" the girl began following Ash towards the nearest restaurant after putting her Pidgeot back into its Pokeball.

**(Back at the Pokemon center lounges)**

When nearly everyone was on their beds sleeping like logs, one particular girl remained awake. Misty had been sleeping with a heavy fever for about a day and a half and she think a nap was unnecessary. "(yawn) I think I'll go and take a walk. What do you say Togepi? (chuki pree) Ok then, a walk it is!" she immediately got up and changed into a more comfortable clothing (her Kanto Battle Frontier outfit). After cleaning herself and combing her hair she heads off and locked the room behind her. It was a good thing Ash ordered up individual rooms cuz now she can have all the privacy she wanted.

The first stop she picked out was a small assortment of vendors on the sidewalk. She wass buying some small trinkets on which she could send back to her sisters. She knew that they would want something from different regions in the country so she decided to play the good little sister for the family. The price was cheap and Daisy finally decided to send Misty her paycheck which she so rightly deserve after all her work as gym leader when they were out during a vacation trip.

After purchasing all the souvenirs and some snacks for the long road, she gaze upon the open sea once more to feel the nice gentle breeze of the water. It was a wonderful feeling indeed. But as she gaze upon the water… the island of Valmarian stood just across the horizon, awaiting for Ash and his friends for the battle of the life time. The city stadium stood tall and proud near the out skirts of the area. It was so big that the Indigo plateau would look like mice compared to it. It stood probably as tall as the twelve stories mall and as long as five football fields. The arena itself was indeed an archietectual masterpiece of modern arts.

But… the more she looked at the stadium the more she wished that it would just… disappear. She wished that it would just vanish within her eyes and she swore she wouldn't miss it at all. But why did she hate it so much? She wasn't gonna participate in it so why does it despise it? Those feelings truly confused her thought as her smile slowly turned into a frown. She held her Togepi tightly in her arms (chuki?)

"Huh? Oh sorry Togepi. I guess I was lost in thought for a minute there" she forced out a smile and quickly turned away from the sea. The red head slowly made her way towards a nearby intersection hoping to get back into the Pokemon center but before she could even take a step forward, a familiar voice caught her attention. "Hmm? That sounded like Ash" and to her guess, she was right. She took a peek along the corner and saw Ash with a beautiful blond girl walk into a common restaurant 'South Diner'. With suspicions acting up, Misty decided to see what was going on.

**(At South Diner)**

"I'll just have a burger and fries please" Ash said to the waiter. He was blessed when that Pokemon convention popped up just in the nick of time. Everyone in the place just thought that he was another fan so he didn't have to worry about the paparazzi or mobs trying to get his autograph. He then turned to Roselane who was looking at menu rather strangely. "Uhh… ummm…."

"Is something wrong Ms?" asked the waitress who was also looking at her rather dumbfounded. Roselane looked at the menu upside down and sideways as if she couldn't read what was on it. "Hello? Ms?"

"I'll have what he's having" she said finally. The waitress just put a 'x2' in the menu and heads off to the kitchen with the order. After she was out of sight, Roselane noticed that Ash was starring at her with a questionable face, "Ahehehehe sorry, I can't really read much" ok, something was now really wrong with this girl. She must've been from one of those out of towners or something similar to that.

The food arrived rather quickly for a busy place like South Diner but when it eventually did, Roselane was once again doing odd things with it. She was either thinking of how the food was made or if there was a possible chance of poison inside. Once she took a bite off the burger… her eyes widened miraculously. It was…… delicious! She then began chomping the burger over and over until she almost chewed her hands off. It wasn't long until she decided to order a second plate.

Ash was a little awestruck to see someone who could actually eat faster than him. Sure, burgers can be tasty. But eating it like crazy was a totally different thing. "Whoa Rose, you must be really hungry" the girl was already on her fifth burger in ten minutes. By the time she realized that she was being a glutton, she stopped and politely wiped the mess around her mouth and hands. "Since when was the last time you had a decent meal"

The girl thought for awhile and placed her hand on her chin. She was recalling some information, "Well… to tell you the truth. I don't exactly remember when was the last time I actually ate. But this burger is great (munchmunch!)"

Right after lunch was finish with Ash having six burgers and Roselane have seven burgers, Ash decided it was time to introduce to his friends their new traveling partner. "Hey Rose"

"Yeah?" she looked at her watch closely and tried to synchronize it with the time on the clock shop but her efforts were in vain when she didn't even know how to even move the thing.

"_Can this girl do anything?"_ Ash asked himself in his mind, "Here, let me help you there" he took her watch and adjusted it just the way she wanted it to be. "Anyway, let's go to the Pokemon center. I'll need to---" his sentence was cut short when an orange haired figure slowly approached them. "Oh hey Misty!"

"Hey Ash" she sounded a little strange. She glanced over to Roselane, "Who's this?"

"Oh, this is Roselane. She's from another region and she's also heading for Valmarian city"

"A pleasure to meet you"

"Nice to meet you too. My name is Misty" her voice then became a little sweeter than usual

"She'll be traveling with us until we get to Valmarian. Come on. I want to introduce to you the other guys"

**(Back with the rest of the gang)**

Richie woke up from his slumber after a little nap from his bedroom. The Pokemon center here is more advance than any of the facilities that he had encountered so far. There was a restaurant at the east wing near the nursery where new born Pokemons are taken care of. When the young trainer saw a laundry place, he decided to put all of his dirty clothes in and pick them up later. It's not everyday you get to have a clean clothes to wear, especially if you're on a journey to Valmarian city. Along the way he encountered Drew who just finished using the phone in the phone booth INSIDE the Pokemon center.

"Hey Drew" Richie called out to the green haired coordinator, "Who were you talking to a minute ago?"

"Huh? Oh, I was just calling the ticket center at the docks" he replied, "I thought that we'd get the earliest ticket to Dewford town" he shrugged and did his trademark pose (hands inside his pockets and put out his charming smile)

"I see" Richie may not express it, but he was indeed amazed with Drew's maturity and intellect, "So when are we leaving?"

Drew placed one of his hands at the back of his hand and smugged instead, "No luck…" he started, "All the trips to the island are booked full..." he breathed in before continuing, "…and to make it worst. All the trips to Valmarian city are also booked till next week"

"Don't you have any of your friends or favors?" Richie's face seemed like it was begging for a good answer, but alas it was futile.

"Nope. I guess we'll have to find another way. Oh yeah, have you seen Ash? He wasn't in his room when I checked in"

"No, did you check the restaurant? (nod) How about the arcade? (nod) The restroom? (nod) Hmm… he could be out sightseeing" Richie ran through a group of possible locations on where Ash might be.

"Morning you two (yawn)" the two boys turned their heads to greet a sleepy Duplica. "What cha doin?" she asked in a slangish way.

"Oh hey Duplica. Drew was checking in on the tickets to Dewford town" Richie replied

"Oh? And what did you get?" the two of them told her their situation and to say it bluntly, her good morning mood just turned upside down.

With everyone rested (except Ash) they all assembled at the Pokemon lobby to plan their next move, but without Ash, they were quite afraid on making choices. Brock looked their faces with great curiosity written all over his mind. The first fifteen minute of the meeting was like a blazing inferno. Everyone were giving out their own ideas which were all good but for some ballistic reason, they were a little unsure about their next move. A few days ago these teens were actually booming with ideas and burning with confidence about their choice but now they just sat there drinking coco and coffee and eating some warm food for their stomachs. It's like they some how lost their inspiration or something. Like their will power was taken away with a snap of a finger.

**(Back at Pallet town, professor Oak's place)**

Delia hung up the phone after a brief talk with her son. She let out a huge sigh of relief and quickly turned her head to find a smiling professor. "Oh professor!" she was so surprised that she nearly fell off her chair. "I'm sorry, I guess I'll start doing your chores now" the charming 'goddess-like-smile' of hers was like oxygen to the professor. He wouldn't be able to start a day without seeing it. Samuel was about to stop her from doing his chores and cooking but after a few weeks of staying with him, he actually had more time to do his research than ever. The two Jennies were also a great pair to have around. Nowadays, crooks and small time thieves would avoid his laboratory at any possible cost.

"Well… I guess she's feeling much better now" the old man said with his usual smile. Just when he was about to walk into the fields, the phone began to ring again. "Hmm? Who could be calling this early?" he walked up to pick the phone, "Hello?"

"Professor Oak! It's me, Birch! I'm calling from Littleroot town (cough cough)" the man on the other side sounded like he was in a real hurry.

"Hello professor Birch. How's your research going?" the screen popped in to show a very tired and messy looking professor. The background behind him was also looking pretty beaten, "Oh my… what happened to you?"

"Professor (cough cough) You won't believe what we've just got hehehe!"

"What happened to your lab Birch? It looks like a war zone"

And he was right too. Birch's lab was practically smoking and many of the laboratory equipments were pretty beaten up. There were some electrical meters that were showing some electricity sparks and documents and folders caught on fire. The other assistants were moving hastily with the fire extinguisher and water buckets to control the area but visibility was obviously poor due to the smoke.

"Sorry about the mess professor, but we've just hit a major breakthrough! I'm sending you the data through your computer. It's just amazing professor. I've never seen this amount of P-wave in all my life! I'll call you back in a few hours. Hey you, save all the documents and data you can find! I don't want anyone slacking off!"

"Wait Birch! What is this research? (screen blackout) Birch?! (sigh) (hangs up) I wonder what that was all about"

Without second thought, the professor went back to his lab and checked his e-mail box for the data Birch sent him. The file was huge so it took a bit longer for the professor's computer to process. So while waiting, he did the only thing he knew that would cure his boredom when downloading something huge. He spins around in his office chair. (yeah it kinda sounded a bit childish but hey… its fun to do that once in awhile)

By the time the files were in he immediately used his wireless mouse and clicked several times. "Hmm…" he quickly read through the equations and documents that the files brought up but as he went on through it again and again… it began to make some very little sense. "Impossible…" the professor muttered out quietly while scrolling down the pages. "This can't be real… can it?" there were probably more numbers and formulas on that report than four giant math academies put together. How the professor managed to read all of it will remain unknown to everyone.

"If the Psychic wave is this high at such a small area… then how could…… no… that just isn't mentally possible. Even for a Pokemon, the result would still be dangerous. But…… maybe… just maybe" he then began typing and forming counter solutions to the problem.

**(Ruins of Varidian city, 30 years in the future)**

"_Why am feeling this way?"_ Mewtwo sat quietly on a stool in a small destroyed café. He was thinking hard and really hard on what he just done a few days ago. He had sent a message to warn the humans of their impending doom…… but why? He despised humans just as his cloned followers despised their original beings. The powerful psychic Pokemon would laugh at the mere mention of mankind's destruction. Heck he even tried to do it himself. But as he gazed upon the ruins of the destroyed city he began to ask himself…… _"Is this truly what I wanted? Is this senseless chaos truly what I really wanted?"_ he gazed up to the tall buildings that the humans created that nearly reached the sky itself. The building was torn down from top to bottom leaving only rumbles in its wake. Cars were trashed down on the streets and shops were practically left collecting years of dust.

Just when the cloned Mew Pokemon was nearly lost in thought, something stirred up in the snow. "Hn?" at first Mewtwo thought that it was just his imagination getting into him but when he activated his psychic powers… he could feel its presence.

Mewtwo flew high above the sky just when a Regice broke through a wall of snow. The ice Pokemon wore full battle armor on its arms, legs and chest. It looked as if it was ready for battle… any battle. "Regi regice re-gi-ice!" (Abomination, you are not welcome here!) it then fired a blast of its ice beam which Mewtwo managed to dodge quite easily. With its own life in danger, Mewtwo countered with a shadow ball which hit Regice directly. The ice Pokemon grew angry and unleashed a barrage of ice beam, but Mewtwo wasn't called the world's strongest Pokemon for nothing. In an instant, he began multiplying himself (double team) and launching several attacks back to Regice.

After missing all attacks, Regice decided to hide and recharge (skill: rest) Mewtwo scanned the ruins with his foresight ability but with all the snow covering the area, it was hard to find an ice Pokemon. Mewtwo was used to this kind of attacks before but never had he fought a strong Pokemon such as Regice before.

When he finally located the ice berg like Pokemon, Mewtwo let out a shadow ball which flung Regice off the wall which was followed by a devastating iron tail strike. The ice Pokemon fell off the second floor of the building it was hiding in with a defining crash on the cemented surface. The lights on its eyes dimmed which meant that it had already been defeated. Mewtwo wanted to make sure it stayed down with one last shadow ball but as he thought for a moment, he considered that it was unnecessary. He smirked upon his small victory as he landed softly on the ground. He let out a small sigh as his triumph seemed to be less pleasing than usual. The moment he dropped down his guard another Regice stormed out from behind which caught him completely by surprised. He tried to fly away but then it was already far too late.

The 2nd Regice froze Mewtwo's leg which rendered it unable to fly. And to think that was bad… when he tried to stand up, a Registeel appeared out of the blizzard and grabbed Mewtwo with its might arms. "Gaarrr!" the psychic Pokemon cried out, but it was useless. The Regice which he thought was already out of commission suddenly rose back onto its feet and glared at him. And to make things even much much worst… another Regice stormed out of the snow making a perfect trio of Ice Pokemons.

In its grand struggle to set iself free, Mewtwo used up a whole lot of his energy to break Registeel's grip and broke the ice on its leg. The three Regices let out their icebeam attack but instead of hitting Mewtwo, the psychic Pokemon teleported away which caused Registeel to be frozen in his place. Wasting no more time in this battle, Mewtwo multiplied itself into six pairs (which means there are 12) and immediately let out a whole wave of shadow balls at his enemies. The Regices which were standing in a line were hit so many times that they already lost count. After making sure that his attackers won't be getting up any time soon, Mewtwo panted heavily under the cold weather and rested for a minute.

The Pokemons that had attacked him were truly getting stronger and stronger by the day. If it weren't for his powerful abilities and strength he would've a popsicle by now.

Once again, the Psychic Pokemon dropped down his guard to catch a moment of his breath. He was so caught up in the moment that he didn't even feel the Registeel behind him breaking out of its icy prison. The giant beast was about to tackle Mewtwo with its mighty arms but before it could move out, "Pi-Ka-Chu!!!!" "ROAR!!!" a lightning bolt and a flame thrower attack came out of sidelines and whacked against Registeel which sent it flying to the corner and completely knocked out.

Mewtwo turned his head to see who had aided him against his enemies and was surprised to see C.Pikachu, C.Meowth and C.Charizard waiting for him at the end of the destroyed road. "You?" he said telepathically, "What are you doing here?"

"Pika pikachu!" (We're here to help you!)

"Raaarrrr! Rarrr!" (You need someone to watch your back)

Mewtwo giggled, "Heh…… I thank you friend. Your aid was timely"

"Meow meow meowth" (Let's get out of here before they wake up)

"You're right. It would be unsafe to stay in this time period any longer than necessary" in an instant, Mewtwo waved his paws in a circular motion which then teleported him and his three other companions into the time stream. It was a majestic sight which would put the colors of the rainbow to shame. Waves of awe inspiring colors and marks were written all over the place. In here, time stops… no one would get older nor will they grow any younger. After making sure that all of his companions are with him, Mewtwo set the time stream into another future of the world.

"Pika pikachupika?" (So master, what did you think about?)

"You asked what I was thinking about? (nod) Well… I'm not really sure what I needed to think about" he said with a slight hint of seriousness in his voice, "Forgive me if I may sound confusing, but I speak the truth. I simply do not know what to think about"

"Meow meowth meow?" (Well then there's no point in thinking at all is there?)

"That is true" he smirked, "So where shall drop you three? (the three clones look at him confusingly) Which future do you wish to go to?"

"Rarrrr rarrrrr?!" (Can't we just stay with you?)

"What is the point in staying with a creature that does not have a place in this world? I am but an altered abomination in this world" Mewtwo spat his own description venomously.

"Pika pikachu?" (So? We're all the same aren't we?)

"You say we are the same? (nod) No my friend… we are not the same (confused) Unlike you… I am the only one of my kind. There is no other Mewtwo out there in the world or anywhere else in the galaxy. I am not a Pokemon"

"Roar!" (Then act like a Pokemon!)

"Act like a Pokemon? How is Pokemon supposed to act?" that small tiny question was left unanswered by his companions.

"Meow meowth!" (If you can't act like a Pokemon then act like a living being!)

"A living being?" Mewtwo looked at C.Meowth dumbfounded by his statement

"Meowth meow meowth!" (Yes… a living being!)

"Then how does a living being act?" another question was left unanswered.

**(Another future)**

After their conversation was done, they landed into another future which was way better than the one they came from. Mewtwo scanned around for any possible threats before letting his other companions come out of the time stream. Even though the place was just as green and lush as it were 30 years ago, something in time line seemed strangely different. "Strange…" Mewtwo said silently to himself. "I have never seen this future before" everything around seemed quiet and peaceful, like nothing could go wrong in this world.

**(Back at the present, The Pokemon center in Slateport city)**

"Hey guys!" Ash walked in with Misty and his newly found friend Roselane, "I'd like to meet someone. This is Roselane and she'll be traveling with us to Valmarian city. Roselane, this are my friends, Richie, Brock, Dawn, Anabel, Duplica, Todd, Tracey, Drew, May and her little brother Max and of course my buddy Pikachu (Pika!)" everyone gave their greetings to the girl, but now they have more important things to discuss.

Drew decided to explain the situation to Ash and that he wasn't able to get tickets due to some minor circumstances. This left him and the rest of the gang completely demoralized. Another round trip to Dewford town would take at least six more weeks and probably by then they will barely have enough time to train for the league. Even with their hearts and spirit sinking way down below zero, Ash kept a stirdy face as he knew he would somehow find a way to Valmarian city.

"Are you sure there aren't any boats left?" Ash asked the green haired boy but Drew just shook his head in response, "Unless you want ride a raft to Valmarian city, I'm all up for it" Ash would've loved to take the offer of using a raft to Valmarian city. He did it before when he went to the Indigo plateau but after seeing that he has more companions than usual, it wasn't really much of an option.

"We could ride on our water Pokemons there" said Richie holding up his Pokeball

Misty held up her Pokeball as well and said: "My Gyrados can take us across"

"And I can have my Dittos morph into them!" Duplica added. It was a good tactic but then it would be impossible with what Brock had to say, "Nope... traveling across the sea during the winter won't be such a good idea. There's a lot of storm going on right now"

Max sighed "I guess we'll just have to find another way"

Anabel lowered her head and asked Drew once more "Have you checked in with the first class Drew? I think they should still have some tickets left"

"Trust me. I tried from first class to economy class just to find us some seats, but sadly they're all full"

"Hmm…"

"Hm……"

The whole gang went into a group brainstorm. All ideas to travel to Valmarian city or Dewford town had been denied over and over again. And Roselane was the only one relaxing.

But…

Amidst all the thinking and planning… a voice came by from behind with a golden opportunity in hand, "Excuse me gentlemen, but are you looking for a way to Valmarian city?" the elderly sea captain spoke with calm and respectable voice. The gang turned their heads to the man but when they did… their eyes were at shock! The man who was in his mid 40s stood across the lobby with a skipper's hat on his head.

"Drake?!" Ash spoke out faster than you breathe.

Yup that's right. Drake, the dragon master of the Elite 4 here in Hoenn, was standing right in front of them with his usual grin.


	31. The Strength of A Trainer

**Chapter 31: The Strength of The Trainer!**

"Drake?!" Ash and Brock spoke his name again. It was a rare treat to actually see an Elite trainer such as the famous dragon master like himself in a Pokemon center. May and Max recognized him in an instant as well since they did met once before (). The old sailor smiled back at them as he raised his captain hat slightly in a polite manner. "Well Ash, how long has it been? A year?"

"A few months actually... I fought you in the Hoenn stadium in Mauville city. Guys, you remember Drake right? He's one of the Elite Four here in Hoenn" Ash introduced the man to the others and they all gave out a respective bow to him. The man smirked with his mustache raising up, "It's always a pleasure to meet Ash's friends but it looks like you brought more than usual" he check the boy's companions and he was right. Ash's group actually doubled if not tripled since the last time they met.

"So I hear you guys are looking for a trip to Valmarian ciy huh?" the gang nodded their head in sincronation, "Well I was just about to head there myself! My ship is currently docked at port right now and I was just going to Valmarian city myself. I could bring you along if you wanted"

"Really Drake?!" yelled out May

"That would be a great help mister!" said Max

The man waved his hand defensively and laughed, "No problem at all kids hahahahahaha" the gang yelled out in victory as they finally found a way to their goal, "But…" all eyes turned to Drake, "Under one condition…" he said raising one finger. The gang was ready pay almost any price to get that trip but they wonder what this condition would be. Drake then pointed at Ash with a grin on his face, "I request a rematch with you… Ash Ketchum" the gang turned their heads to Ash who was also smiling with a little hint of pride hiding behind his mask.

"You're on Drake!" he said out almost instantly

**(10 minutes later, On Board Drake's ship) A/N: If you know the name of his ship, please tell me thanks!**

"Hey… Jessie, look at that!" James yelled out to his partner as they were mopping the floor of the boat. Jessie, Meowth and Butch stared at where the blue haired man was pointing. A group of people following a middle aged were boarding their boat!

"It's the twerp!" they yelled out in unison.

Jessie then made a recommendation, "Quick everyone. Hide!"

The gang watched anxiously as Drake's crew finished mopping the bridge of the boat. They were all rooting for Ash while Drake's crew rooted for him. "This will be a simple three on three match!" began the referee, "The trainer with the Pokemon standing will be declared the winner!" he looked at both sides carefully before lowering his hand, "BEGIN!"

"Alright, I'll go first! Pikachu, I choose you!" the little yellow mouse takes the field.

"You send out your strongest Pokemon first? That's awkward" Drake taunted but Ash didn't bite, "My turn then! Shelgon, I choose you!" A rock like Pokemon appeared and prepared to do battle. "You may have beaten me in the Hoenn league that time Ash but now I've become much stronger than I was before!"

"You're not the only one who's gotten stronger Drake. Me and my friends haven't stopped training even after we defeated you!" Ash yelled back at the Elite Four member and now the battle begins, "Alright then! Pikachu, use thunder shock!" Pikachu unleashed a powerful electrical attack but Shelgon didn't even flinch. Drake decided to use the same tactic he used when he first battled Ash.

Back with the rest of the gang, a crew member of Drake came by to give them a little refreshment, "Soda anyone?" the gang picked out their favorites from the box he brought with him and quench their thirst. Roselane on the other hand just had plain water. Dawn let out her Piplup and Buneary to cheer for Ash and Pikachu as well. May did the same and sent out Munchlax, Blaziken and her Squirtle. Once they were all comfortable with their drinks, the crew member decided to speak up, "That boy really improved a lot" they all turned their heads to him. "I must admit, his Pokemons sure look stronger than the last time" the others nodded their heads in agreement. "But…… he won't be able to defeat the captain this time" Max nearly choked on his soda can and spat out.

"Why's that?" May ask confused. The others also wonder why the crewman thought like that too.

"Right after he returned from the battle in the Hoenn league, the captain had gone through a series of tough training" he remembered the images a few days ago when Drake was training with his Dragon Pokemons, "He crossed the sea and fought many wild sea Pokemons on his own. He defeated hundreds of trainers that he encountered in just two months! Ever since those battles, he's been putting more heart into the fight and tripled the abilities of his Pokemons. I've never seen anyone who is more dedicated to training his Pokemon than the captain himself. So that's why… there's no way he could possibly lose"

Everyone (except Roselane) was expecting Max to say something brotherly and defensive but to everyone's surprise he just sat there relaxed and sipping his soda. Drew and Duplica followed his example and ignored him, but Brock was more of a big brother to Ash so he had a different perspective, "Drake maybe strong (the crewman look at him) But he's not the only one who's been training roughly. Ash wasn't kidding when he said he didn't stop training. Ever since he came back home to Pallet town, his mom told me that the only thing Ash does all day is training with his Pokemons" this caught the attention of Richie and Anabel, "Drake's dedication maybe impressive just as you say. But you've never seen Ash in action before. He trains his Pokemons just like they were his own family. He loves them and they love him. The strength of a trainer doesn't count on his abilities or his experience, but by his Pokemons. That was the lesson I taught him during our first journey. And I believe… that's all the lesson a trainer should really know"

Brock's little speech silenced the man but not indefinitely. The others gave out a nodding smile in agreement to his words.

"Still…" the crewman refused to believe that Ash was stronger, "The captain also treats his Pokemons as his friends. He treats them as if they were human and strengthened the bond between them. And with that bond, they became the ultimate team ever to sail the seas! Drake and his Pokemon will continue to grow stronger with each passing day!"

Dawn gave out a hearty laugh to the man. "I guess Ash must've surpassed him a long time ago" the crewman gave her a confused gaze.

"Ash doesn't grow stronger by the day" Anabel continued.

"He grows stronger by each passing second!" May finished off the sentence.

Not wanting to continue the argument anymore, they all decided to watch the battle which had just recently begun.

Pikachu kept shocking Shelgon with its lightning attack but the Dragon Pokemon wasn't even moving. Ash knew that he was using the same old tactic so he decided to play along as well, "Alright Pikachu, let's do it! Quick attack now!" Pikachu leaped forward in a quick succession making a bad move.

"He fell for it again…" the crewman said with a smirk

"You fall for the same old trick Ash! Shelgon use Dragon breath now!"

But the boy already planned ahead on what he was going to do, "Pikachu, use agility!" in a mere instance, Pikachu vanished from Shelgon's sight and reappeared right behind him, "Alright Pikachu, iron tail assault!" Pikachu unleashed a flurry of its tail and whacked Shelgon six times in a row, but it wasn't done just yet.

"Shelgon, use dragon claw quickly!" the attack hit Pikachu, but while it was on mid-air Ash yelled out another command, "Alright Pikachu, give it another one of your thunder shock!" the electrical mouse let out a shocking attack which rendered Shelgon completely paralysed. "Good work, now use volt tackle!" with one last tackle, Shelgon was rendered out of the battleground and unconscious. The referee took a good look at Shelgon before confirming its defeat. "Shelgon is unable to battle! The round goes to Ash Ketchum!"

Piplup and Buneary gave Pikachu a loud cheer.

Right about now, Max really wanted to give that crewman a run for his money and say something like _"Hahaha in your face!"_ but with a quick glance, the man still showed no sign of worry. He knew something and he wasn't gonna tell them that's for sure.

"Impressive Ash. You've outwitted my Shelgon with only four moves. But let's see how you handle Alteria! (A fluffy bird Pokemon appears) Alteria, use iron wing now!" Alteria charged up against Pikachu faster than the speed of lightning. Ash was caught off guard by this new opponent but remained calm.

"Focus Pikachu, we can do this! Use lightning bolt attack!" Pikachu let out a powerful thunder attack but Drake's Alteria managed to dodge it quite well. "Darn it's too fast! And Pikachu isn't going to be a match for its ability to fly" Ash went through a small train of thoughts on how to battle a flying Pokemon with great speed. He could switch into another Pokemon but right now he wanted to prove something. If this is one of Pikachu's weaknesses then he'll have to strengthen it now. "Alright Pikachu, stay cool buddy and wait for an opening! (Pikapika pikapi!)"

"Hn" Drake smirked, "I admire your courage. Alright Alteria, use quick attack, followed by another pair of steel wing!" the Pokemon did what its master commanded and flew down onto Pikachu. The poor mouse got hit again.

"Pikachu, use another thunder shock attack!" Pikachu let out another electrical charge but it missed just by a meter. "Darn it! I was so close!"

"Alteria's speed is absolutely unmatched for Pikachu. Shelgon was more on the defensive type but in this battle, speed is everything. There's no way Pikachu can match up" the crewman spoke up with pride for his captain. Max was now really restraining himself from beating up the guy but he had not lost hope for his 'brother' just yet.

"Hey Ash! You can do it! Go on Pikachu!" he yelled out, which was quickly followed by Anabel and the rest of the gang, "We know you can do it! Show him what you've got!"

The gang gave out a jubilant cry to the boy to lift up his morale. It was so loud that probably half the city block heard it. Ash looked back at them and gave a reassuring smiled. He knew that his friends wouldn't let him down but Roselane just glared at them confusingly.

"Well Pikachu. It looks like we're not alone in this fight. It's time to get serious! (Pikachu!) Bring it on Drake!"

The boy quickly pulled out a hat from his pocket and with one fwup, the whole thing came into place. He placed it on his head and turned it backwards. His hat flip technique was now at work. The whole crew knew that signature move well. They've seen him do that on TV, and every time he did that he would always win, no matter how heavy the odds were. "We're ready!" the crewman that had been talking to the gang visibly flinched a little bit.

Drake kept a cool and calm pose but his mind was really panicking about the situation. A single sweat dropped from his forehead falling onto the solid boat. He hesitated with his next command. "Altaria, use steel wing again!" the Pokemon felt the uneasiness of its master's voice but it did what it was commanded anyway.

When the Dragon/flying Pokemon flew close enough, Ash got an idea, "Pikachu, grab onto its wing!" Pikachu followed his command and quickly held on tightly onto Altaria and took the attack full force. The Dragon/flying Pokemon tried to shake off Pikachu but it was no use, it was dead lock stuck. "Alright, now use thunder shock full power!" (Pi-ka-chuuuu!!!) with one simple phrase the little yellow mouse unleashed a wave of electricity so powerful that it made Altaria numb to the bones. The referee came by to check if the Pokemon was still able to fight, "Altaria is no longer able to battle! The match goes to Ash Ketchum!"

Piplup and Buneary along with Blaziken and Squirtle cheered out a victory cry

The gang gave out a roar even louder than before. But then Max noticed that the crewman still had that grin on his face and it was really getting on his nerves.

Drake returned Altaria to its Pokeball, "You did well my friend" he then picked out his last Pokeball on his belt, "You've been battling hard Ash. I'm amazed on how strong your Pikachu has become" he complimented his opponent. "But…" he started, "My final Pokemon will be nothing compared to the ones you fought in the Hoenn league!"

"Wait a minute. What Pokemon is he going to use this time?" Misty tried to remember the Hoenn league battle but failed, so instead she was answered by the crewman.

"Remember that I told you that the captain has been training non stop with his Pokemons? (they nodded) Well… I didn't exactly tell you which Pokemon now did I?"

"Come out! Salamence, my old friend!" a giant beast dragon appeared with a roar that would frighten the world. It was much larger and tougher than Ash had remembered when he last encountered it in the Hoenn stadium. Its size almost looks like it doubled or something.

"Whoa, your Salamence looked like it gained weight Drake" Ash gave out a silent joke

Drake laughed, "Hahahaha! Well the food in Hoenn is good my friend. But like they say: Size doesn't matter! Now Salamence, use hyper beam attack!" the dragon Pokemon unleashed a powerful beam which missed Pikachu just by a hair. But Drake wasn't going to give time to recuperate, "Now Salamence, use steel wing!" the attack hit Pikachu which lodged him straight into the air, "Followed by Dragon breath and tackle attack!" both attack landed on Pikachu perfectly which sent the mouse straight to the ground.

"Oh no! Pikachu doesn't look like he can take anymore of this" May screamed out in panic and she was right. Pikachu looked like it could fall at any given moment. It was badly beaten and bruised on its paws and its body looked as if it just went through the grinder's house or something. Not only will this declare Ash one lost but it would also put shame to his hat flip technique.

Buneary couldn't bear to watch Pikachu take anymore beating so it closed its eyes with its big long ears and braced for the worst.

"Well its obvious…" the crewman began, "The captain's Salamence has the advantage and it looks like Ash is gonna lose"

Max was now being restrained by Munchlax from smacking that man with kick or a punch. His mouth was also being covered by Blaziken to stop from using harsh words.

"Pikachu, use thunder burst!" Pikachu let out several thunder shock attack but they all missed Salamence. Not only was the Dragon Pokemon stronger and faster, it was also not fatigued as Pikachu. "Darn, it's just as fast as Alteria. And Pikachu isn't strong enough to do that move again" he then gave out a quick thought, "Alright Pikahu! It's time to show everyone your ultimate potential! (Pika?) That's right buddy. It's time… let's do it!"

"His ultimate potential?" Misty asked herself confusingly, "Does he mean… that thunder storm attack?"

"Probably" Brock waved off his hand thinking that it Ash would use his trump card technique." It's the most powerful attack Pikachu showed so far"

May jolted from her seat along with Duplica and gave out a cheer, "Alright! With that move there's no way Ash could lose!"

"There's still one problem though" everyone gave out a 'huh' look to Drew, which he gladly explained, "Ash needs to use that 'Absorb' technique and if I'm not mistaken, he'll need at least one minute for it to work"

"That would leave Pikachu wide open for attack!" Dawn thought

"Hey come on guys, this is Ash we're talking about here!" Tracey reminded to them on who they were talking about, "He's the number one most surprising trainer in the world. Let's watch and see how it goes"

"He's bound to have a trick up his sleeves" said Todd holding his camera and taking a few photos of the battle

But Ash wasn't getting much luck. Pikachu had just been hit by another dragon breath attack and was nearing the state of collapse. Ash gritted his teeth as Salamence encircled his little yellow mouse like a vulture, _"Come on Ash think! I need a way to distract Salamence"_ in an instant, the Dragon Pokemon let out a dive bomber attack. "That's it! Pikachu dodge and use thunder shock!" The yellow mouse evaded the attack and let out and electric shock that paralyzed Salamence for a short while, "Good work Pikachu! Now absorb!" Pikachu slowly gathered electricity through its red cheeks and began to glow. Drake's eyes widened as he knew this attack well. He saw it on TV a few days ago.

"_He's planning to use his ultimate attack!?"_ he thought, "Salamence, snap out of it! (Salamence unparalyzed) Now use steel wing hurry!" the Dragon Pokemon quickly charged against Pikachu's small body.

"It's over…" the crewman smirked.

May and the rest of the gang covered their eyes to Pikachu's impending defeat. Blaziken and Piplup also covered their ears to deaf themselves from the sound. But what happened next… surprised them all.

Salamence was suddenly electrocuted by a powerful shock attack upon touching Pikachu. It fell on the ground again paralyzed. This event probably made more than a million questions popped in and out Drake's head…… and no one would probably know how happy Max was when the grin fell off of the crewman's face.

"You fell for it Drake!" Ash ranted out the silence.

"What?!" replied the old Elite four member.

"Hey, what happened? Didn't Salamence hit Pikachu?" May ask to whoever could answer her question.

Naturally, it would be Brock who had all the answers

"I guess Ash didn't tell you huh" the whole gang and the crewman looked at the squinty eyed man, "When Pikachu uses absorb, he creates an invisible electric shield around him which makes all physical attacks including Salamence's steel wing useless! It's a technique he discovered when he was training back in Pallet town" the whole crew gasped in shock, "Not only does it heals Pikachu, but it also triples all of his abilities! It's a combination of three techniques put into one!"

With Salamence paralyzed, Pikachu was able to get enough time to fully grasp his skill. Its wounds slowly healed as if it was using a recover ability and all of its status were cured in an instant. The little yellow mouse smirked and was now once again…… ready for battle! "Alright! Let's do it Pikachu! We'll show them what 'absorb' can really do! Let's give it a taste of a thunder burst attack!" with its powers fully charged, Pikachu unleashed hundreds of lightning attacks against Salamence.

"No! Salamence, evade!" Drake yelled out as his hat was soaking with sweat from his forehead. Pikachu had become faster, stronger heck it looked as if it could take on the world! Salamence tried to evade but there were just too many thunder bolts striking at him. It was hit about seven times before the attack stop. "Alright then! My turn! Salamence use hyper beam!" the Dragon Pokemon released a powerful attack from its mouth but Pikachu only used the force of the impact to get itself into the air. "What? Impossible!" Drake was thinking that he's was going insane. Ash's Pikachu was doing unimaginable stunts like none they could only see on TV.

"Alright Pikachu, now use iron tail!"

Drake recovered from the shock and was not about to give up just yet, "Salamence, use dragon breath!"

"Just what I thought you'd do! Pikachu, use boomerang tail!" Pikachu began spinning itself vertically which rendered the dragon breath attack useless. Salamence was slamed on the face and on the back several times until it finally gave up and fell to the ground of the battlefield.

"There's another perfect combination of attack and defense for ya" Brock explained. "When Pikachu is spinning around, it causes all long rang attack like Dragon breath to be swept away. He copied that technique from one of the many movies he watched back in his adventures" the gang nodded their heads in agreement. The boy did love to watch a lot of action movies in his free times.

"Alright, almost done buddy! Pikachu, use thunder shock full power!" (PI-KA-CHUUUU!!!!) with one very powerful strike from Pikachu, Salamence was flung from the ground and out of the ring.

"Salamence NO!!!" Drake yelled out, but in the end his Dragon companion was down for the count. The referee took a look at Salamence before confirming Ash's victory. "Salamence… is… no longer able to battle…… the winner of the match and round…… goes to Ash Ketchum…" the whole crew looked down on the floor. They had just witness their captain's defeat and right in public too.

With those words, Ash jumped up high into the sky and yelled out his usual victory cry, "Alright! We did it Pikachu! We won haha! (Pikapikachu!) the gang also went to his side to congratulate him. Buneary went to Pikachu's side and gave out a little smooch on its cheek which made the little (and powerful) electrical Pokemon blush. (Pikachu)

Humiliated in front of his crew and his friends, Drake knew that the only way to save his face from breaking apart (not literally) would be to walk away. But Drake was not a man who would simply walk away from his opponent. At least not when he had beaten him twice in a row. He dragged his old body through the battlefield with a heavy heart and a heavy head to meet Ash. The two powerful trainers looked at each other with much respect of their skills. Drake's eyes brimmed with wisdom, knowledge and skill like an old veteran soldier who had finally returned from a war. But Ash's eyes were different… much much different. His eyes gave out a flare of determination that make anyone who look at him feel like an ant not even worth stepping on. But yet somehow…… those deep intimidating eyes held something else. Something that was probably unexplainable to the galaxy. A feeling of worthiness, an essence of unending power and an unnatural aura that was like a torch in midst of the sea of darkness.

"Well Ash…" Drake began, "You've surpassed me in every possible way I could think of. If your friends are as good as you are, then this year's Valmarian league would actually be something I wouldn't want to miss" Ash and the others gave him a respectful bow. Drake just laughed at their formality as he turned to one of crew, "Men!"

"Yes sir!" they said in unison

"Set a course for the city of Valmarian! We have honored guests to deliver!"

"Uh… captain sir" said one of the crew

"What is it?" the crew member pointed to the giant hole on the floor which was caused by the recent battle. "Hmmm?"

"We suffered some damage during your battle and we're uh…… kinda sinking"

Ash gave out a super sweat drop, "Ahehehehe… I guess we went a little overboard that time"

Drake just laughed again, "How long will it take for the repairs?" he asked the crew hoping for a good answer.

The man thought for awhile when he assets the damage. "Probably about three days sir!" Drake nodded and gestured the man to leave. He then turned to the gang with a little embarrassment, "Well it looks like my boat won't be going anywhere for awhile. Why don't you kids head into town? I heard there are a lot of attractions here in Slateport city" the gang nodded and quickly made their way towards the shopping district to replenish their supplies.

"Alright! Shopping spree!" May raised her hand and cheered.

"A new pair of sneakers!" shouted Richie

The gang laughed and left for the shops. Ash on the other hand went to the Pokemon center.

"Did you guys see that?" said Jessie to her gang. They were out of their disguises and back into their regular Team Rocket uniforms.

"I sure did!" James nodded

Butch also agreed and was really amazed by the light show a few moments ago, "That Pikachu can really pack quite a punch!"

"That gives us all the more reason to capture it for the boss!" the red head yelled out

"Right!" they yelled out in unison

"But how are we going to do that?" asked James with his hand raised, "We don't have enough money to make a new machine!"

"We're Team Rocket you twit! We steal and take what we want! Now come on! We've got work to do!"

**(At the Pokemon center)**

Ash dialed up a familiar phone number and waited for someone to pick up. He always liked the atmosphere of the Pokemon center. It was different from the hospital and it was some what refreshing. Pikachu was still standing on his shoulders despite after a fierce fight. "Hello?" it was professor Oak who answered his call. "Hi professor, it's me Ash!" the screen popped up to reveal the old man's face.

"Oh hi there Ash! I heard from your mother that you're in Slateport town" Samuel said with a smile. The boy nodded back in reply, "Well you'd better get a trip to Valmarian city soon. Your mother and I will be leaving next week and I hope to see you there too"

"Don't worry professor. I already got a ride to Valmarian city, but it's not leaving in few days. I just wanted to see if I could change some of my Pokemons" he held out three Pokeballs on the screen.

"Sure thing Ash. What Pokemons do you need?" the professor held out a list of Ash's Pokemons and made sure that all were there.

"I want to transfer Snorelax, Noctowl and Bulbasaur professor. They're strong, but I think I'd rather give them a nice good rest"

The professor giggled, "Well alright Ash. Just put them on the teleporter. So what Pokemons would like to bring with you?"

Ash thought for a moment before answering, "Hmm… I'd like to see all of them but… hmmm…" he thought hard and hard but he just couldn't pick which one, "Sorry professor, I can't really choose. Can you choose for me instead?"

"Well… ok I guess. But I'm not sure which one would suit you. I'll give it a shot"

Ash placed the three Pokeballs on the teleporter, "(place Snorelax) Sorry Snorelax, we can afford to keep you but we just can't afford to feed you. (placed Noctowl) Thanks for your help Noctowl, but I think you need a little vacation. (place Bulbasaur) And I'm betting anything that the professor might need your help in talking to the Pokemons Bulbasaur. I'll see you again real soon" he watched as the three Pokeballs vanished and was replaced by another three. Ash picked them up and wondered what the professor sent him.

"Well, there's only one way to find out. Pokemons, I choose you!" three Pokemons appeared before him. It was Swellow, Dophan and Turtwig, three of his strongest Pokemons from different regions. "Wow! Dophan, Swellow, Turtwig! You're all here!" the three Pokemons gave their old master one big hug. They all looked healthy and ready to face off any challenge.

Just as soon as he placed the three companions back into their Pokeballs, a yawn escaped our young hero. "Haaaaaa Oh boy. I guess I forgot that I haven't slept since yesterday. Come on Pikachu" the boy drowsily head back to his room and instantly fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow. He didn't even bother taking a shower or changing into his sleeping clothes.

**(Valmarian city gym)**

"Dragonite is no longer able to battle! The winner of the match is Gary Oak from Pallet town!" the referee blew out his whistle and raised the red flag to signal the winner. Gary just shrugged and returned his Arcanine to its Pokeball. Ever since Gary had been battling in the city gym the manager of the facility had to hire Nurse Joy to ready a healing bay just in case a Pokemon should get injured. The Dragonite was lucky today because Gary was in a good mood. For some strange and bizarre reason, he could sense Ash approaching the city. He was so close that he believed that he was walking right next to him.

After receiving no more challenges from the stands Gary decided that it was time for him to retire to his suite. But when he left the gym he was stopped when a boy about his age stood in front of him. He had a dark semi spiky, long hair which reached just below his shoulders, a red jacket that was unbuttoned, a blue T-shirt inside and long jeans which were folded at the bottom to fit his size. There was no need for introductions. Gary knew the boy well. He was the second member of the Loners. He wasn't as good as Gary or as strong as his leader but he was skilled enough to beat Steve and Emma in a fair fight.

"Gary Oak…" said the boy

"That's my name…" Gary replied, "And you are?"

The boy simply smiled back in return, "I'd like to challenge you in a one on one match. Regirock, go…" he said in a bored tone. A rock like Pokemon appeared with its eyes blinking and giving out a strange sound.

"Hn…" Gary just smugged, "Ok then… Arcanine, you go"

The boy was visibly surprised to see Gary send out a Pokemon which just fought five trainers in a row. But the fire-dog wasn't even breaking a sweat just yet, "Are you sure you want to use Arcanine? It just battled a minute ago"

Gary grinned, "If you're so scared, then maybe you should just back off. Let's do this. Arcanine, use fire blast!" Arcanine unleashed a powerful wave of fire which melted the snow around to water. Every speck of ice in a twenty meter radius felt the heat and melted into a puddle. Regirock was pushed back to a corner so hard that the wall it slammed broke into pieces. Luckily for them, the building they smashed up was already said 'To be soon demolished'. "Your Regirock is tough. Most Pokemon would've already fainted when they meet that kind of attack" Gary complimented the young trainer.

"You're good Gary. The rumors just don't do you credit. Regicrock, return!" the rock Pokemon was sucked back into its Pokeball, which caught Gary by surprised. The boy didn't even fight back.

"That's it? You're giving up already?" he asked with a hidden taunt behind the words

The boy shrugged and smiled back at him, "Don't worry. I was just testing your strength" Gary gritted his teeth in anger. He was really getting annoyed with these 'tests'. It often involved with joining a gang or test of being worthy of recruiting. Big gangs, like the Bailouts usually sends out their goons to do this to find worthy contestants to join their gang.

"Another test? You want me to join your gang or something? Sorry, but I already have a gang"

The boy laughed, "Hahahaha! No no no, not at all. I just wanted to make sure that you were worth it" this caught Gary very confused, "Gary Oak…… you're a very good trainer. And I'd like to see you win the Valmarian League rather than anyone else" was he praising him? "My boss may be good but she's got a screw loose in that head of hers" Gary was now getting irritated by the boy, "So I'm here to offer you…… a proposition…" those words caught his attention.

"I'm listening"

"I have here an invitation to the Valmarian tournament" the boy pulled out a ticket from his vest pocket and let it bend to the winds, "My boss is joining and the prize isn't bad. If you want to practice your skills, this would a good place to start"

"A tournament?" Gary asked his new so called 'friend'

"Not an official one but a tournament nonetheless" he then folded the ticket back into his pocket, "Many trainers including myself and my boss are joining this tournament to train our Pokemons"

"What's in it for me?"

"A lot of things Gary. More than you would ever know"

The afternoon train ran across the railing right behind the gym. It blocked out all sounds and words making everyone deaf to anything else. It had about fifteen carts running behind it with another nose engine running on the other end. You would probably call this the most advance train in the modern world right about now. It went on for about a minute and a half before stopping at the next station at the end of the road.

"…… So… do we have a deal? Mr. Oak? Or should I say…… boss" the boy finished his unheard proposal with an evil grin with Gary grinning even wider. What could these two possibly be planning and what how low would Gary go to win this league? Whatever it is… it wasn't going to look good on this kid's record that's for sure.

**(Back in Slateport city, shopping district)**

"Haa" that was the sound of Misty sighing as she walked out of the shop with only Togepi in her arms. "It's just too expensive…" she has been going from one store to the next to find something new for a change. She had just recently sent a package to her sisters back in Cerulean city gym but it nearly cleaned out her bank account. "It looks like everything here is expensive" well you're in a city for crying out loud! What did you expect? 99 percent sales or something?

Ahem…

Right after recovering from her failed shopping spree, she saw Brock and the others sitting in a restaurant having a small-medium size meal. Not surprised that Roselane wasn't with them. Since she didn't have anything to do, she just invited herself in and joined them. "Hey guys" she greeted.

"Hey Misty" Brock replied, "You're just in time. We ordered some food for lunch. You want anything?"

"No thanks. I had a big breakfast this morning" she recalled the heavy meal she and the gang had with Ash when they first arrived in the city. She began to think that the gang was now becoming more like Ash everyday. She looked around but then she noticed that the boy in question was not with them in the table, "Oh hey, where's Ash? It's not like him to miss a meal"

"He must be exhausted after fighting with Drake. You don't exactly get to battle a member of the Elite Four everyday" Drew suggested

Duplica simply nodded in agreement, "He's probably at the Pokemon center sleeping by now"

"Speaking of Ash" Brock remembered, "Do you mind delivering this for him?" he then handed Misty a take out meal complete with soda and side dish

"Sure, it's not that I got anything better to do"

"I'll go with you" said Dawn standing from her seat. "I need to get my Pokemons for a check up anyway"

The two girls immediately left the restaurant and headed for the Pokemon center through the cold snow. Not knowing that there was someone else following their trail. Two female like figures sneak up from a bush and took a peek through their binoculars.

"Is that them Wendy?" it was none other than Domino and Wendy.

"Yup, that's them alright" Wendy replied with a grin creeping across her face. They were now in their winter attires. They still had the trademark R sign on their chest but now their uniforms were much thicker. They now wore knee length boots and black scarves on their necks to protect them from the chill of the winter cold, thick mitten gloves to keep their fingers from frostbites and snow caps on their heads. "And you know what that means Domino…"

"That brat and his Pikachu are here as well" behind Domino were three TR goons. One was holding an umbrella on top of Domino since she was the boss and all, but without their Pokemons, her goons were nothing more but your average thug. Domino had to get rid of that weakness or they'd stand no chance against Ash or any of his companions. "So what's the plan Wendy?"

Wendy: "Well attacking them head on would be bad and a sneak attack is almost impossible. And since we barely have any Pokemons with us, the only way on beating them would be to make a giant machine that would be able to render their Pokeballs inoperable"

"Great! But how do we do that?" Domino asked her partner

"Leave the building to me…… And this time…… that brat isn't getting away"

The two girls let out an evil laugh which was followed by the three goons. Why can't these guys just give up for once?

**(At the Pokemon center)**

Roselane stood at the door of Ash's room. She stared at it intently observing every detail of the door not missing any inch of the door. She took a deep breath and exhaled calmly hoping for the boy to come out instead of her coming in. She looked at the door knob for a long time and glared at its craftsmanship. Her arm slowly extended to the bronze object quietly twisting it to an opening position. Just when she was about to reach half way a familiar voice came by from the entrance of the Pokemon center. The blond girl quickly turned her head and saw two girls heading her way.

Misty and Dawn were having a friendly talk on the way to Ash's room but that quickly changed when there was a sudden change in the air, "Hmm?"

"What's wrong Misty?" Dawn asked the red head as she stared blindly into the air.

"Huh? Oh it's nothing" she said, "Strange, I thought I saw someone a second ago"

Dawn knocked on the door to see if Ash was awake. She knocked again and again but there was no reply. "Hmm… Maybe he's still asleep" but Misty didn't mind going in at all. "Wait Misty, you can't just walk into other people's room like that!"

"Trust me, it's gonna take a long time to get that boy to wake up" Misty quickly pulled Dawn through the door and into Ash's room. When they arrived, they noticed that nothing in the room has been touched at all. Well, except for the bed of course which not surprisingly procure the boy in question.

Dawn was a little embarrassed to be in Ash's room as she had never been in another boy's room before. "Well, it looks like he's sleeping. Why don't we come back later Misty?" but the red head refused to let that boy waste his precious morning youth sleeping. She first thought of using her magical mallet and whacking the boy awake but then another idea popped out. She closed in on the boy's ear and inhaled a large amount of air. Togepi knew what was going to happen so it immediately withdrawn back to its shell and plugged its ears from the incoming sound.

"WAKE UP ASH, YOUR LUNCH IS READY!!!!"

The boy immediately jumped out of his bed along with Pikachu and his Pokemon league cap falling to the floor. Ash's ears rang with sound making him almost near deaf. His eyes were still groogly as he tried to find out who dared to wake him from his beauty sleep. The afternoon light was brighter than any time of day so he had to squint them from the window. When his visions finally focused, he turned to a familiar red head, "Oh… hi Misty…" he said sleepily, "Where's the fire…?" he gave out a defining yawn before hugging his pillow and hitting the bed again. Misty visibly got annoyed and decided to trick him, "Ok then. I guess I'll just have this triple cheese burger all to myself then" Ash suddenly got off his bed and grabbed the take out bag with speed greater than quick attack.

"Huh? Where's the cheese burger?"

"Heh, gets him every time"

The two girls just giggled and let out a soft laugh. They however, didn't notice that another dark figure was eves dropping on their conversation.

**(30 years into the future) (Another future)**

Mewtwo walked along a dirt path in the woods not far from Varidian city. This future he had stumbled upon was unlike any other he had seen. It wasn't cold like that eternal winter wonder world he just came from. It was warm and peaceful. There was a small spring at the side making a soothing watery sound. The sound of trees and grass echoed through the ear blending in with the flow of the wind. Mewtwo and his three cloned companions (C.Pikachu, C.Meowth, and C.Charizard) loved the place so much. It was like a paradise in the future. With his companions off drinking at the spring, Mewtwo decided to take a little look at this new path in the world's time flux.

He flew high above the forest and scanned the land around him. It was similar to the past but with the forest much larger. If his mind was still intact then he must be somewhere in the vicinity of Varidian forest. Pallet town was to the south and Varidian city was to the north. Both looked different… way different than before. _"Hmm… why have I not noticed this future before?"_ he asked himself telepathically. He then spotted a new village just near the edge of the woods. He decided to keep a low profile and landed on the ground to conceal his presence. From there he saw a boy probably about six human years old playing with a Pichu. The two of them were playing with beach ball that was colored to look like a giant Pokeball.

"_Why is he so happy?"_ Mewtwo questioned himself as the two of them played around. Just when the boy kicked the ball towards the strongest Pokemon in the galaxy, a voice came up from the distance, "Sweetie, its lunch time" from the sound of the voice, it must've been the mother of the boy.

"Coming mom!" he then turned to his Pichu, "Hey Pichu, why don't you play around for awhile and I'll bring you back some of my lunch (Pi pi pichu!)" with the boy out of sight, the little electric Pokemon (Pichu) head towards the ball to play with it some more. But on his way, he spotted Mewtwo.

"Pi pi pi! Pichu?" (hey you over there! Wanna play?)

Mewtwo looked both ways to see where the Pokemon was pointing, but then he realized that it was actually pointing to him, _"Are you… talking to me?"_ he asked telepathically. Pichu simply smiled and threw the beach ball to him. At first he was afraid to touch it but when he realized that the beach ball was soft, he decided to analyze the toy. The little electrical mice (since Pikachu's a mouse I decided to call the Pichu mice) laughed at his attempt to hold the soft fabric.

After awhile, the two of them decided to have a little game called catch, in the forest. Mewtwo uses his psychic powers to push the ball while Pichu runs towards it and pushes it. After awhile, Mewtwo decided to ask a question.

"_I do not understand"_ he said telepathically, which caused Pichu to stop playing, _"What is the point of this game? I do not see its purpose"_

Pichu tilted its head in confusion, "Pi? Pichu" (The point? There is no point silly) it let out a small giggle, "Pichu pi pichu" (We're just playing)

"_But I do not see the goal. What is the point?"_

"Pi pi pichu!" (To have fun silly!)

"_Fun? I do not understand"_

"Pichu chu pi?" (You don't know fun?)

"_I understand the word but I do not understand the concept of its meaning"_

"Piiii…" (Hmm…) "Pichu pichu pichu" (I guess I can't explain it my self hehehe)

"_I see…"_ Mewtwo sounded a bit disappointed, _"I guess there are some things that cannot be explained"_ he let out a small sigh, _"Then tell me… why do you stay with the humans?"_ the question was more of a statement. It was like, he already knew the answer.

"Pichu? Pichu pi chu!" (Humans? Oh you mean my friend)

"_Friend? You call him friend?"_

"Pi chu chu pichu?" (Is there something wrong?)

"_It's amazing. These humans keep you as pet, and yet you still call them friends?"_

"Pichu pi pichu pi?" (Well, they treat me as a friend so why shouldn't I call them friends?)

"_They force you to fight do they not?"_

"Pi chu hahahaha!" (Of couse not silly hahahaha!)

Mewtwo was dumbfounded with that last statement. He was expecting a more emotional expression from the little Pokemon.

"Pichu pichu pi" (I fight because I want to)

"_Huh? 'Because you want to?' I do not understand"_

"Pi pi pichu" (I fight because I want to protect my friends)

"_Fight to protect your friends?"_

"Pi pi pi!" (Yes that's right!) Pichu jumped up and down with joy to see that his words were getting through to the psychic Pokemon, "Pi chu pi pi pichu" (I protect my friends because that is my purpose)

'purpose' That single word echoed through Mewtwo's mind like a voice in a hallow cave. It had been his dream, his ambition to seek out that purpose, his purpose of existence. Back in the younger times he had been seeking out his sole purpose for many times. He built huge fortresses and mass quantities of laboratory equipment to find his purpose, but it all ended in failure. In the end it only took one boy to open up his eyes (see Pokemon movie: Mewtwo's Return) though his ideals were a bit sketchy it quenched the thirst for his purpose for only about a short period of time.

"_Your… purpose? How can that be… your purpose?"_ again Pichu tilted his head in confusion to his question.

"Pi? Pi chu pi!" (How? Because I care for him!)

"_To care for a human? Why?"_

"Pichu" (Because he cares for me) "Pi chu pi. Pi chu chu pichu" (I want to protect him. And he will protect me) "Pi chu chu pi pichu" (We all create our own purposes)

Just when their conversation was going through a high level of psychology, a voice managed to slip past the silence, "Pichu! Where are ya buddy!"

"Pi? Pi pi pichu chu" (Huh? My friend is calling me, bye) just when Pichu was about to go back to its master, he turned around to give one last blessing to Mewtwo, "Pichu pi pi" (Good bye, my friend) and with that he marched back towards the open field to play with his human friends once more.

Mewtwo was awestruck yet confused at the same time. _"To fight… for someone you care about…… is that truly your purpose?"_ he asked to no one in particular. He then gazed up into the afternoon sky and stared at the clouds as it continuously change shape, _"We all create our own purposes"_ he mimicked the Pichu's saying, _"Then… perhaps… that is also… my purpose"_

**(Back to the present) (In Slateport city Pokemon center lobby)**

Ash had just finished his lunch along with his two friends Dawn and Misty. They still had two and a half days left until Drake takes them to Valmarian and by some sort of luck; a parade was going to happen tomorrow night, The Slateport fiesta, the city's cultural festival. It was a grand parade that was to celebrate the founding of the city. Flyers were being distributed along the street and many of the citizens were already preparing their cabinets. Vendors were lining along the main road, preparing their stands and goods to sell to their customers. The three of them were then joined up with the rest of the gang, who had also finished their lunches.

"Do we have any costumes for the fiesta?" asked Misty

Dawn, as usual, had all the costumes. She managed to sneak a few of her personal favorites into her knapsack under her mom's nose, but the sizes were only for women. The boys would have to buy their own in town. Speaking of shopping…

"Oh I forgot!" Todd spoke out, "I need to buy a new camera!"

"What happened to your old one?" asked Ash

"I left it during the cave in…"

"Ah! My lap top!" Max yelled out, "I left it back there too!"

"I also left some of my packages in there too" Drew confessed

"Along with some of my clothes" Richie said in defeat

Richie's remark reminded Ash that he was also wearing the same clothes for three days now too.

Their bright up heads faced down right bottom. Most of their most treasured and precious belongings went down the drain during that cave in and now they were practically running on reserves. They let out a small sigh all together.

"Hey Ash, can you help me with this?" said Roselane as she carried a small pile of Brock's groceries to the table. "Sure thing Rose" the boy replied. But when he got up, an oddly familiar card fell off his wallet. May walked up and quickly recognized it right away.

"Hey… isn't this mom and dad's credit card?" she was right. There was a picture of Caroline on the photo slot and from the looks of it. It seemed to be brand new. Ash quickly noticed it and remembered, "Oh yeah. Caroline and Norman gave it to me before we left Petalburg city. I don't know how much is in there"

There was a short awkward silence for a moment, but then that silence was given a grin. A grin that was combined by probably half the gang with evil intentions on what to do with that card. A dark cartoon cloud loomed over the room as if some sinister plot was brewing. Ash gave out a sweat drop because he already knew what they were planning to do.

In the end it would be May who would break the silence, "Guys…" he turned to the gang, "It's shopping time…" her voice was so sinister that Norman would be sweating in buckets if he knew that his credit card was in the hands of her own daughter.

'There is one universal truth in the world. Never give your credit card to your husband/wife/child unless you're filthy rich'

-Some guy in a movie-

Before Ash could even realize it, the whole gang (except Roselane) left the Pokemon center to go on their crazy shopping spree. "Norman's gonna kill me" was the boy's only thought at the moment as he helped with the groceries.

"Hey Ash" the boy turned around to see Duplica still holding that Teddiursa bear stuffed toy with her. It had some slight marks and scratches but nothing too noticeable. "You up for some ice cream?" she asked with a pleading emotion well hidden within the voice.

"Yeah sure!" Ash replied almost instantly, "Hey Rose, wanna join us? The ice cream here are great!"

Roselane looked a bit worried and was unsure on how to reply, "Um… sure, ok… I guess"

"Great! Let's get these groceries in Brock's room so he can sort them out"

**(Outside the Pokemon center)**

A group of trio or uh… quad or… well ah…… a group of four hid their presence from sight behind a bush laid next to the Pokemon center. It was quite obvious that they were none other that Team Rocket. The gang that went for a shopping spree had just vanished towards the shopping district to paint the town red (whatever that should mean) With their group spread throughout the city, it was probably the perfect time to strike.

"They're gone now" said James to his companions. Meowth popped his head out of the gutter and checked out his whiskers

"And the twerp is still inside the Pokemon center!"

"Let's go!"

"Not so fast you two!" said Jessie who quickly pulled the two of them back into the bush, "Now is not the right time!"

"Oweee! Why not? The twerp's all alone in there!" James complained as he rubbed his pained red ear

"You idiot! Don't you remember what happened back in his hometown? (see chapter one) He still has that Duplicator and not to mention that he's also in a Pokemon center surrounded by all of his Pokemons!"

"And don't forget that he beat a thousand of us back in Cerulean city" reminded Butch

"Then a sneak attack is our only chance" said Meowth with his paws on his chin

"Hmm…"

"I got an idea!" they all opened their ears to Jessie's plan, "Ok, first we go to the nearest electrical appliance store and steal some parts!"

James was then getting the usual picture. "I get it! We build ourselves a robot and capture that Pikachu!"

"Not quite…" she said holding out her hand, "We build ourselves a robot and then we hide in the festival stage in the city square"

"Why there?" Butch asked

"Becausezzzzz… Everyone in the city will be there. And when the time is right…"

"We snatch that Pikachu!" James said which was followed by Jessie's annoying magical mallet.

"No you idiot! We disguise ourselves as performers on stage, then we see how many Pokemons we can swoop from the crowd"

"Then we snatch that Pikachu? (WHACK!)" Meowth followed James example and fell to the ground as well, right next to James.

"NO! We then give the crowd a performance of a life time and put them all into sleep"

"To sleep?" they said in unison

"But how?" James asked in confusion.

Jessie simply gave out a giggle followed by a sinister laugh, "(sinister giggle) Leave that… to me… hehehehehehe (shows them a sound proof bag) Just leave it to ol'e Jessie"

Will Team Rocket succeed in their plan to capture Pikachu? What is Jessie hiding in that bag? Will our heroes make it Valmarian city? Will anyone be crowned Pokemon Master this year? What of the Guardians and the councilors? Why am I asking all these questions? Find out, in the next not-so concluding chapter of Pokemon: The Final Journey!


	32. A Day Off From Danger Part 1

**Chapter 32: A Day Off From Danger! Part 1  
**

When we last left our young heroes and heroines on their great quest to compete in the Valmarian All Out League, they were left stuck in Slateport city. But for some great luck, a festival was just about to occur tomorrow evening. While May, Max and the rest of the gang were out shopping, Duplica invited Ash and their new found friend Roselane for a scoop of ice cream.

"I'll have vanilla please" said Duplica to the clerk on the counter. "I'll have chocolate please" Ash added. He then turned his head to Roselane who was strangely looking at the posters on the left, "Uh… what do you want Rose?" the blond girl jolted up and mentally slapped herself to be seen acting so stupid. "Um… I'll just have what you're having ahehehe" she said with a tilted smile on her face. The more her new friends hang out around her, the more suspicious and strange she becomes. Ash decided to ignore it and gladly took the two ice cream cones from the clerk.

"Here ya go. One vanilla and two chocolate ice creams with nothing on top" said the clerk as handed them the ice creams.

After taking the first few licks, Duplica spotted puppet show happening on the side of the road. "Hey Ash, look!" she pointed at the small stand when a bunch of kids were gathered to watch the funny scene. The trio walked in and listened at the obvious feint voice coming from the back of the stands. The act was an action/comedy which was played several times during the earlier days. The puppet master's voice was also very convincing. He was able to change from low pitch boy's voice to a high tone feminine voice. The three of them laughed as they had to admit that it was quite funny in the end.

Once the play ended, Ash decided to head over to the pier to watch the waves together. Ash's Pikachu had to agree because the wind was most refreshing especially in the late afternoon. The calm winds the air was just a nice bonus. Having such a lovely atmosphere, the trio decided to take a little seat on the bench in the boulevard.

They stayed on that bench for about ten minutes in silence until Ash noticed something just off shore. It was kind of feint, but he could definitely see an island on the other side of the giant ocean. It was indeed the Valmarian stadium. He had heard rumors that it was huge, but he never thought of it to be that huge. It looked as if the entire stadium was a city itself from his point of view. "Wow…" he said out silently which caught Duplica's attention. "Would you look at that…" Ash continued, "It's really the Valmarian stadium" the ace duplicator simply giggled at his some-what excitement. "I know… it's humungous!"

"Hey Ash, Duplica, Rose!" the three of them turned their heads to meet Anabel and the rest of the gang with bags on their hands and smiles on their faces. "Oh, hey guys" greeted Ash, "Where have you been?" Misty gladly answered that silly question, "Oh you know… hanging around" Well… it wasn't exactly a complete lie. The whole is that they have been shopping and painting the city red (I really don't get that metaphor) May had insisted on using her dad's credit card which everyone reluctantly agreed.

Todd bought himself a new camera fully customized and everything, Tracey bought a complete portable art set which should improve his sketching ability quite nicely, Brock spent some on medicines and love novels in book stores, Max spent his share on getting a new lap top and a new Pokenav, just in case they might get lost. Misty on the other hand was able to buy that Doku set (Chinese collection very popular with women) for her sisters and had already sent it via mail. Anabel and Dawn spent their share on some new cloths and some lovely accessories. But for May…… well… let's just say that she bought 1/8 of the city.

"You guys…… didn't spend much… did you?" Ash gave out a huge sweat drop from his hat hoping that Norman won't kill him for this. The gang simply smiled back and returned the credit card back to him.

**(Petalburg city shopping mall)**

Norman was doing his usual flirting with the clerks to get a discount. He was like Brock but only that his catch up lines were much more effective and his timing was near perfect. When he finally got the female cashier to give him a small drop off, the man quickly swap out his credit cards and placed them like a poker cards. "Pick a card my lady, any card" he said slyly. It was a good thing that Caroline was on the upper floor or else he would've been visiting the world of pain a hundred times over. The girl blushed and complied in taking one of the cards. She slid it onto the reader but when the results came out… it denied entry. "Eh?" the famous gym leader said confused. The cashier simply picked another credit card but then the results were the same, they were all denied of usage.

In the end, the man did the only possible thing to save him from embarrassment, "H-O-N-E-Y!!!!!" he was calling out for Caroline. What a poor guy… both literally and metaphorically.

**(In the Fortress of Gregro under repairs)**

After the interior part was complete, Sha-hear ordered the immediate repairs of the outer walls and fill in any gaps that might prove as a weak point to the fortress. He had enough Pokemons in his arsenal to start the war all over again and more than enough supplies to feed a nation for decades, but without the king, he wasn't certain about victory. The fortress truly was a shadow of its former self. Many of the inner chambers were in shambles to the frightful power of time. The stones that held the keep together held on longer than he could've anticipated and he was glad that it did, or else he and his companions would still be sleeping in the snow right now.

If anyone had ever seen an impregnable castle, then Fort Gregro would register to be one of the strongest of them all. The fortress was stationed on an island surrounded with trees. It was kept well hidden from sight by locking itself inside the mountains. With a natural ravine providing it with a moat to fend off invaders, the sight of only one major entrance seemed to be more than reasuring for the garrisoned force. There were two layers of walls with the second one twice as high as the first one to keep a watchful eye on the attackers. Outside of those gates were legions of Pokemons patrolling the area 24/7. Towers loomed over side buildings making it nearly impossible to slip by unnoticed. And if by some miracle you managed to get past the first two defense lines, you wouldn't be able to last long, since the third line of defense was personally guarded by the four guardians (Rosa, Chaucer, Sha-hear, Hagard) and their elite chosens. (Chu had only recently became a guardian when they had woken him up from slumber) Inside the main keep was a series of traps and mazes in which to keep the enemy at bay. No one, but the guardians and the chosens were allowed on the same floor where Chu/Pallet was. His room was barricaded with serious defenses and the door itself was meant to hold off a siege. Inside the room, lay four altars in which held the relics of the king. Chu was sitting and meditating while a box lay at the center of the room. It was the box which Sha-hear managed to retrieve from a ruined temple not far from the fortress.

Chu locked his eyes on the box while at the same time keeping his mind at peace. The box was in a shape of a rectangle and for some strange and bizarre reason, it gave out a sickening aura which could make any normal human puke. The box had no lock, but at the same time, it was sealed by magic. It was decorated fully with drawings on each side making it looked like a cursed item. Whatever was inside of that box, it surely wasn't gonna be good for the world.

"Pallet, are you in there?" that was the voice of Chaucer banging the door on the other side. Pallet didn't even bother to look back when the large steel door began to unlock itself and letting the boy in. "We got a problem"

"Rosa's gone… I know…" replied to boy not taking his eyes off the box. Just when Chaucer was gonna volunteer to go and look for her, Chu cut him off, "Let her be… for now…"

**(Back in Slateport city boulevard)**

The gang decided that it was finally time to chill out, since Ash had finally thought that fighting with an Elite four was more than what he needed practice. He was planning to train later again tomorrow before the festival starts. They all agreed and immediately took off to buy their own ice cream. Luckily for them, there was a picnic ground just right next to the ocean which Misty loved so much. The table was enough to fill in all of them and chat about random topics. While Brock, Tracey, Todd and the others were laughing at each other of their own jokes, they began to notice that the Valmarian league contestants were barely paying attention to them at all. May, Ash, Dawn, Anabel, Richie, Drew, Duplica and their Pokemons were all glaring at the island just beyond the ocean. The Valmarian city isle. The grand stage of all Pokemon trainers.

It had been a strange journey for Ash and his gang. Two months ago, he started his journey all the way from Pallet town in the Kanto region and this adventure had taken him from his home town to Johto, to Hoenn and eventually his ultimate goal… the Valmarian stadium. The rest of the contestants were having the same thought. Their journey began a long while back from their home towns, and now they were about to face off in a battle worthy of champions! The mere thought of it was already enough to get their blood to start boiling.

Just as they were starring at the city just beyond the sea, Ash walked up to the railing just right next to the table which was followed by the other contestants. It was as if their minds were now in connection with each other. They all extended their arms at the same time and balled their fists, making it look like they were grabbing the whole city into the palm of their hand.

"Almost there… just a little further…" said Richie which the others nodded in agreement. Right at that moment, Ash couldn't hold it anymore. The familiar feeling of battle, the tension, the crowd chanting his name like some sort of super star. It was all just too good to be true!

"Alright everyone come out!" Ash immediately summoned out his Pokemons (Swellow, Turtwig, Dophan, Totodile, Pikachu and Cyndaquil) and began running through the field and training along the way. The aura he gave out was simply estatic that even the nearby trainers began to feel energized. Ash's friends and companions gave out a gaze of pride and immediately began training as well. Except Roselane. The girl was just sitting there sipping tea and glaring at Ash when no one else was looking at her. She still had that chibi face which was kind of adorable.

Misty on the other hand was just plainly sighing. For a moment there she thought that Ash was taking things slower, but she was wrong. "Well, I'd better get started on making dinner" that was Brock speaking as he opened up his recipe book, "From the looks of it. They'll be hungry as a startving Snorelax" Tracey agreed and immediately began to set up the dining table. Once again, Misty sighed, "Some things…… never change"

**(Valmarian city gym) (Three weeks before the tournament)**

Gary and his crew had just entered the gym in a five man formation. The other gangs shivered in fear as the mere sight of the scarred boy came by. They never expected him, a seasoned veteran trainer to be participating in such a feble tournament. Havic gazed around with his black shades and noticed a lot of his opponents already shaking in their boots. He let out a slight smirk before moving up to his 'boss' "Looks like there more wanabes here than in town" he said to Gary. Jaques had to agree with his ex-boss. Most of the trainers here belong to the Bail Out gang. Luckily, two members of the so called 'Elite Five were there to battle them which could prove to be quite a challenge. On the other side of the court, one of the Bicento Brothers was chatting with his closer friends. The whole Voltegoths gang were competing though, which could prove to be a hindrance to Gary's crew. But… what really caught the boss's attention was the two human figures resting their backs on the wall. It was none other than the Loners. Gary could already see the grin on the enemy boss's partner. Who would've thought that her only partner would be stabbing her at the back?

"Well… let's get this party started" Emma said with an annoyed face, "The sooner we do this, the sooner I can get back to get my nails done"

Gary gave out a smile and nodded slightly. "Steve…" the chubby nerd boy turned to his boss, "Yeah boss?" he replied with a smile. Gary simply pointed at the girl wearing all red and said, "Make sure I get to battle her…" Steve looked at the girl for a moment before he gazed back at Gary, "No problem boss. I'm right on it" he gave out a thumbs up and quickly headed to a secluded spot. A dark and spooky area would be an excellent location for him to put his computer hacking skills to the test without being noticed.

Right when Steve was out of sight, the referee came out to give the signal of the beginning of the unofficial tournament. The audience seats were being filled up rather slowly but still, it was good to have someone to watch. "Ladies and gentlemen!" the reff began, "I am proud to present to you the beginning of the Valmarian city tournament!" there were loud applauses but that was pretty much it. "And now… let us begin with a random selection!" the screen on top began switching pictures to pictures, but eventually what came out nearly made the audience leaped up onto their feet. 'Gary VS Soledad'

Gary heard that name before but couldn't quite put the needle onto it. He took a mental note to thank Steve later, if he remembers after the battle that is. The boss of the Loners who was now known as Soledad tapped her partner's shoulders and smiled, for she knew that this was gonna be a battle to remember indeed. "Contestants, please step up to the battleground!" the referee requested which was humbly given. "This will be a three on three match with no time limit! The last trainer with a Pokemon stading will be declared the winner" he darted his eyes back and fourth on the two trainers as they gave out their own smiles to hide their emotions. If you think the audiences were thrilled you should see the judges, they were practically dying of curiousity on who was going to win! They've heard of Gary's fearsome fame, but they've also heard about the talented young Soledad. She was a Pokemon coordinator who hailed from Pewter city Kanto (Brock's town) and was famed for being number one in three competitions already! Nurse Joy who was one of the judges was more worried about the Pokemons rather than the battle, but the other three judges were practically ordering their bodyguards to get them pop corns and sodas.

**A/N: Soledad is a real character in Pokemon who can be found in episode 456: May we Harley Drew ya!**

Strangely enough, Soledad wasn't the one who named her gang if you could call it that. Some whacko kid who saw her battling must've thought of it because she usually just hangs around alone during the night.

As the two trainers glared at each other, Gary's crew and the rest of the audiences watched anxiously as the referee held out his whistle. The man was nervous that much we all can tell by the shaking of his hand and the sweat from his forehead. _"Holy Miltank. It's only the beginning of the round and these two are up already_" those were probably his thoughts when he finally gathered up his breath and blowing through the whistle.

Beeeeeeeeep!!!!

Gary was first to choose and threw out one of his Pokemons, "Go Nidoking!" the ground Pokemon appeared with a defining roar, but Soledad wasn't gonna back out just yet, "Slowbro, you're up!" a psychic water Pokemon was now out of its Pokeball and ready for battle (Slowbro…?)

"Get ready Nidoking. This is gonna be easy…" the whole crowd shivered with excitement as Gary turned into a battle stance. During his frequent challenge by trainers from all sides of the city, he always stood still and his hands always in his pockets. It meant that the battle wasn't good enough for him to get serious. Havic darted his eyes back and fourth to see each and everyone's reaction. He smirked when he noticed almost 99 percent of them were practically sweating buckets. But as he turned his eyes to meet Soledad's face, he noticed that she was smiling. It wasn't a grin or anything he's been seeing of late, but an actual smile. Who could probably smile at a tense moment like this?

"Slowbro, use watergun on Nidoking!" Soledad made the first move. The lazy Pokemon was conscious enough to obey his master's orders and immediately let out a stream of water out of its mouth. "Dodge it Nidoking and use poison sting!" the poison Pokemon dodged the water attack and unleashed a volley of stings which was nearly invisible to the naked eye. However, Soledad's Slowbro used it shell tail to shield itself making the needles bounce off harmlessly, but Gary knew that as well. "Alright Nidoking, go in for a megahorn charge attack!" with its back still turned, Slowbro wasn't able to move fast enough to dodge the attack coming from Nidoking and was immediately sweeped off its feet. "Slowbro, don't worry! Use psychic and push Nidoking off!" the pink lazy Pokemon regained composure in mid air and used its psychic powers to move Nidoking out of the way as it landed perfectly on its feet.

"Not bad… but I got plenty of tricks up my sleeves!" Gary gave out a smirk before waving his hand, "Now Nidoking! Use focus punch!" after regaining its balance, the mighty poison Pokemon moved in and slammed Slowbro right at the chin, "Oh no! Slowbro, hold on! Use your tail to block it!" Slowbro moved its tail up front and blocked the mega punch but it still wasn't enough to save him from the impact. The two sides quickly got back to fighting mode and readied another attack.

Havic was really losing his cool over this match. His usual sly grin was turned upside down as he kept gazing upon Soledad's smile. He shrugged and went on to see who else was worth his salt. He approached Jaques and said in a soft voice but only loud enough for him to hear it, "Take a look around. We might be here for awhile" the silent blond man nodded slightly, making sure no one else notice their private talk. After that, they both parted to find out who was strong and who was not. There would be signs when you see a veteran trainer. The first and most obvious one would be their eyes. If you could speculate the differences, a real pro would hide his amazement on the battle that was occurring. Many trainers that were around had their eyes nearly bulging out of their lids, not taking a single blink until the battle was over. The second clue was the shape of their arms and hands. A pro trainer would already be having wrinkles in his or her palms if they kept throwing Pokeballs over and over again. The third and probably final sign would be their aura. It's more of a spiritual feeling rather than normal. For pros like Gary's gang, they would be able to feel a pro right by them if they were close by. This essence wasn't exactly rare but if you could feel it then you can proudly call yourself a true professional.

Jaques spread the message to the rest of the crew and began looking for worthy candidates who are a threat to them. After a few minutes of walking and looking around, Havic noticed something he hasn't seen all day…… a grin. But not just any kind of grin, it was a kind of smile that would truly make a man glued to the ground. That grin had fangs at the end of both sides which added to the intimidating look. That grin belongs to no other than Soledad's partner whose named still remained a mystery to him. Having a slight hint of fear creeping up his neck, Havic decided that it was time to get some info.

**(Back in Slateport city later that evening)**

After having a wonderful meal at the park, Ash decided for the gang that it was time to hit the hay. The others didn't protest… when Ash says its time to sleep, then its time to sleep. Brock looked at the gang as they all agreed to his decision. It wasn't long until he finally understood that his friends didn't just look up to the boy as a friend, but as a role model, a leader of the pack, the Alpha Omega or something like that. His words were final but that doesn't mean that he doesn't listen to his companion's suggestions. If you want to see a leader than the New and Improved Ash Ketchum will definitely show your eyes their fill.

"Hey Rose" Ash turned to the new girl in the group, "Where are you staying by the way?" the blonde haired girl looked back and smiled happily, "Oh, I'm staying at a place in downtown. I guess I'll see you all later" Ash wanted to say something but before he could even move his lips, the girl was already long gone. He really couldn't get that strange feeling that he'd met the girl somewhere before. Maybe it was one of his friends during his four year journey since he did make a lot of friends and four years is a long time to make lots of friends.

As those thoughts were racing through his mind the voice of Max and the rest of his companions brought back his attention to the Pokemon center.

After putting all of their Pokeballs into the nursery, a quick shower and changing into their pajamas, the gang thought of nothing but hitting the bed and going straight to sleep. Misty was with her Togepi just like every night, May was with her brother in a two bedded room, Dawn, Duplica, Brock, Todd, Tracey and Anabel had their own room and were quick to go to dreamvile. But a certain young Ash Ketchum had a thorn in his mind that would probably keep him up all night.

The boy was in his PJs and his costume for tomorrow's grand festival was hanging just by the cabinet. Even though he persisted on obtaining one, Anabel decided that he needed something that would look the part in the festival. Wearing something too fancy would give out his identity and something too common wasn't something for a famous boy to be seen in. Dawn and May had a tough choice in picking out his costume but in the end, Anabel was the savior. She managed to find one that wasn't too fancy or common. It was the last one in stock and it looked like it was made just for the boy himself. Since the festival was more of a costume party rather than a celebration everyone had something different to wear. Either it was a kimono from traditional times or to pirates or space aliens of the future, but Ash's costume was more of a blend between the two. It was a royal gown for Elite members of the high social class from the middle ages. It was definitely noble like but it was good no matter how you looked at it. Truly… if anyone wore that, they would almost look like a king.

'King' that single word returned the death defying incident that happened a few days ago. His smily face quickly turned to a frown as Loin's words echoed through his mind like a tape recorder. Qucikly remembering the threat that was about to come in a few weeks, Ash removed his arm length glove and looked at the tattoos that had been strangely growing. At first… it looked as if it was just a stain from paint, but after two months, those strange markings had begun to take root. It first spreads out to his hand then to slowly takes up to his shoulders and now… it began reaching his chest. Ash quickly remembered that he only needs to hide for a few more weeks until he could conjure up a solution. As long as he doesn't use his powers, he will be safe… for now.

It wasn't then till Pikachu began to murmur, "Pika… chu" (I'm… thirsty) After hearing his Pokemon mumble, Ash walked up to the fridge and pour some water in a bowl and gladly served it to the little mouse, "Here ya go buddy…" Pikachu was a little surprised to see his master holding up what he just wanted but ignoring that, he just began sipping the whole bowl dry. "Pika pikachu!" (Thank you!) it said with a wide smile. "No problem Pikachu" Ash replied putting the bowl back into the bathroom sink, "I can't have you dehydrated now can we?"

"Pika pika pikachu…" (Yeah, just like that time back at home…)

Ash laughed, "Oh yeah I remember! Back when mom was out and I was still sleeping" his last sentence made Pikachu raze his ears and eyes, "Pika?" (What?!) Wondering what was wrong, the boy looked at Pikachu, "What's wrong Pikachu?"

"Pika… pikachu?" (Can you… understand me?) there was a short pause in the air. The room grew quiet as the sound of the air conditioner was the only thing making noise. After realizing something so bizarre, Ash dropped the bottle of water onto the floor and became… awestruck, "Pi… Pikachu?" he was struttering at his little friend, "... D… did I just… understand you?" he half hoped that it was true.

Right at that moment, the whole Pokemon center nearly woke up because of an up roar, **"WHAT IN THE WORLD!!!!!!??"** it was a good thing Ash's room was nearly sealed tight, or the entire police department would be right here and now. The boy tried to calm himself but nothing was working. He couldn't believe it, he actually understood what Pikachu was saying. The boy wanted to pinch himself so hard to make him believe that this was all a dream but then, _"Oh wait, I remember!"_ his thoughts popped up a conclusion, _"The Pokemon king had the power to communicate with Pokemons so that must mean that I can too"_ he let out a relieving sigh as it was probably the only logical solution that his mind could conjure up.

Pikachu gave out worried glance to the boy as he pulled his long PJ pants, "Pikapi pika pikachu?" (Ash, is everything ok?) the boy looked back and smiled. If he let any of his friends know about this dark secret then they would become targets for the Guardians for sure. He held out Pikachu onto his arms and brought it to bed with him, "Its ok Pikachu…" he said softly, "It's just that telepathy technique that Anabel's been teaching me" he brought up a logical excuse but since he was known to be the worst liar in the history of man kind, Pikachu saw the fakeness of that smile. He knew Ash was hiding something but he'd rather sleep than to know something that would keep him awake all night.

**(Back in Pallet Town)**

"Delia, where are you?" the professor was yelling outside his house. He was putting in his luggage and his hand carry on the back of the taxi along with the two Jennies. The driver had been keeping the meter running because every second counted as something. "Delia?" the man said again calling out to the woman who was staying with him in his house. "Hurry up, it's time to go!"

"Coming!" she yelled back. The professor face faulted when he saw what she was carrying behind her. The woman was practically bringing her entire closet with her. A bag stuffed with clothes literally almost the size of the door came into view. "I'm sorry" she apologized with a wide smile, "I just didn't know if I should either bring formal or casual things to wear" the old man gave out a sweatdrop. It was gonna be a long time before they could get to the air port in Varidian city.

**(Back in Valmarian city gym)**

"Lapras is no longer able to battle! The match goes to Gary Oak of Pallet Town!" Lapras, Soledad's last Pokemon she used in the tournament had finally fallen after a quick brush with Gary's Pokemons she had an almost equal match up against him. Unfortunately, her opponent seemed to have exploited all of her weaknesses and used the terrain to his best advantage. The girl had to admit that he was indeed a true trainer and a professional one too.

By the time she returned Lapras back into its Pokeball, the girl approached Gary and extended her hand in a manner of good sport, "You fought bravely Gary" she complimented her ex-rival, "You managed to beat me fair and square" instead of returning the shake, the boy just shrugged and went on to meet with his crew. It confused her greatly to have such a great trainer to be such a bizarre person. As the battles went on without much disturbance, Gary approached Havic and said silently, "Who did you find?"

"Not much" Havic sneered back with his usual smile, "Steve's report are accurate enough but I don't think those Rock and Role heads (Voltegoths) would be much of a trouble" he said turning his head to the electric guitar users who were shaking their heads violently. The man sighed as he turned towards the Bicento Brothers at the other end, "The one to look out for would be that older brother, Elton Bicento. I heard he has Moltres up his sleeves" Gary looked at bit surprised but kept quiet as he went on with his report, "The Elite Fives from the Bail Outs range from weakest to strongest" Havic turned his eyes to the five pro looking trainers sitting on empty area in the audience stands surrounded by their more 'seasoned' minions. "The weakest of the five would be that guy Binor. He mostly has rock types from what I heard" he motioned to the guy wearing a Hoenn baseball cap and a Scottish colored jacket he made sure that Gary was paying attention, "The girl over there would be Claire" the girl was wearing plain green. She had a vest that was unzipped and a tight shirt that exposed her belly. With the long pants she was wearing she could really match up to Emma in a different way, "Her Pokemons are a mixture of flying and fire. She's as good as she looks…" Havic humored him with his own sense of a joke. "The third one goes by the name of Kyle" the blue haired man with a pony tail sticking out at the back wearing all blue common T-shirt and shorts, "His Pokemons are Water type" Before mentioning the other two, the referee held up the red flag to signal the winner of the round.

"Xatu is no longer able to the match goes to Emma of Mauville city!" he motioned which the girl just gave out a brightful cheer. Her battle with the youngest Bicento 'cousin' went as smooth as silk itself. She didn't lose a single Pokemon while her opponent lost six of them.

After giving his partner-in-crim a smile, Havic resumed his report, "And that girl over there next to the leader…" he motioned Gary to the girl next to the man wearing a white snobbish suit. She had a pig tailed hair style and a small kitty bag on her left. She wore the same outfit as Claire but with a rather more girlish color. "Her name is Eesal. Don't let her looks fool you. Her Pokemons maybe cute but she managed to beat Steve without taking a hit" Gary giggled as it interest him on how strong the girl was, "And the spoiled man you see at the center over there" Gary could see a grin crept up on Havic's face as he spoke up, "He's a rich kid from Shinou… Kevin"

As Gary looked up to see the Elite Five, the leader of the pack looked back and smiled at him. It was an annoying smile that would make you wanna pound the guy into a pulp.

**(The next morning, in Slateport city)**

The morning wasn't as bad as it looked. Misty woke up so early that the sun wasn't even hitting her face yet. She looked at the clock and noted that it was still too early to even open her eyes, "Its still 6:30?" she said with a slight mumble. Regardless of what she said, she still got up and got dressed, "Oh well, since I'm up I'd better get some exercise done" she said to her Togepi who was also awake. Instead of wearing her usual clothes (Battle Frontier outfit) Misty wore her jogging pants and a sweater to keep her from the morning cold.

By the time she reached the Pokemon center lobby she saw Nurse Joy doing her usual check up runs for the morning. "Good morning Nurse Joy" Misty said placing Togepi in her nap sack (chuki preee) the pink haired nurse greeted back and then she quickly heads off to see the other Pokemons sleeping in the nursery. The morning sun rise couldn't be anymore perfect than it was now. It wasn't too bright and it wasn't too dark either. The tempreture was cold because of the snow but the girl didn't mind, she kinda liked it to be honest. Her sprint lasted a few minutes until another figure approached her from the other side. She was quite curious who else would be up at this hour. By the time the person's face came into eye view, both figure were surprised to see each other.

"Misty?"

"Dawn?"

Dawn was surprisingly not wearing her cap anymore. She was now wearing a thick sweater with a Pokeball logo at the back along with shorts and running shoes, "What are you doing up so early?" the Shinou trainer asked the water Pokemon trainer. Misty just returned with a smile, "I was gonna ask you the same thing" Dawn just gave out a chuckle in return, "Oh I was out excercising. After seeing Ash and the other boys working out yesterday, I thought I needed to catch up. An't that right Piplup?" (Pi piplup!) the penguin Pokemon agreed along with Buneary and Pachirisu. Beyleaf was probably still inside her Pokeball since it didn't like waking up too early. "Hey Misty, mind if we join you?" the red head hesitated at first but then it would be nice to have a talking partner along the way. "Sure Dawn, we'd love to"

After a few minutes sprint along the way, the two of them decided to change their course and head towards the central park where the festival was supposed to be held. Both of them were impress to say the least, since most of the props were already in place and the only things they needed to put were the wires and lightings for the festival mood. Many of the shops were still closed due too being so early. After taking a short breather at the park fountain, Misty decided to pop a question, "Hey Dawn…" the blue haired girl turned her attention from the drinking fountain to her running companion, "How did you and Ash met?" it was a strange question to be asking at a time like this, but then again, it would be nice to know each other more. Dawn tilted her head up and thought for awhile before replying back.

"Well…" she began, "You could say that it was by accident"

"Accident?" Misty echoed her last word. They then continued jogging before she resumed her story, "Yeah… I met his Pikachu when I was traveling to my first Pokemon ribbon contest" she huffed with some of the phrases along the way. "It was being chased by Team Rocket and their talking Meowth" Misty giggled on how similar their situations were, "After he and Pikachu were brought back together, we kinda just automatically became friends" she turned throught a sharp corner and continued jogging not letting her speed go down, "After that, he's been training me on how to capture Pokemons and other useful things" she then porked up a giggle, "I remember one time I accidentally threw a Pokeball at his face" (see Pokemon episode 470: Two Degrees of Seperation) "After that, we began traveling all over Shinou and like he said we had been battling non-stop" Buneary jumped on ahead of her and waved back at the running group. "And there was one time when we had an incident with Dialga and Palkia" (see Pokemon movie 10: Palkia VS Dialga VS Darkrai!) the girl shivered a little as those memories would propably haunt her for the rest of her natural life.

As Dawn was probably mentioning her other adventures with Ash she turned upon another corner and suddenly bumped onto someone holding an ice cream cone "Hey!" the boy yelled out as his cholate ice cream fell onto his jacket.

"Eiyeee… that hurts…" Dawn grunted as she held her back in pain. Misty helped her up, "Are you ok Dawn?" she asked with a bit of worry, but when she turned her head to meet the boy, she was quite surprised on who it was, "Richie?!" the two girls exclaimed in unison. The young Pokemon trainer took his attention off his newly cleaned jacket and glared back at them, "Misty? Dawn?" he said their names with confusion. Sparky wasn't far behind when his master's chocolate cream slid down from his jacket.

After getting reacquainted with their companion, Richie explained that he woke up about ten minutes ago and decided to get a little snack before breakfast. "So what are two doing here?" he asked the girls who were eating up the sandwiches they bought from the store. It was a dumb question really. The boy could already tell that they were out exercising with their sweaters and running shoes but he just needed the formality.

"Oh nothing much" said Misty feeding her Togepi with a small bite of her sandwich, "We were just catching up on some exercise"

Dawn then added, "What about you?" she said tilting her head to the boy, "Oh nothing" was his reply, "I was just out getting something to eat" they all let out a small laugh until another voice crept up behind them, "Hey guys, what's up!" it was Duplica taking a morning walk with May and Drew, "I didn't expect to see you this early in the morning" they were probably gonna say the same thing to them but they rather not.

**(Back at the Pokemon center)**

Max had just woken up from his sleep. He was hugging the extra pillow which he forcefully took after his sister went off with the others. When his alarm clock finally woke him up, Munchlax (who was left there along with the rest of the Pokemons) came in to get some snacks out of the bag, "Munch? Munch munch munch munch!" the hungry Pokemon began opening the fridge and looting through bags like there was no tomorrow. Max groogly woke up from them for the sudden rumble picked up his glasses and immediately gave an outburst, "Munchlax! You can't eat that!" if Max was a second slower, the Pokemon would've been choking on a bag of pencils by now.

On the other side, Anabel had already returned from her jog and was about to return to her room for a nice warm meal and a quick shower but when she got to the lobby, she was surprised to see Ash there with all of his Pokemons out and playing. "Hey Ash" the boy was visibly surprised to hear someone awake, "Oh… hey Anabel… what's up?" the girljust sat next to him before she replied, "Oh nothing… I just got back from my morning exercise, so I'm heading off for some breakfast, wana join me?"

The boy was about to say no but then suddenly he stomach began to growl, "Aheh… yeah sure, why not" he gave out a sweat drop before holding Pikachu up to his shoulder, "I'll bring my Pokemons along too. It's been awhile since they had anything good to eat" the six Pokemons immediately brightened up with glee.

It was amazing that the Pokemon had a food center add on in the south-east wing. It wasn't a five star restaurant but at least it was good enough to suit their taste and they allowed Pokemons inside too not to mention that it was also spacious. The Pokemons were immediately given their Pokechows while the two humans sign up to see what they can get. The menus weren't like the ones in the S.S Notilus but heck, they at least had Ash's favorite, "I'll have a cheese burger and a juice please" the waiter scribbled it down onto his notepad, "Very well sir" he then turned to Anabel, "And you madam?"

"I'll just have a salad and juice" she plainly replied which the waiter nodded and walked away. By the time he was out of hearing distance, Anabel decided to pop up a conversation, "So Ash" the boy she motioned turned to her with undividing attention. "Why so glum? I thought that you'd be happy to get to Valmarian city"

The boy let out a soft smile at first but then it turned into a frown, "It's not that…" he began, "Don't get me wrong, I'm happy we're going to Valmarian… but…"

"But what?" she asked with curiousity growing inside. She wondered what could possibly make the great Ash Ketchum so down.

"It's complicated…"

"Pika pika pikachu" (Tell me about it)

"Let's just say I'm looking at a bigger picture ahehehe"

"Come on Ash. You're the best Pokemon trainer I've seen in years, and I doubt anything can stop you when you put your heart in to it"

Anabel could remember well on how he fought against the White Bandits, his eyes were more focused, his grip on his fingerless gloves tightened, his throat cleared to give out commands like a true professional, his mind focused on one thing: **To defeat his opponent**. In almost every battle, the boy would be in a a state of near trance of his own mind. He would be almost completely unstoppable! It was frightening but at the same time it was amazing.

"So…" Anabel loomed closer to Ash as if she was gonna kiss him, "If you're having doubts…… How do you feel now Ash?" the boy was speechless. He could feel her breath on his face and those pair of purple eyes starring straight into his soul. He bent backwards to avoid of her face but he couldn't hide the blush coming from his cheeks. The two of them stayed in that position for about a minute until a sneeze alerted them to a presence.

"Oh… I'm sorry! I hope I didn't disturb you!" it was Nurse Joy who was hiding behind the counter. She was watching the scene so intently that she didn't even noticed the dust gathering under her nose. The two trainers quickly pulled apart and smiled.

"Pika pikachu…" (Oh boy… it must be a girl thing…)

"Pikachu… shhh!"

**(At the Fortress of Gregro) (Near Completion) (Pallet/Chu's quarters)**

Pallet was in his ten by twenty rectangle room on the chamber before the sacred altar of resurrection. The other Four Guardian didn't really needed rooms due to the fact that they could go and fight for days without taking a single wink of sleep.

As the boy was taking a short nap on his bed, a knock alerted him to a presence outside his quarters, "Come in" he ordered, not even moving from his bed. The one who entered was the second Guardian Hagard.

"We have another problem Pallet…"

The boy just snuggled onto his pillow before replying, "What is it now…?"

"Chaucer has gone off to find his majesty. And he's taken his chosens along with him"

"Let him do what he wants for now. They'll all come back eventually"

Hagard was a bit surprised to hear that from him since the day of the planet's alignment was closing in in just two or three days. Instead of questioning his authorities, Hagard simply bowed and left the room, "As you wish"

On the outside of the room, Sha-hear was leaning on the wall with a grin on his lips, "So how did he react?" he asked opening one eye. Hagard made sure that no one was around to get an ear shot before replying, "He took it quite well. Although things are getting a little out of hand"

Sha-hear had to agree, "I know… with the day of destruction soon approaching, it's no surprise why those two went off on their own"

"I understand why Chaucer would go, but I do not understand why Rosa would attempt such a wasteful move" this sentence made Sha-hear giggle, "What? What's so funny?"

"Hahahaha! For being the brightest of all Guardians Hagard, you certainly are the slowest hahahaha" the man continued laughing all the way through the hall leaving behind a very puzzled Guardian. "Wait! Sha-hear wait! What do you mean? Tell me!"

The man probably wanted him to find out for himself, but as he walked through the top floor of the castle keep, a Skarmory approached the window with a message attached to its leg. "Huh?" Sha-hear carefully removed the medium size scroll off the iron bird's wing trying not to destroy any of its contents. After a quick glance through the old papyrus his face clearly stiffened.

"What is it Sha-hear?" Hagard asked his leader.

Sha-hear simply rip the paper into tiny bits of pieces and threw it out the window so that its message could not be read again, "Chaucer has located the area where his majesty may be. He hasn't made contact with Rosa but will continue searching"

"What an idiot. He probably forgot that he could've just talked to us telepathically"

"No…" Sha-hear said that word pretty quietly for some reason, "He has something else in mind. That's why he sent us a letter, so that nothing can eves drop on our conversation" he then grabbed a Pokeball from his pocket and released a Tropius, "I'll send him one of my chosens. Hagard, you ready the water Pokemons for battle"

"May I ask why?"

"You may…" Sha-hear smirked, "Tropius, go with Skarmory" with the two flying Pokemons gone into the distance, he turned his attention to the boy next to him. "By the way… what's the status on our army?"

Hagard gave out a mother of all grins before pointing down through the window, "Our numbers are growing steadily as we speak. Pallet's influence with the Pokemons have been… beneficial to our cause. It won't be long until a new era is upon us" What lay below the castle keep was about a thousand Pokemons crowding each other going on with their own business. The chosens were easily defined with the gold armor that they wore. With the castle still under repairs, not one of them was able to get a wink of sleep until they are certain that the place was impenetrable.

"Are you sure that's enough? We might need more just in case" Sha-hear said with a little disbelief.

Hagard laughed, "Hahahaha! Name one person who could stop us!

**(Back in the Temple of Ressurection)**

Loin was taking a short walk to the altar room when suddenly, "Haa… haa… HACHOO!" he sneezed, "Hmm… someone's talking about me…"

**(30 Years into the future) (The Other Future)**

The three clones (Pikachu, Charizard and Meowth) were taking a little break under a giant boulder next to a river. They were waiting for their fearless creator to return from his patrol but after a few hours they were beginning to worry.

"Pika pikachu pi pi!?" (Shouldn't we go and look for him?)

"Meow meow meowth…" (If he says he'll come back, he'll be back. Just be patient)

But C.Charizard wasn't exactly the patient type, "Rarrrr! Raaaar!" (I'll go look for him! You two wait here!) flapping out its mighty wings and ready to fly, the fire Pokemon halted when it felt a presence closing in, "Raaaar!" (Master!)

"Forgive me for being late my friends. I was… thinking"

"Pikachu?" (Thinking?) C.Pikachu looked at his master strangely. Mewtwo was smiling, but not like those other smiles he gave out before. This time… it was a real smile. One that you may only see once in a life time.

C.Meowth approached him, "Meow meow?" (Did you figure out something?)

"Yes my friends… I have finally found…… my purpose…" the three congratulated him on a job well done, although he didn't say what his purpose was, they were still happy for him. "But…… it appears that my purpose will require your aid.

"Raaaaarrrrrr!" (Just say it and it will be done!)

"Pika pikachu!" (We're with you no matter what!)

Mewtwo glared at his cloned companions and let out a single tear flicked down his cheek, "Thank you my friends, but the four of us will not be enough to change the past" with a single motion of his hand… errr I mean paw or whatever you wanna call it, a time portal revealed itself and allowed them entry to the cyber space. "Come… it is time we gathered up… our family"

**(Valmarian city) (Gary's suite)**

Knock knock knock… the hard banging on the door annoyed Gary as he was still meditating on the floor with his eyes closed, "It's not lock… come in…" the door slowly opened to reveal the ex-partner of Soledad. Gary could feel the smirk and his presence quite clearly since no one had a more double crossing aura than he has, "What do you want now…?"

"Nothing much" was his reply, "Just came to tell you that the Voltegoths and the Bicento Brothers are dissolving each other"

Gary chuckled, "Usually Steve would be the one who'd give me the report" and truth be told it was exactly like he said. A few seconds later, Steve came in with an urgent report, "Hey boss! You won't believe this, but the Bicento brothers and the Voltegoths gang are fighting each other!" Steve didn't even bother to notice the boy next to him. "Oh hold on for a moment!" he then opened up his laptop, "I got an e-mail from Emma" after a quick scan through the message Steve's eyes visibly widened with shock.

"B… b… b… Boss… he… he… he… he's here" Gary finally opened his eyes from his mediation and looked back at the stuttering boy, "He's here… Ash Ketchum… is here…" in a blink of an eye, Gary gathered his Pokeballs and rushed out of the window. Even though he was five stories above ground, Jaques already sent out one of his flying Pokemons to get him out on a quick getaway.

"He's FINALLY here!" thought Gary as he soared through the skies of the city and directy towards the Pokemon center.

**(Valmarian city Pokemon center)**

Emma was a little surprised when Gary suddenly dropped from the sky above her. She just sent the e-mail message through her phone about five minutes ago and the suite hotel was practically on the other side of the city. "Where is he?" Gary yelled out, "Where's Ash?"

"Which one?" was her reply, which probably confused the boy. But after he looked at the Pokemon center, he understood completely. There were kids ranging from early trainers to nerd teens dressed up as Ash. Some were dressed in jackets and Pokemon hats (Ash in season one) and a lot were dressed in black (the one he used incognito in Mauville city) Emma simply stumped and walked in the other direction, "Well… I've done my job. Later boss, I'm going to get something to eat"

Gary was annoyed to the max, as if one Ash Ketchum wasn't enough, there just had to be a hundred of them. "Oh well… might as well give gramps a call"

**(Back with our heroes) (Later that evening) (10 minutes till the Slateport city Founders Festival starts)**

"Come on Max, hurry up!" May yelled out to her little brother. She was wearing her usual princess costume (the one she wore at the beginning of Movie 8: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew) but Max was wearing something slightly different (yeah right!)

"I'm not coming out wearing this!" Max yelled out inside the room

"Oh come on… don't be such a baby Max. Just come out already!" it wasn't long until Ash came by already suited up in his king like costume. "Hey May, what's up?"

"It's Max, he won't come out with the costume I picked for him"

"That's because its hideous!!!" the kid's voice rang out again. Ash simply chuckled and turned the door knob, "Come on Max, it can't be that……………" there was probably a long pause when Max's costume came into view. He was wearing a cute Teddiursa bear costumee with sparkly eyes and tiny bear paws. Ash would've bursted out a laugh if hedidn't see Max's eyes twitching angrily at his sister.

"Ooooooohh Max, you look so cute!" May squlled like a ten year old who just got her first Pokemon.

Ash wanted to agree but he just swallowed down a laugh, "Well… it looks great on you Max ahehehehe" a few seconds later, the three of them arrived at the Pokemon center lobby to see Brock in his knight costume, with Drew in a tuxedo and Dawn in her contest (the pink blouse she always where during a competition) "Hey there guys, what took you so long?" the older boy asked his friends. Drew simply smirked while the Shinou girl grabbed Max by his cheeks and squished them, "Oh my… you're soooooo cuteeee!!! (Kawaiiiiiiii!: that's cute in Japanese… I think)"

"Hey guys, what's up?!" the gang turned their heads to meet Tracey who was wearing a vampire outfit and Richie wearing pirates outfit complete with a wooden leg and a hook on his hand. Sparky was also wearing a pirate's hat (Jack Sparrow's hat 'sevy'?) (Pika pikachu!) Not long after that, Misty, who was wearing her favorite cerulean colored dress came by with Duplica who dressed up as a Ditto and Todd who was wearing……… a Charizard costume.

With all of them assembled, Ash spoke up with Pikachu on his shoulders, "Alright guys! Let's go and have a blast!"

"YEAHHHHH!!!!"


	33. A Day Off From Danger Part 2

**Chapter 33: A Day Off From Danger Part 2**

And so our heroes gathered upon the city square to witness upon a festival that comes only once every year in Slateport city. There was a stage on the center of festival grounds, with food stands and shops all around. It looked almost as if the carnival came into town. There were street magicians, clows and comedians playing on the ground giving the people some much needed entertainment and plently of games to go around.

"So where do we go first guys?" Duplica asked wiggling her Ditto costume. She still had the Teddiursa stuffed toy that Ash gave her, but it was definitely getting worn out. There were so many things they all wanted to try but what caught the most attention of the crowd was this new game called Pokemon card battle. It was probably the latest hip of the new generation but the rules were pretty sketchy. The prize however… was big. It wasn't cash but a pretty Pokeball that was said to contain a surprise Pokemon inside. Many Pokecard addicts were already banging the winning table like crazy but it seemed like no one was able to top down the reigning champ.

Brock then suggested, "Hey, why don't we all just split up? We can just meet up later" his eyes were already darting from one woman to the next. The girls in the gang sighed but then noticed that Gregguru, the frog like Pokemon was ready to pound the man over and over until he learns his lesson. The gang quickly agreed on the split up and dashed off to find their own attractions.

Ash was walking down the south eastern corner of the festival square when suddenly he saw Misty in her blue Cerulean dress. She was starring at the cotton candy maker as it twirl and twirl over and over again and again. It was becoming so dizzy that Togepi began to have swirly eyes herself. "Hey Misty" Ash walked up to her, "I'll have two please!" the clerk nodded and quickly produced the two cotton candy. "That will be (shouts and yells)" Ash handed the man the money and gave one to Misty which she hesitated to take for a moment.

"This is a great festival! I wonder what else they have to show" Ash scanned his surroundings but wasn't able to get anywhere further to the tall crowd. Just then, he spotted Max trying to get a view of a Pokemon contest but was too short to see through the legs of the audience. Seeing the little boy's demise, Ash quickly grabbed Max and held him onto his shoulder so he could see better, "Got a good view there Max?" he asked

"Wow, thanks Ash! I can see the whole stadium from here!" For once, Max was truly living up to his dream. Though he didn't expect to be wearing a Teddiursa costume in the process. Just when the match was proceeding well, something caught Ash's eyes. A frame made entirely out of silver. It was small but was probably enough to hold something more than just a picture. "Hey Mr!" he called out to the shop owner, "How much is this?"

"Hmm… I bought that thing all the way from the Shinou region, so it's quite expensive" the man said with his hand on his chin, "But for you, I'll give it away for (crowd scream) what do you say?"

**(A/N: I don't really want to say the currency of the anime since I don't know what kind of money they're using)**

"It's a deal!" Ash quickly handed him the money and quickly put the silver frame in his pocket. He had plans for that item, but he won't tell that's for sure.

On the other side of the festival square, Brock was looking at the latest attraction to the new generation of youngsters. The Pokecard battle. It was a game where luck played a big role in it. (It's the same as the Pokemon card battle in the real world)

"Hey Brock, who's winning now?" asked Tracey taking a bite off his corndog.

"Well…" he replied, "Red Team taken the lead by two wins, but it looks like the Yellow Team is catching up with one more win"

"Oh? What happened to the Green Team?"

Brock sighed, "They lost four games in a row so they forfeit. Blue Team and Orange Team are coming up next on the semi-finals"

"Really?" Tracey finished up his corndog and grabbed another one out of the plastic bag, "Are the registration still up?"

"For the finals, but I doubt anyone would want to go up against the champ"

Todd then came out of no where and took a few pictures, "What's the prize?" Brock answered his question by pointing at the oddly colored Pokeball at the top of the prize shack, "They say it's a rare Pokemon but I bet that's only to attract the audience"

Tracey then spoke out, "I bet Ash would do anything to get that Pokeball if he knew how to play this game" they all agreed but then his last words didn't go unheard.

Somewhere nearby, four girls (Anabel, Duplica, Dawn, May) heard his statement. _"Anything eh……"_ they thought in unison. The next thing Tracey knew, Anabel, Duplica, Dawn and May were on the table and ready for a card battle of their lives. "Was it something I said?" Tracey gave out a sweatdrop.

The announcer then came by to bring out the start of the match, "Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Pokecard final round! There had been a sudden interruption since four new players have entered the battle!" the crowd gave out a cheer, "But remember folks! There is only one prize for this tournament and only one of you will be leaving along with it. So…… players!... BEGIN!"

Cards began shuffling and glances were being given around. Card battles were certainly more difficult than real Pokemon battles since all their stats and abilities were fixed tight. "Sheese…… my Blaziken can take out his Gyrados in just three moves" that was what May was probably thinking when she laid down one of her favorite cards. Strangely enough, the girls were really building up their skills with the game that they already became pros in a matter of minutes.

As one minute turned to one hour and one hour turned to two hours… it all came down to this. The last three semi-semi-finals matches, and the winner will have a chance to go against the champ.

Back with Ash, he was clapping when the opening music came to an end, "Ughhhhh! I hate these cheesy opening musical numbers" Max groaned taking a bite off his double ham sandwich. To the god's surprise, he was still on Ash's shoulders having a time of his life. Ash wasn't tired or annoyed, he kind of enjoyed having Max on him. It felt like he had a sibling, but on the other hand, he also had Misty by his side. "Hey Misty, what's the next show?"

The Cerulean gym leader opened up the schedule for the live band show coming in today for the festival, "Well since that band is over then I guess… Rocket Team?"

"Rocket Team?" Ash repeated what she said in disbelief, "You mean Team Rocket?"

"No it just says Rocket Team" there was a short pause between them. They were both thinking that it was just some sort of coincidence but what are the odds of that happening in real life? But before they could even think of a possible solution, the lights began to dim. And then not long after that, a familiar talking Meowth voice echoed through the speakers.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Slateport city!" the crowd turned their attention to the stage, "May I have your attention please!?" the crowd piped down, "Allow me to introduce to you… the greatest hit band this world has ever known! They came all the way from Kanto, Johto, Shinou and of course the very grounds of Hoenn! (slight crowd cheers) They've been keeping a low profile for many years, and now… for the first time in history, your ears will be blessed with the greatest rock music creators of this galaxy!"

"No way!" Ash gasped

"They can't be serious!" Misty gulped

"Could it really be!?" Max nearly choked on his food.

"That's right ladies and gentlemen, I give you! ROOOOOCKET TEAM!!!!!!!!!!!" with a blink of an eye Meowth dashed off from his mic and back into the curtains where he took place behind the drums. He then whispered to his three partner-in-crimes (Butch, James and Jessie) "Alright guys, I got their attention, now its time for us to rock!"

"You brought the package right Jessie?" James asked which was replied with a grin and a nod. When the curtains rose the trio plus one waved onto their newly acquired fans. "Wow… we haven't even started and already we're famous!"

Back on the audience, Ash got a closer look if it was really Team Rocket. "Yup, it's them alright, it's Team Rocket!" he confirmed it when he saw Jessie and James faces.

"Do you think they're up to no good again?" Max asked still sitting on Ash's shoulders.

Misty gave out an obvious look, "We'll just have to wait and see…"

**(Time skip) (3 minutes 37 seconds) (Team Rocket just finished singing their Team Rocket song extended version)**

Right after their music was done, the whole crowd went into a deep silence, no one said a word, not even our young heroes and heroines. No one was sure if it was good or bad.

James and Jessie and Butch gave out their bows and waited for the applause to begin. But after twenty seconds of silence, they began to worry. "Did they like us?" James asked worryingly, "I don't know…" Butch was now getting Goosebumps on his arms and legs.

A minute has passed by when a baby began to laugh and clapped, "Tee hee haha tee hee haha!" the crowd looked at the baby and began to follow his example, in a few seconds the whole crowd began to give them a giant round of applause. Even to Ash's dismay, he had to admit that their song was kind of catchy to say the least.

"Maybe they're not so bad after all…" he said with a slight smile

Team Rocket or should I say Rocket Team, waved out to the audience and smiled. It wasn't long till Jessie took the mic, "Thank you thank you! You're all a wonderful audience! Tell me who you love?!"

"Rocket Team! (x4)"

"Yes that's it!" Jessie was so out of the loop that she left the rest of the crew behind.

Butch leaned up and whispered to James, "I think she's forgotten all about our plan" the other two had to nod with agreement. The girl really was in one of her happiest moments. With the red head still oblivious to her own plan, Meowth had to take things into his own hands, "Alright, it's now or never! Everyone, put your earplugs on!" the two crooks plugged their ears while Meowth quickly grabbed Jessie mic and shouted, "Hey Slateport city! (cheers!) Do you want an encore!? (YEAAAAH!) Well then get ready!" the talking cat pulled out something from the box laying on the ground and to everyone's surprise… it was Jiglypuff! "You heard them Jiglypuff! Let a rip!"

Ash quickly realize what was going on! "Oh no it's Jiglypuff! Everyone, cover your ears!" but it was too late, with the first two or three rhythms, half the crowd began to drool and eventually fall asleep. Not even Pikachu was a match to the singing power of the little pink ball.

**(Back with the card players)**

"I take down your Treecko with a Charmander!" said Dawn slamming a card down

Duplica then countered, "Well I take down your Charmander with a Blastoise!"

It was the last table of the finals between the two but when Dawn was about to re-counter her card, an echo seemed to have taken the wind. "Oh yeah Well I… can… take that… out… with zzzzzzzzz" in a matter of seconds the whole city began to sleep. Since the mic was connected to every stereo in a five block radius and to add to that, the sound wave that echoes through the buildings would at least go for another four or five miles or so.

**(Back with Ash)**

Ash, Max and Misty covered their ears so that they wouldn't be able to hear Jiglypuff's, but then they soon realized that it was pointless. Misty's eye lids began to slowly close and soon she lost conscious and fell asleep, but Ash caught her before she fell to the ground. He knew that he was going to dream land soon but a few seconds later, he realized that the music was affecting him at all, _"It must be the power of the king"_ he thought, but then he noticed that Max was also sleeping on his shoulders nearly going into a state of a drool.

"I looks like it's all up to me" Ash carefully place Max down on the ground and ran to the stage where Team Rocket was on, "Team Rocket!!!" he yelled out.

"It's the twerp!" they gasped all together

"I'm gonna put you in your place once and for all!"

"What?" they weren't able to hear him clearly due to the ear plugs they were wearing

"I said: I'm gonna put you in place once and for all!" he repeated

"Oh" they moaned.

"Alright Pikachu, give them a thunder shock attack! (silence) (silence) Pikachu?" the little yellow mouse was fast asleep on the ground along with Misty and Togepi. "Oh no… I forgot!"

"Hey… why isn't Jiglypuff's music affecting him?" James asked his team, but none could procure an answer. "It doesn't matter!" Jessie yelled out, "Let's just get that Pikachu and get out quick!" in an instant, the ground began to shake, and suddenly a huge robotic Wobbuffet tore through the stage like paper through a grinding machine. In a blink of an eye, a robotic hand appeared and pulled Pikachu into an electric proof box.

"Mission accomplished!" said James, "Let's get out of here!"

Meowth agreed along with Jessie, "Oh wait a minute James, we haven't said our motto yet"

"Oh yeah that's right!"

The lights dimmed again revealing only the giant mech, "To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation!"

"To denounce the evil of truth and love"

"And extend our reach to the stars above"

"Jessie"

"James"

"Team Rocket blasting off with the speed off---" they were once again interrupted when another voice came in from above.

"With the speed of a Slowpoke that's what I say!" Team Rocket looked above them to see Cassidy on a Ratacate balloon wearing ear mittens to block Jiglypuff's singing. "Hello there super losers…"

Jessie grinned her teeth like a meat grinder, "Cassidy! I should've known she'd come out sooner or later! Get lost 'Single' this is our show!"

James put his feet on the console and flexed some muscle as well, "That's right, this is our time to show the world what we're made of!"

Cassidy simply laughed at their idiotic attempt, "Then I guess this will be your final curtain call. Ain't that right Butch?"

"You got that right Cassidy! These suckers will fall for almost anything!" the group turned around to see Butch carrying a sleeping Pikachu in his arm "Later losers!" with speed faster than sound, a jet suddenly popped out of his back and launched him towards the balloon!

"Hey come back here you traitor!" Jessie yelled out but it was no good, Team Rocket (BETA) were too high up. "This isn't over!"

"Oh hohohohohohohohoho! Now that's what I call an easy victory" Cassidy gloated at them

"Yeah right… I was the one doing all the work" Butch mumbled but that didn't matter now. They have Pikachu and the faster they get to Giovanni the faster they'll be promoted or praised or something. "Alright Butch!" Cassidy commanded, "Full speed ahead towards the nearest TR Headquarters!" as their balloon heads off above the ocean, a missile suddenly appeared out of nowhere and shot them down. "WAHHHH!!! Butch, what's going on?!"

"Mayday mayday! We're going down"

"WAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!"

"Pikachu, look out!!" but just before the yellow mouse could onto the ocean, a net came out of nowhere and grabbed him. Ash already knew who could've developed such a wicked looking weapon already. It was none other that Wendy and Domino on their new Scarlet MK: 2. It didn't have all the luxurious of Scarlet MK: 1 but it still had all of its TR functions.

"Good… it looks like we got that Pikachu…" Wendy checked through the monitor on board the flying blimp. Domino really wanted to head back home as fast as she could but when the sight of a certain hero came into the screen she just couldn't help but grin. "Hey Domino, let's get the rest of the Pokemons laying around!" Wendy suggested

"Hold on just a minute" she replied slyly holding one hand up. "I want to remove a certain insect from bothering us again hehehehe" but before she could attack Ash, the ship began to rumble, "What the?"

"Miss Domino! It looks like that giant Wabbuffet is attacking us!" said one of the crew members. The red alert sound began ringing out through the entire ship signaling to get everyone to prepare themselves. Domino grinned even wider before speaking onto her headphones, "All crew, Battle stations! Ready weapons port C-H and fire on my command!"

"Yes ma'am!"

Meanwhile, Jessie kept yelling at Meowth, "Come on Meowth, doesn't this thing have anymore fire power?!" the talking cat gritted his teeth while he kept pressing the fire mechanism thingie, "Put a sock in it lady, this thing wasn't built to fight balloons ya know!"

James then noticed something happening on the Scarlet's exterior, "Hey… look at that" there were holes around the front and sides of the blimp but then suddenly, they realized that they were actually, missile pods.

"Evasive maneuver!" Jessie yelled out in panic, but it was far too late. The missiles already made contact with the mech they were on and slowly it began to tilt. "That can't be good…"

And it was certainly not gonna be good for Ash, he was practically just below the giant robot, "Whoa! Whoaaaaa! WHOAAAAAA!!!!!" he began to run as the giant Wubbuffet began to fall. He was far too late to get into a clearing but when he thought that all hope seemed lost, a Pigeot appeared out of nowhere and carried him out of the way.

The Wubbuffet robot fell to the ground with a loud defining crash which caused Jiglypuff to be blown off into the distant sky. It was a good thing it landed on the parking on, or there would've been serious casualties. Ash tried to focus what was going on, when he realized that he was on the back of a bird Pokemon, "Are you ok?" the boy focused his attention to the rider. "Rose?!"

"Hold on!!" she yelled back, "This could get a little bumpy!" Ash held on to her like an anchor that wouldn't even budge during a typhoon. Her Pigeot was so skilled that it was able to traverse through the tall buildings without any difficulty at all. After a few minutes of gliding along the streets of the city, they spotted the Scarlet (now equipped with a giant vacuum) sucking all the loots and Pokeballs into its giant cargo hold. Even Ash's Pokebelt was taken by the giant sucking machine.

"Oh no! Team Rocket are taking away all the Pokemons!" he leaned closer to Roselane, "We need to get on board that balloon!" the girl nodded hesitantly then shifted her Pigeot to get onto the deck of the Scarlet. Surprisingly for both of them, the place was unguarded. They looked around for a way into the ship and found a blast door at the center of the viewing platform. Ash tried with all his might to pull and push the door but it just wouldn't budge.

"Here… let me try" Roselane recommended which Ash complied. She knocked on the blast door gently a few times and walked back several paces. To Ash's surprise, someone actually answered the call. "Yes?" the TR goon said, opening the door. Roselane gave out a cute genuine smile before giving him a good kick on the face. "Gets them every time" she chuckled before turning to Ash who immediately dashed in despite the dangers, "Hey Ash wait!"

The two heroes traversed through the blimp like two kids in forest, except that it was a floating forest. There were so many twist and turns and not to mention guards that patrol the halls every hour. The blimp interiors looked more liked those renaissance pirate ships that sailed across the ocean robbing unsuspecting towns. It had the works alright, a cabin for the underlings, a storage bay, offices and of course, the training room. Roselane left her Pigeot outside just so that they might need for a quick escape. After five minutes of running endlessly, Ash eaves drop on some goons talking in the bathroom.

"Hey, did you check the Pokeball storage tanks yet?" said the first voice

"No, I had that new kid do it for me. It's just a waste of time" said the second one

"Oh boy, will Domino be mad if he sees you not doing your work"

"Who cares, the storage tank is just right next to the security room. I can just walk up and pretend that I was working"

"_The security room…"_ Ash remembered seeing that room name on the hall back, "Follow me Rose. I think I know where they're keeping the Pokemons" the trip to the security room was uneventful since some of the guards decided that it was time to turn in early for the night. They were practically lucky since the guy in the security room was already snoring peacefully with a magazine on his face. And by some strange coincidence, they were able to find the Pokeball storage tanks. Probably ¾ of the cargo hold was filled with Pokeballs right now, and to think that Team Rocket would go as far as this.

**(Back on the main control bridge)**

"Miss Damino. The Pokeball storage tanks are 70 percent full. Fifteen minutes until it's full" the goon reported the stats to his boss.

"Good" was the blonde girl's reply. "Tell the crew to get ready to…" she didn't get to finish her sentence when she noticed one of her personal cameras caught the image of Ash and Rosalane sneaking through the cargo hold area, "It looks like we got some company (click click click)"

**(Back at the storage tanks)**

"Alright" Ash began, "When the guards leave, we'll try and find a way to turn this thing around and---"

"Attention security!!" the speaker cut him off with a loud yell. It was definitely Domino's voice on the other end, "We have an intruder at section 8! I repeat: we have an intruder at the storage tanks! Security unit move in and bring them to me…… alive!"

"Oh oh! We got to get out of here!" just when they got out of their hiding spot, one of the security guards spotted them with his flashlight!

"There they are, I see them!" he yelled out to alert the other guards to their presence. Roselane got into some sort of strange combat stance and prepared to fight but Ash quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from them before they could even start a fight. In just one minute, the entire cargo hold area was now swarming with TR goons and thugs. With nowhere to run, Ash decided to get on top of the storage tanks. At least there, he might have a chance against this army.

"Pikachu…?" (huh?) the little yellow mouse who was the first to be captured began to wake up under the pile of Pokeballs around him. Immediately his eyes caught sight of two humans, "Pikapi!!" the echoe of his voice caught Ash's attention immediately, "Pikachu?! Hey Pikachu, you're ok!" (Pikapi!) "Hold on buddy, I'll get you out of there in no time!" the only thing separating Ash from his best Pokebuddy was a hard thin layer of glass. But right now he had bigger troubles. He turned his attention to some fighting noise and saw Roselane kicking TR butts. Her moves were rather inhumane since she managed to leap a couple of feets higher than your pro basketball player, especially for her age.

With the guards kept busy, Ash turned his attention to the master control on top of the storage tanks. "This must be it" he guest though he was still quite uncertain that this would release all the Pokeballs. "Ok… now how are we gonna do this?" he muttered as he kept pressing the buttons and pulling levers randomly.

**(Back in the main control bridge)**

"Miss Domino, someone's messing with the storage tank controls!" the goon reported hastily to his boss.

Domino's eyes visibly twitched with anger as her entire army were being in such a state of chaos with just two meddling kids. Unable to take the steam anymore, she pulled up her ear phones and yelled, "What the heck is going on over there?! They're only kids, can't you idiots capture two lousy brats!?"

"Sorry miss Domino (a guys flies off in the back ground) But the kids here seemed to be (WAHHH!) a little tougher than we thought!" just then, an explosion occurred which caught the attention of the whole crew.

"What's going on!?" Wendy yelled out standing from her comfy chair.

One of the goons clicked on the scanners before reporting, "There's a… (pause)… a Pokemon attacking on the starboard side of the Scarlet! It's damaging the rudder!" his sentence was then followed by another explosion.

**(Back in the storage tanks)**

"(Explosion!!) What was that?!" Ash wondered if he did something to cause that explosion, but immediately returned to his original mission, to find a way to release all the Pokemons, "Come on! There's gotta be something here that will make you work!" he yelled out to the machine while Rosalane was busy pounding TR minions over and over again, and she wasn't event breaking a sweat.

Just then, a sentence popped up on the monitor screen saying, 'Cargo Hatch Opening'. It meant that the cargo bay's door was now about to open. When the sirens began singing, the goons knew that they had to get away before they all fall towards the city a couple of thousand miles below them. Roselane saw this and immediately got next to Ash's side, "We have to get out of here and fast Ash!"

"Just a few more minutes" he replied calmly, "I think, I'm getting the hang of this"

**(Back in the main control bridge)**

"Ms. Domino, the cargo bay doors are opening! The vacuum has stopped!" the goon reported even worst news. The blonde had finally lost her cool and slammed her fist onto her chair handling which broke it off completely.

Just then, a whole bunch of sounds were popping in the scanners, "Ms. Domino! I have multiple flying Pokemons incoming. They're moving on some sort of an attack formation!"

"Alright, that's it!" Domino called her crew's attention, "Abandon ship! To the escape pods, quick!" the crew and Wendy unfastened their seat belts and hurried to the escape pods on the sides of the air ship. It was only a matter of time before the whole thing crashes.

**(Back in the storage tanks)**

After pressing a few buttons, Ash managed to get the storage tanks to open up its safety mechanisms. A safety cushion began to swallow the whole container with its soft fluffy skin. It was to protect the cargo inside and container from breaking when dropping from high heights or unless it went underwater.

"Attention!" the speaker began, "All crew members, please evacuate the Scarlet immediately. I repeat, please evacuate the Scarlet immediately. This is not a drill! This is not a drill!" the crew heard this and began to panic. Some ran for their lives towards the escape pods, and some even tried to go on for the traditional parachutes to get out of there. It didn't really matter, as long as they live, they could care less of how they go with style.

"Pikachu!" Ash called out his little yellow friend to come to a corner where he can talk with him. "Pikachu, whatever you do, please take care of the others! I'll come and find you! I promise! (Pikapi!!)" in a blink of an eye, the container jettisoned itself off the cargo hold and into a part of the city.

(Pikapi!!!!) Pikachu yelled out with all his might to his master. His felt something tingling in his little bones. It was as if he was looking at Ash for the very last time, and he truly hated that feeling most of all. He was ready to lay down his life a hundred times over to see his master go to safety.

Roselane saw this and suddenly gave out a whistle to signal her Pigeot where she was. To Ash's surprise, the bird like Pokemon did appear just where the wanted it to appear. The long blonde haired girl rode on its back and extended her hand to Ash, "Come on Ash! We got to get out of here while we still can!" Ash was just about to reach for her hand when suddenly; his sight caught the worst view ever.

The blimp that they were riding on… was heading straight down towards the Pokemon center in the city!

"OH NO!!!" Ash quickly jolted up and dashed towards the hallway to find the control for the blimp. Roselane was confused and quickly followed him after telling Pigeot to get out of here. "Ash, wait! Come back! It's suicide!"

On the exterior part of the Scarlet MK 2, hundreds of escape pods were being jettisoned from their sockets. Team Rocket surely has lost a lot of their equipments and hopefully now, they'll stay away from our heroes.

As the giant air ship lost control of its stabilizers, its nose part began to tilt down heading towards the Pokemon center directly. Ash knew that if he didn't act fast, a lot of Pokemons aren't gonna be seeing tomorrows breakfast meal. He grabbed on to the door handles and carefully made his way to the main control bridge which was undeniably in front of the ship just below the nose part. Ash tried not to get too close to the main window, since it would only lead him onto his untimely doom. Instead, he tried to regain control of the ship by pulling it away from the city.

He immediately found the steering wheel for the ship, but it looks like some knuckle head put a safety lock on it. "Grrrrrrrr! It won't budge!" he struggled to pull the handle out of the safety chains but no luck. "If only I had one of my Pokemons here with me!" he then remembered that had the power of a king... and that he could actually destroy this entire city with a flick of a finger if he knew its full potential. But right now, he just needed to break the metal chains that were holding the steering wheel. He quickly tore out his arm length glove and aimed it at the lock.

_Do not attempt to use your powers, because the Guardians will surely find you_

Loin's words rang through his head again. Right now he had to make a choice to save his own life… or to save thousands more? He wasn't really quite sure which one was the right decision. Follow his instinct or his courageous heart? Time flowed extremely slow for some bizarre reason. It was like looking at your life fading slowly before your very eyes. The sight of the Pokemon center was getting closer and closer every passing moment and if he doesn't do anything, he will probably just be another casualty in the piles of thousands.

"I have to save them. Those Pokemons are counting on me!" he mentally slapped himself out of his thoughts and began charging up his powers.

**(Fort Gregro) (Near completion)**

The outstanding aura of the king's power surged through the world like a plague going from one place to the next. Sha-hear's eyes widened considerably as its location could easily be traced now. "It's almost time…" he walked into the shadows and removed his human clothing. When he came back into the light of the moon, he returned back into his original form… as a Pokemons… the white Lucario. Even though his small size and scarred eye left him a little handy capped, his dual blades that were placed on his arms clearly gave a statement that he was not a Pokemon to be trifled with

Hagard also felt the signs as well and immediately changed back into his original form as the Green Lucario. "No more mistakes…… no more miscalculation. I will… see this through!" he spoke to himself as his hands er I mean paws clenched into a fist.

In Pallet's quarters, the energy flowed in the most with echoes repeating itself over and over. The boy's menacing grin returned to his mouth as he knew… the time for humans… is quickly coming… to an end. "It's almost time…"

**(Back on the Scarlet MK 2)**

The chains quickly broke into tiny bits of pieces, leaving the steering wheel back into control. Switching his god like powers on to its minimum condition, he was able to have the push through normal human limits and stand up against the tide of pressure. The glass that was meant to keep the wind out suddenly broke into pieces nailing at Ash's body several times. But that wasn't even close to enough to stop the boy. His mind was as focused as his arms. He turned the wheel to the left again and again causing the whole air ship to slowly turn towards the sea.

The people below that had not been affected by Jiglypuff's song were running for their lives as the blimp comes down just above them. It was an experience of a life time for any kid.

"Just… a little… further! Just… a little… more!" the ship began to ram against the nearby buildings making screeching sound and a breaking a lot of properties. This was gonna be hard… real hard for Ash.

Back in the hall, Roselane had no other choice but to abandon the ship as well. Her Pigeot was waiting for her just beyond the bulked door. She jumped onto its back and flew away but not too far away.

Guiding the blimp through the tall buildings of Slateport city, Ash was finally able to relax when he saw the big wide ocean. The whole ship came crashing down with one big giant splash. It was like bing bang boom SPLASH! But Ash's body soon grew tensed when he realized that if the ship sank into the sea, he'll be sleeping with the fishes too, literally! "I got to get out of here!" he yelled out to himself as the water began to rush in. He sealed the door connecting to the main control bridge and the hall way but with little time left, he had to make it quick if he's gonna get any chance of escaping the water hole.

The boy traverse through the hundred corridors that could lead to almost anywhere, looking for a way out. The last of the escape pods were already destroyed during the crash and the parachutes were practically useless here. Ash's only hope of survival was to make it to the back of the ship, through Domino's office. "I hope… this ship… grrrr… has a back door!" he struggled every inch of the way. With the front of the ship bending down, one wrong move could prove disastrous for our young hero.

**(Somewhere above the ocean)**

Roselane, who was still riding on her Pigeot scanned the beach and other surfaces for any signs of Ash. He should've made it if he had enough time to make it to an exit. "Ash?! Ash! ASHH!"

**(Somewhere along the skies) (A flight trip going to Rasboro city)**

Delia had just woken up after hearing a feint sound of her sons name. She thought it was just her mind playing tricks on her again, so she ignored it. But it was so hard to ignore. Her eyes focused on the city her plane was soon to be landing on. It was quiet and peaceful but not like her little house in Pallet town. There were just simply too many people in one place to even focus your mind. It's hard to believe that those people actually live in a place like this.

"Delia?" her thoughts were turned to Samuel who just came from the lavatory, "We'll be landing in the airport soon. So keep your seatbelts on"

"Sure thing professor" she replied with a smile. It hurt the professor so much to see that smile of hers. It wasn't like those that she gave back in Pallet town. It was more of a forced smile, one that you've seen in movies in drama scenes.

"Don't worry…" the professor smiled back, "You'll be seeing Ash soon"

It was a good thing that the professor had two Jennies to come along with him. Right now, he felt like he had an army of his own personal bodyguards that could take on an entire gang with just one blow. A simple thought of the two twin-like girls made him focus his attention to them. Who would've expected the great Jennies to be sleeping at a time like this?

**(Back with Ash)**

"Come on Ash… just… a little more…" Ash was now talking to himself to boost some morale up. It felt like the weight of the world was clinging down onto his shoulders like a nail that just couldn't be removed. But even with such burden on him, he was still moving forward. Ever vigilant, ever prepared, he was ready for anything, and I mean… anything.

"Gotcha!" he grabbed the door knob of Domino's office only to get a feeling that something was going terribly wrong. "Huh?" he mumbled out quietly before looking behind him. The ship that crashed onto the ocean was beginning to sink deeper into the sea. Water levels began to rise as the air began to thin. Ash put one last push into his right tattooed arm and blasted the door to pieces. Water began to rise into the room filling it to knee level faster than you can say 'Pikachow' Ash saw the balcony window to the back of the ship and it was still dark. That means that it was still above sea level. "Alright, I think I'm gonna make it!" his words probably jinxed him, because before he could even reach the window, the table fell onto him ramming his body to the wall.

Ash once again struggled to keep himself alive, but it seemed like the power on his right arm was beginning to fade. He didn't know why. He barely used any power but now he felt like he was weaker than an ant. He pushed again and again, but there was just too much water and too much weight over him. This was it… this was truly it. The end of the great Ash Ketchum.

Water began flow faster and faster and it was now above his chest. Ash held his breath and hoped by some miracle, that someone would come and save him.

"_Help…"_

**(Back in the town festival square)**

"_Help…!"_

"Emmm…" Misty was laying on the floor along with Max until that sudden voice popped up into her head. Her eyes opened almost instantly turning her head around to see the area. She gazed upon the piles of sleepy heads snoring like nothing was wrong with the world. But after one quick look at the damaged Wubbuffet robot and the damage to the city, she knew that something was definitely wrong here. "Ash…" she managed to mutter the words out before quickly dashing off to the boulevard/beach leaving her little Togepi in Max's arm.

Dozens of police vehicles and fire trucks were trampling down the messy streets of the city putting order back into place. The Pokeball storage tanks were the first to be secured along with several escape pods which were being used by TR. Misty didn't know where Ash was so had to find out from the only person who might know where. Pikachu. Unfortunately, the little mouse was trapped behind a wall of glass which was too much even for him to break out from.

"Pikachu? Are you alright?!" Misty yelled out to her little yellow friend.

"Pika? Pika pikachu!"

"Pikachu, do you know where Ash is?"

"Pika! Pikachu Pikachu!" the little electric Pokemon pointed to the sinking boat a few miles away from the storage tanks position. Misty's heart began to sink. Thinking of her friend drowning in the waters was probably too much for her to bear.

With one swift move, she ripped the lower part of her dress and dove down into the churning ocean… to fetch back that boy. (To fetch back…… witted Jack heheheheh)

"_Come on Ash… where are you?!"_ she mumffled her thought through the water as she adjusted the pressure into her ears. Being a part of the Waterflower family really had its advantages. Gifted with her family's traditional underwater diving abilities, Misty was able to hold her breath longer than others and swim practically faster than her sisters.

"_Help…"_ the sound of his voice echoed through her head like a telepathic message coming from nowhere. She immediately saw Ash on the back of the slowly sinking ship still holding his breath for one last attempt to make it out of there alive.

Gathering all of her courage and will power to save her friend, Misty dove deeper into the sea until she reached the back of the boat. You could probably say that Ash was slightly relieved that someone did come to his aid, but he didn't really expect her of all people.

Even after that exhausting event, Ash was still able to muster some strength out of his body to push that table that was pinning him down to the wall. With the help of Misty of course. With not much air left in their lungs, the two of them swam up to the upper part of the ship for a breather.

"Misty! What are you doing here?!" Ash gasped for some air after yelling at his rescuer

"Saving your life that's what!" she yelled back gasping for air as well. "We need to get out of here fast!"

Ash agreed, "Alright, but we'll need to do it fast!" he wasn't kidding. Every second that passed by seemed to thin down their chance of survival and thickens the chance of bringing them to Davy Jones locker. The ship was losing its distance to the surface and fast! "Take a deep breath, and let's get out of here!" and with one deep gulp of their last source of air, the two of them swam back down and hurried up back to the surface.

The sight of the pure blue waters of the ocean was simply breath taking. It made Misty consider taking scuba diving lessons for a change. But if she could see this infinite sight of pure liquid nature, it would be so worth the money and so worth her time. With her eyes and thoughts locked on that previous image, she didn't notice the pile of the debris falling on top of her swimming path.

"Misty, get away from there!" Ash tried to scream out of his mind but the words just wouldn't come out (duh! You're under water!) With fast thinking, the young Pokemon trainer squeezed out some power from his body and placed them in his arm to call upon the aid of the sea. At first, there was no reply, but after a few seconds, he caught sight of a water pokemon swimming towards him. To his amazement, a Dratini answered his call.

With the Pokemons quick maneuverability under water, Ash grabbed onto its tail with one hand and grabbed Misty with the other hand.

**(In an escape pod not far from Ash's position)**

Domino opened up her escape pod with her partner Wendy. They were alone in the pod and it looked like the rest of her crew were being arrested by the cops. "This is just great… now what do we do?!" the blonde girl screamed.

"Shhhh!" Wendy piped her down covering her mouth with her hand, "Do you want the police to hear you!? Let's just lay low for awhile and--- (clunk!) huh?" it appeared that their pod seemed to had a contact with an object, but not just any object… an ice berg! It was common to see ice bergs in the ocean during the winter, but this one was different… there were people inside the ice berg.

"Annie? Oakley?!" (if you're wondering how they got there, read chapter 19: A Family Sticks Together)

**(Back with Ash and Misty)**

The trip to the surface seemed to have taken longer than Ash had thought. His body was so deep down the sea that it took about four minutes just to get half way there. His mind began to shutdown as his supply of oxygen began to diminish. Dratini could only move so fast but it was still not enough to them both out of danger.

"Darn it!" he cursed in his thoughts, "If only I could use the power one… more…… time… ohhh…" in seconds, his grip on Dratini loosened and immediately let go. But before anyone gave up hope for the boy, Roselane appeared out of the ocean and grabbed Ash to the surface. Her basic swimming rhythm was superior to Misty's, like she was trained to become an athlete from the birth. While swimming faster towards the surface, she noticed that even with Ash knocked out like a light, his hand refused to let go of Misty's arm.

A few minutes later, they submerged from the ocean and back onto the beach

Tired, broken and beaten, Roselane dragged her fatigued wet body through the sand and placed Ash on the softest spot on the area along with Misty. She gazed upon his tattoos and slowly towards his face. "Ash… speak to me!" she yelled out to get him to wake up, but it failed. Tears began rolling down her eyes as the very thought of his death passed by her conscious. Getting no reply she moved closer to his face, "Please… your majesty… don't… don't leave me again!"

Her plea for his safety was indeed answered when she felt the boy's body moving again. Roselane moved out of the way when Ash started coughing water out of his lunges. "Oh man… what a day…!" those were his first words when he was brought back to the land of the living.

**(Somewhere in the boat to the after life)**

The grim reaper fumed out of his black robes so badly that he tore up the list that contained the name of those who were supposed to be coming in today. But sadly, the name Ash Ketchum was crossed out of the list. "I hate my job"

**(Back with our heroes)**

After coughing a few more times, Ash turned his attention back to the girl who saved his and Misty's life, "R… Rose?" he couldn't possibly understand why the girl was crying, but in a moment that would break every laws of conscious in the world, Roselane pulled Ash closer and hugged him tightly like the most precious treasure in the entire galaxy. "Uh… Rose?"

"Please… just… let me stay like this… for a little while longer…"

With the city getting back in order, the people waking up after a long sleep, and hundred of TR goons now behind bars… everything was now going back to the way they were.

Ash and his friends had better sleep early tonight… because tomorrow… they leave… for Valmarian city!


	34. The Dream of Ten

**Chapter 34: The Dream of Ten!**

Brock walked down the hall of the Pokemon center with stealth and silence. It was 4:00 AM in the morning and practically the whole city was probably asleep. The old teen came by Tracey's room and gave out a code knock. He looked around to see if there were any crazy fans or private journalists who snuck in here.

Ever since Ash saved the Pokemons from Team Rocket with Roselane, his identity was exposed to the whole city. The boy had to run to the sanctity of his room with the aid of Officer Jenny. With half the Hoenn media after his story and Ash fans coming around from every corner, Ash planned to leave early in the morning so that they wouldn't have to plow through the mob of fans. Popularity does really have its down sides doesn't it?

After Brock woke the entire gang up, they immediately assembled at the main lobby to plan their next move. "Alright… is everybody here?" Ash scanned around to make a head count. Duplica was still a bit drowsy since she wasn't much of a morning person. "Alright then… let's go!" they immediately head off towards the back door where it has never been used ever since the Pokemon center was built. The boy had already informed Officer Jenny of their plans to leave early and she had totally agreed to the idea. She never liked holding a mob of fans off their target and it would be nearly impossible since she only brought a few men with her.

Before the gang left the center, Nurse Joy came by to give them something for the long trip ahead, "Excuse me Ash. I hope I'm not disturbing you" she asked a little shy. Ash turned around to see her hand over a basket of homemade treats, "Please accept this Ash. It's from me and the Pokemons here in the Pokemon center"

"Oh gee Nurse Joy… you really didn't have to" Ash accepted the basket and noticed a lot of candies and cookies inside.

But Nurse Joy wasn't gonna take no for an answer, "Don't worry Ash. If it weren't for you and Roselane, the Pokemon center here wouldn't be standing today. Besides…" she didn't get to finish her sentence when Brock came by to do his lame catch up lines.

"Oh Nurse Joy… we accept your basket of wonderful meals… It shall be the fire that burns in my stomach, the energy I use to bring the world peace! (what?!) It will be… ah! Ah! Ah! Not the face!" before the boy can get to the good part, Misty came by and pinched him on the cheek and dragged him away from the pink haired nurse.

Ash gave out a small laugh, "Well, thanks a lot Nurse Joy! I hope I'll see you in the Valmarian tournament!" with their goodbyes said and with no ties left behind, the gang packed up and left towards the city docks, where a boat was promised to take them to their ultimate destination.

When the the sun broke out from the horizon, the street lights began to dim, thus signaling the beginning of a new day. Ash the gang made a quick trip to Drake's ship without any problems. There were barely any cars on the streets and not a single life on the sidewalk. It's probably because the festival last night stayed longer than anyone had expected, making it nearly impossible for everyone to wake up.

"Hey Drake!" Max called out to the old captain who was just readying his crew to cast off.

Drake turned around to notice the young teens glaring at him, "Oh hey there youngsters! You're a bit early aren't you?"

Ash apologized, "Sorry Drake. We just didn't want to catch the traffic" the ships's sails began to lower down catching the winds off the back. If Drake's calculations were correct, they would probably make it to Valmarian city in two days time.

The old member of the Elite 4 smiled, "Oh, I guess now is always better never. Cabin boy!" he called out to the young sailor, "Take our guests to their cabins will you" it was more of a request rather than an order. The sailor gave out a salute and gladly escorted the young teens to their room. The ship was larger than any of them could've expected. It had four levels each with its own functions. The top floor was of course the main deck, the second floor consisted of mostly the crew's quarters and the kitchen. The third floor was an old storage bay where old cannons were being stored. Drake's ship was actually salavaged from the ocean so it still retained many historical weaponry. The fourth floor was the main cargo bay, which was large enough to hold several dozen crates of supplies. However… there was a room which remained a mystery to the crew.

A hidden room at the back of the ship, which was connected to the cargo bay layed there… untouched by anyone but the captain himself. The door was made out of steel so it was hard enough to witstand any attack. No one knows what the captain does in there or why. He only brings tools and materials into the room himself and comes out only when he's done or when something important happens.

Right after a short tour of the ship, a muffled voice came from the outside. "All hands to station! Prepare to cast off!" the crew quickly noted the order of the captain and turned to the teens, "Well… I guess we'll have to end the tour here. Please head back to your rooms. Breakfast will be served in an hour" he spoke as if they were in a hotel or something. But they didn't mind. The only thing they could think of right now is what they were gonna do when they get to Valmarian city.

**(Valmarian city) (Uno Café)**

Emma sat across the table taking a sip out of her hot coco with Steve and Havic on one side. The two of them were observing the match between Gary and Jaques VS the Voltegoths gang. They already knew that Gary could win alone but Jaques somehow insisted on aiding his boss on this gang battle.

"So… who's winning?" Emma asked the boys not even turning her eyes over to them.

"The boss and Jaques are still on his first Pokemon" Steve replied after taking a bite off his sandwich, "Two of the Voltegoths are already down and their leader is still standing" Havic cracked his neck a few times as the battle raged on. It wasn't exactly exciting to say the least but it was still worth the watch. Gary had not lost a single battle ever since he joined their crew, and with the new kid named Red, Soledad's old partner, they've been having a bit of luck on their side.

Just when Emma was about to dig in on her caserol, a bright flash came from the battle which could only mean that Gary had already wiped out his opponents. The gang's leader entered the café with a sigh. Jaques remained outside to keep unwanted trainers out, just so they could have this café all to themselves. With the Voltegoths gone, only a few factions remained in power over the Pokemon league. The Bail Outs were now the 2nd largest compared to Gary's crew. With their near infinite numbers of rookie trainers and wanabees, they confirm a strangle hold on the city's perimeters without any mishaps.

The Bicento brothers had been devastated ever since the unofficial tournament in the city gym, but they remained strong. With their influencial group, they've been able to gather up some of their closer friends to aid them on the task to hold off their own borders in the city. Though they pose no threat to Gary, they still often challenge Gary's crew and his underlings to keep their presence known. The Bicento Brothers were now also allied to the Bail Outs, with the purpose of eliminating Gary from the league by any means necessary. But that was easier said than done.

Soledad, having been betrayed by her one and only partner, had taken refuge in her grandfather's inn on the isle of 'Little Town' where she gathers up her strength to face against the other gangs. Though Soledad may have been a tough girl, her few numbers of rookies pose barely of a threat to either of the three powerful factions in the city.

The last group was of course… Gary's crew. The boy never thought of a name for the gang and he probably never will. His pack, consisted of the mixture of eighty gangs both, rookies and professionals. IT didn't matter to Gary. As long as he has someone to throw at his unworthy enemies he could care less of who joined his group. Havic and the other three weren't gonna split the cash with them. They were just there as… insurances… that there wouldn't be any… problems.

"Hey boss, looks like you got them" Steve sounded cheerful as usual.

Gary didn't bother to answer back. He just gave out his usual 'Hn' sound and ordered up his breakfast. The others could see the boy's bored face. He had been doing nothing but training, battling, and facing off opponents who weren't even worth to fight again. So to say… he was bored and exhausted. The others didn't mind his reply. Ever since he became the new gang boss of their crew, he's been acting more and more distant and snobbish.

Emma felt great though. With thousands of trainers under her command, she's didn't have the slightest fear in the world. She felt like she could take on a whole army with her own underlings. But that was probably being too skeptical.

Steve on the other hand was being busy. Ever since the Ash fan clubs arrived, he's been ordered by Gary to do a non-stop search on anything about Ash. The guy was smiling ear to ear when he remembered the twitching eye of the boss when thousands of Ash fans were in town.

He cherished his annoyed look when he looked around to see if any of them were the real deal.

He cherished his angry face when he gave him the order to see if the real Ash was in town.

A lot of people here are claiming themselves to be Ash Ketchum, but so far, most of them have been beaten silly when Gary made a direct order two days ago. He told the whole gang that if anyone dares to declare him or herself as Ash Ketchum, then immediately challenge that person into a match. Steve sighed on the many obsessed fans that were defeated immediately after their reckless declaration. I guess this would be a perfect example for that metaphor, 'Watch what you say' thing.

By the time Gary was about to take a sip of his coco, his Pokedex/phone began beeping. He already knew who would be calling him this early in the morning but never imagined him to be calling now. The boss left the café to have a little time alone as he answered to the caller, "Hello?"

"Gary! There you are!" It was professor Oak on the other line. Gary gave out a smile which was rarely seen throughout his time here in Valmarian city. "I've been trying to contact you for quite sometime now but you never answer. How's Valmarian city by the way?"

Gary blushed a little bit rubbing his cheeks all together. "I'm fine grandpa… just a little… tired… that's all" he was speaking the truth actually. He was dead tired after fighting more than six gangs all in a row. The boy didn't even go to sleep last night due to the fact that he had to go to the Pokemon center back and forth from time to time. "So where are you now? Are you on your way to Valmarian yet?"

"We're in Hoenn right now" the professor sighed, "But it looks like we'll be stuck here for a little while. Aparently the recent bad storm had delayed our flight!" in the background, you could see several lines of people starring at the registar of the air port hotel. "And to make things even worst, our luggage seemed to have gone missing for some reason"

"Professor! Hurry up or we'll miss the taxi" that was Delia's voice coming in from the distance. "Coming Delia!" the professor yelled back then turned his attention to Gary again, "Well, I guess I'm off for now Gary"

"Yeah… see you too gramps" Gary replied with a smile on face. But just before the professor hung up, a thought came up to his mind. "Oh by the way Gary, have you seen Ash? I haven't heard from him for quite awhile now" this made Gary grit his teeth as he kept the smile on his face as hard as he could. "I've been trying to contact him but his Pokedex isn't responding to any of my calls. When you see him, please tell him to call me immediately ok? Bye bye now" Samuel didn't even wait for a reply when he hung up.

When the screen died down Gary's smile turned into a scowl so low that it would've scared even the bravest of souls. He closed his Pokedex and walked back into the café where the rest of his crew were still eating and sleeping. Those who were eating simply stopped on what they were chewing. Those who were sleeping immediately jolted up with confusion in their eyes. The wave of killing intent that originated from the boss was so huge that it shook off all their drowsiness and hunger away. They didn't know why Gary was angry nor why he was giving that hating scowl off his face, but whatever the reasons were, they knew that it would be unwise to try and talk to him about it.

**(At Drake's ship) (Boy's cabin)**

Ash and the rest of the boy's were taking a short nap on their respective double-decker beds. Only Ash was able to go to sleep, but the others were having a hard time closing their eyes since that their long time goal was just two days away from their current position. Just as Sparky and Pikachu were playing a small game of 'catch the tail' the boys decided to leave the sleeping boy and get some fresh air. To their surprise, the girls were on the main deck too along with the morning shift crew. "Hey girls…" Brock decided to stur up a little conversation, "What's up?"

"Hey Brock" the girls said in unison with each other.

The boys (except Ash) glared at the morning sunrise as it stretched open across the horizon. The city of Valmarian was right next to it making it look like the city of sun. It was indeed a breath taking sight to behold.

"So… what do you guys plan to do when we get to Valmarian?" Dawn asked with cheerfully like she always does.

"Training…" said Richie

"Sleep…" said Drew

"Go to the Pokemon center…" said Duplica and May

"Eat…" said Todd and Tracey

"Go swimming…" said Misty

"Go to the beach…" said Brock with happy thoughts of ladies coming at him. Misty gladly pound the boy with her magical mallet. Poor guy… not even in his dreams, he could find paradise. So sad yet… so funny at the same time.

"What about you Rose?" Dawn asked the girl who was just plainly looking into the open sky, "What are you going to do when we get to Valmarian city?"

Roselane didn't really want to reply to that question. She was preoccupied with a more serious matter, but if she wanted to avoid suspicion, she would have to act friendly… for now. "Uh umm… I guess… I'll go and… eat" she said stuttering between words. Brock raised a brow in suspicion of why a rookie trainer like her would be acting like that. But when the suns ray finally fixed upon them, the wave of its blinding light made them squint their eyes.

By the time they adjusted to the light, something beautiful laid before them. The sun's reflectons were clearly going all out towards the water. It almost felt like the boat they were on was sailing on a sea made entirely out of gold. It was absolutely stunning! Everyone's face was like 'awwwwwweeeee' their jaws open wide open that a fly could wander right in without being noticed.

"Haaaaaa" the gang's attention was quickly grabbed by a certain young Ketchum who was yawning out loud while stretching out his arms and legs. Pikachu quickly rushed back to his master's shoulders and gave a happy 'Pika' for a good morning greeting. "Good morning Pikachu ahehehehe" the boy still remakibaly had his favorite cap on. After rubbing the sand out of his eyes and yawning once more he then turned to his friends as they giggled at his sleepy state, "Morning everyone"

"Morning Ash!" they all said in unison.

"What are you guys looking at?" Ash quickly joined the rest of his companion on the starbort side of the ship. He was then also awed when the sight came into view. "Wow… what a sight!" he exclaimed which pleased some of his friends. If Ash saw this view two years ago, he would probably be saying something like 'Its only sunrise' or something remarkably close to that. He was usually too preoccupied with training his Pokemons and thinking of his next upcoming battle.

"Yeah…" Duplica added, "It's almost like something you would only see in your dreams" the gang agreed and continued to stare at the golden sea. They now understood why Misty loved the ocean so much… it was certainly breath taking indeed.

"Speaking of dreams" Brock suddenly began, "My dream is to become the most famous Pokemon breeder in the world!" they all gave out a small giggle to that statement, "Then after that, I'll meet a beautiful girl one day and after then we'll get married and have kids and when I grow old I'll…" the guys and some of the girls sighed at his on going lecture of his uncertain future. He was planning so far ahead for his grand kids that he even went to year 3000.

But his dreams did not go unheard. May, Dawn, Duplica and Anabel began thinking of his dream and somehow found some similarities in their own. A slight blush came upon their faces as they shot out several glace at Ash all together.

**(May's dream)**

May suddenly began dreaming in the middle of the morning light. She imagined herself in a wedding gown under the bells of a chapel. Ash was right next to her with Pikachu still on his shoulders dressed up in a white suit just like Ash. All of May's friends and rivals were gathered around on that chapel throwing petals of rice (I think that's how a wedding goes neh?) and screaming 'congratulations' to the newly weds. When she finally threw the bouquet of flowers to the crowd, Ash lifted her off with both of his arms and carried her towards the carriage which was being pulled by six Rapidashes, the fire horse Pokemon. She saw her parents (Norman and Caroline) holding tissues and crying with pride hidden in their hearts. Max was there too clapping congrats as well.

"Congratulations May!"

"Live happily ever after!"

"Yeah May!"

Those were the common phrases being shouted around the chapel courtyard.

By the time they reached the carriage, the valet mushed the Pokemons to set off into their honeymoon. Ash and May waved back at the crowd as they slowly disappeared into the horizon.

**(Duplica's dream)**

Duplica was not far behind May to dive into her own world as well. She imagined herself and Ash back in the circus mansion where she first met the boy. She planned to turn the little house back into its original state as a fun house where kids from all over would come and laugh at the numerous entertainments they had to offer. Ash would be playing as a clown and be very popular with the little children while Duplica and her Dittos show off their unique talents of imitating others.

All day long she would hear the laughter of children and adults as they cheered on for an encore, and then by night they would all rest and wave good bye till the next show time comes. Yes…… it would indeed be a happy life for her and for Ash.

"Thanks a lot mister!" said one of the kids as they left with their parents

Ash squeezed his red clown nose as it gave out a squeaky noise, "Come and see again soon" he yelled back along with the other remaining staffs. He also held Duplica by the waist in his arm close to each other like they were a married couple already.

As Duplica dreamed on… she couldn't help but blush even more redder than the others at the mere thought of Ash holding her like a couple. She smiled and giggled a few times, ignoring the strange glaces being given to her.

**(Dawn's dream)**

Dawn was next to dream about her own world as well. She began imagining herself in a Pokemon contest and Ash and she were in the finals. Their oppoents had given out a splendid show on the arena and the score board looked as if it was impossible to beat. Dawn was wearing her traditional pink

"What a wonderful show! The judges are giving an all out tens! This will be a hard thing to defeat ladies and gentlemen! What will Dawn and her partner do to top such a magnificent display of skill?" said the referee who was commentating from the top floor. Dawn waited patiently for the green light. She was dead right nervous and with her mother watching at the VIP stool, its hard to stay calm.

Suddenly, Ash laid his hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry Dawn. I'm sure we'll beat them" he said with a smile on face. But even in her dreams Dawn was still a little nervous, "But Ash, how can we win against a full score board?" she shuddered just thinking about her pure and utter defeat.

Ash still smiled and held both of her hands with his own, "I promise you Dawn. No matter what happens, we'll go out there and show everyone that we did our best! It doesn't matter if we lose or win" his grip on her hands tightened as if he never wanted to let go, "As long we're together, we'll always be winners" those words seemed to have brought joy into her heart like a hammer that had shattered the ice that blocked the warmth of the sun.

By the time they walked into the field and did their show, they out beaten their opponents by a long shot with a twenty point score, which was kind of weird since there was only supposed to be 1-10 points. The crowd roared into a major applause and began throwing flowers at them. Cheers echoed through the halls of the stadium breaking the point of sound. Dawn's mother smiled proudly at her daughter as she realized that she had truly surpassed her a long time ago.

"What a spectacular show!" shouted the commentator, "I have never actually seen anything like it before in my life! The great Pokemon master Ash Ketchum and his partner Dawn have made an incredible come back with that unimaginable stunt. This will indeed go down in history of Pokemon contest everywhere ladies and gentlemen!"

Dawn smiled and joyfully leaped into Ash's arm and held him tightly. The boy returned the hug and congratulated her with a small whisper. "You did great Dawn……… I'm proud of you" he said while rubbing her back. The girl let out happy tears fall out from her eyes and let it gracefully go down her cheeks.

Yes…… this was indeed the dream… that keeps her going.

**(Anabel's dream)**

Anabel was the last but not the least to go into dream mode. She imagined herself back in her lodge in Kanto cooking her morning breakfast. She usually only cooked for herself and for the Pokemon, but right now… she had another person to take care of. She gladly placed the bacon and eggs on the platter and head towards the dining room. Ash was sitting on one of the chairs reading at the morning newspaper. It made her so happy just to see his smiling face once again.

"Here's your breakfast" she said with a smile. Ash returned that smile with his own then gladly ate what was on the plate. He was now a member of the Frontier Brains and his Battle facility was close to the Battle Tower. The two of them lived in the same house which was of course normal for young married couples to do. Anabel just sat there while Ash continued to garble the food like air. She knew of his monstrous appetite and giggled slightly as she removed some of the rice on his cheek with a napkin.

After that little morning greeting, Ash packed up and walked towards the door in his new outfit. It kind of resembled Brandon's adventuring outfit but except that it was blue rather than green. "Well… I'm off…" he said with a soft smile.

"I'll see you in the evening then?" Anabel asked cleaning the table up.

"Yeah, but before that…" Ash quickly held Anabel by the waist and moved closer to her face. A slight blush came upon her cheeks as she knew what he was trying to do. Her heart beat began pace up increasing her blood value by a large margin.

Anabel (in real life) blushed and giggled happily as her imagination was reaching a point of climax.

**(Back in reality)**

The boys began to glare at the four girls as they blushed and giggled happily in their own world. This sent shivers through Brock's head for a moment before he turned his head to Roselane who was sitting by ledge, "What about you Roselane?" the girl turned her head to meet the squinty eyed boy's face, "Do you have any dreams?"

The girl thought for a moment before replying… "Well… I uh…… I don't really have a dream…"

"Oh come on now… everyone has a dream" Ash added up. Roselane simply blushed at his comment "Like me… I dream to become the greatest Pokemon Master!" he did his hero pose and a peace sign.

"Well…" she mubbled for a moment. "I guess my dream…… my dream…" a sudden thought came through her head as images from the old times appeared. He could her friends and her love… all in one place. Laughs were heard all around, echoes of pain and sadness were non-existence in the world…… and there was no one… absolutely no one, who would dare to ruin their peace.

**(Flashback)**

Rosa and the other three guardians (Sha-hear, Hagard and Chaucer in their Lucario form) were sitting along a giant boulder on the wide grass field with a giant pond in the middle. Hsa and Pallet were swimming with the newly born Pokemons and to put it into facts, they seemed to be enjoying themselves quite well. Chaucer was lazily sleeping on his back against the grass, Sha-hear kept his senses up and running 24/7 just incase if someone would try to sneak up on them. Hagard on the other hand was solving a strange puzzle box which he had a hard time to figure due to his lack of apordable thumbs.

"Hey Rosa!" the king called out to her attention, "Come on the water's great!" the pink Lucario blushed fo a moment before waving off to gesture him that she was not interested. Somewhere deep in her mind however… she wanted to go cannon ball and dive right along next to the boy. But all those years in combat trained her to restrain her deepest desires. The king looked a bit disappointed with her answer but decided to continue having fun with just one of his friends along.

A smile crept upon the female Pokemon's face as she watched the most powerful living being on earth act like a ten year old. If she had one wish… she would probably wish that she cold continue to gaze upon him… for the rest of her natural life.

**(End flashback)**

The group anticipated for Roselane to say something incredible like: To become the greatest Pokemon master ever or something close to that. But what she said next probably caught them completely by surprise.

"I guess… my dream… is to bring back the good old days…" this earned some confused stares from the gang, but for some reason… Ash seemed to understand her.

"Are you kids talking about your dreams?" the gang turned their heads to meet the member of the Elite 4 Drake, who was blowing out of his pipe. "Oh hey there Drake" Richie greeted the man to the morning light. "Hello to you too" he replied, "So I guess you must be talking about your dreams right?" they nodded in reply, "Hehehehe… it must be nice to be young again…"

"What about you Drake?" Ash asked, "Don't you used to have dreams too?"

The old sailor smuged as his face turned to blush a little bit, "Well… I used to have a dream, but I guess you could call it a long term dream hehehehe" this just made them more curious on what an old sea dog like him wanted his whole life. "Come on you can tell us" pleaded Todd with a chibi face. Drake gave out a hearthy laugh, "Oh well, since you asked I…" he was unable to continue when one of his crew member approached him.

"Captain, there seems to be something wrong with the wheel. Can you come and check please?" Drake sighed and gladly followed, "Again? I thought we finished repairing that thing months ago?" he then turned to the gang, "Well it looks like duty calls. Why don't we discuss things over dinner?" and with that, he left without even waiting for a reply for them.

With nothing left to do, Brock immediately sujested on catching up some 'Zs'. Since they woke up pretty early this morning some of the gang had been lacking on their beauty sleeps. Ash reluctantly agreed and quickly headed off to the boys cabin. The others quickly followed not far behind seeing that their goal was only two days away.

**(Back in the abandoned temple of resurrection)**

Loin had successfully reignited the torches that bound his illusional self to the mortal world. He had spent the days finding the right ingredients to keep the fire going for about two or three weeks until they are extinguished. He had also relit the torches of his fallen comrades in arms. If his calculations were correct, then they would be returning to his side in a matter of hours. Having that little burden released from his shoulders, the man laid down on the marbled floor and let out a long sigh. It has been a long week and its amazing that he hasn't gone crazy yet, being alone in that temple and all.

As he laid his eyes to rest, a small glimps of his old memories began to flow back into his mind. He wasn't really living in the mortal world thus he did not need to eat nor drink to replenish his strength.

His mind began to drift into his old life (2 million years ago) where he was once admired and respected by both Pokemons and humans.

**(Rustboro city hotel)**

Delia Ketchum was glaring outside of the hotel room which the professor had got for her. The Jennies were on the room next to hers and Samuel's was one floor below hers. She didn't really care where she was staying for the day, she only wanted to get to Valmarian city as soon as possible and hold her little boy in her arms like stuffed toy. That talk she had with him the other day just seemed to be nothing more but a dream. But even if it was, she really needed to talk with him once in a while.

Just as the weather forecast reported back in the airport, a freak thunderstorm cloud was within visual range of the city borders. The short flashes of light signaled lighting and probably endless pouring of rain drops. It was frightening just looking at it from that distance already. But right now, Delia wasn't worried about her own safety. She just hoped that wherever Ash may be, she hoped that he would be somewhere safe and dry.

"Delia? Are you still awake?" the sound of the professor's voice startled her, "I brought you some breakfast" he began knocking on the door several times before he finally got a reply, "Coming professor!" she yelled back softly. Before Delia walked towards the entrance, she gazed one more time outside the window and smiled. She knew that Ash would be safe… he was grown boy now… he can fend off on his own.

**(Fort Gregro) (Altar Room)**

Pallet was alone in the great halls of the castle keep. There had been no words of Ash from Rosa or Chaucer for two days now. The time of the planet alignments was coming close with each passing second and if Ash was not found soon then their plan would 'probably' have to wait for another three thousand years or so. But……… Pallet was not worried. He was confident that his plans will go smoothly. He did not care about the safety of man nor the Pokemons, he merely wishes to be with the only one who he could ever call… a friend.

The pass memories were kept at bay with a powerful spell. He did not want to let his pass experience ruin his plans.

"Pallet…" his thoughts were suddenly disrupted when Sha-hear spoke up from behind, "A message has arrived from Chaucer" the white Lucario with a scar on his left eye handed the letter with his paws and left the room in an instant. Pallet quickly scanned through the intelligible text and smirked behind his cloak. After reading it over and over again just to make sure he got the thing correctly, he burned the paper with one of the torches on the wall. A sinister grin loomed over his face as a master plan had finally been made.

With a quick move, he began chanting a spell that would probably altar the very course of fate itself.

**(Time skip, afternoon-evening) (Drake's ship)**

After getting several minor repairs done, Drake began to stroll around the lower deck to see if any of the kids were still awake. Surprisingly for him, both the cabins had almost the exact same snoozing sound which earned several giggles from the old man. "Kids these days" he muttered while blowing through his smoke pipe, "They spend all their time sleeping instead of enjoying the world. If I were that young again I'd probably AHHHH!" a face suddenly popped out of nowhere and scared the man to heck!

"Pardon me sir" it was Roselane, the rookie trainer.

"Oh, it's you Roselane" the old captain spoke up, "What are you doing here? I thought you were asleep with the others"

"I couldn't sleep so I thought that you could uh… give me a tour around the ship?" she asked politely with a slight bow. Drake quickly recovered from his state of shock and recomposed himself. "Uhh… sure, I'd love to!" he replied almost immediately, _"At least someone doesn't waste their time sleeping" _he thought. "Well then. Allow me to show you the way"

**(Boys cabin)**

With the two of them walking around the ship, a boy seemed to be having a hard time with his sleeps.

"Ermmmm…" Ash was mumbling in his sleeps again. The boys were already snoring peacefully in their own dreams, but Ash was probably the only one having a nightmare. Pikachu soon noticed that his master was sweating like an egg in sauna room. "Pikapi?" the little mouse said to get the boy to wake up, but sadly it did not take affect. "ERRRGGGHHH!!!" Ash soon began gritting his teeth with anger. His heart beat rapidly increase, and his tattoo was expanding… yet again!

"Pikapi!" the little mouse cried out to get everyone's attention, but it seemed like no one wanted to respond. Just as Pikachu blinked his eyes, DA suddenly appeared out of the darkness. "Pika!?" it squeeled as it prepared for a fight.

DA got annoyed with the little yellow hairball and quickly conjure up a spell to it back in its place, "Go to sleep creature!" he yelled out softly. With a flick of his fingers, Pikachu's electrical energy began to fade and almost instantly went straight back to sleep. Making sure that everyone in the room was not going to disturb them, DA cautiously approached to Ash who was still feeling that uneasy pain around his arm. The tattoo was growing faster than anyone could've expected. It was like a plague that was expanding through his body with rapid speed. The marks were now visible around his neck and was making more progress around his chest. This looked grim for our young hero… but what could anyone possibly do?

Without much thinking, DA knelt down and cast a spell on Ash's arm. Almost instantly, the pain subsided, thus making the boy sleep much more peaceful than usual. Ash had stopped gritting his teeth, his sweat gland had slowed and even now the tattoos ceased their movements.

Oh yes… something big was about to happen… and it was gonna happen…… real soon

**(Somewhere along the sea)**

Jessie, James and Meowth were sailing in a small canue after their failed attempt of capturing Pikachu (again) in Slateport city. The roads in the Hoenn region were now heavily patrolled by the local enforcers and every major city in the region were looking for anyone with a big letter 'R' on their chest and back.

"I can't believe we failed… again!" Jessie yelled out agrily. She wasn't angry about the fact that they failed in capturing any Pokemons, but the fact that they were unable to say their motto out loud anymore! Everytime when they were just about to pull a heist, or something really really good, someone or something would come by and ruin their momentum. It has been like this for almost two months now. "We almost had that Pikachu in our grasp but then that Butch had to go and back stab us right in the middle of our victory dance!"

James sighed at his partners tantrum, "She's more worried about our failure than our impending doom" he said to Meowth who was also paddling the canue. After they were able to escape for the forces of justice, they stole this boat and paddled endlessly into the open sea. Right now, they had no idea where they are or know even if they will make it out of here alive.

"Shut yar trap and keep rowing!" shouted the talking cat, "If we keep this up, we might get to Valmarian city before the twerps!" James paddled somemore but then he eventually gave up, "I can't take it anymore! I'm tired and I'm sleepy!"

"Hey! Don't you be doing anything silly you half pike palooka!" Meowth snapped at them, raising both his sharp claws and whiskers. "If we don't do anything soon we migh… might… mi… mi…!!!"

"What's wrong Meowth?" Jessie immediately noticed the cat Pokemon's stutter and shocked face, "Did a cat got your tongue or something?" Meowth didn't reply. He just kept his shocked face up as he pointed at the back of their transport ship. "Gaa… gaa… gaa…" he mumbled with a terrified tone.

"Ga?" James and Jessie said in unison. By the time they turned their heads to where Meowth was pointing, "Gyarados!!!!!!" a whole team of water-dragon Pokemons were starring at them with angry eyes (seriously, have you seen a Gyarados with a smily face? At least not me) With one swift move, Jessie pulled Meowth away from the oars and paddeled like never before. James assisted by using his arms to make the canue go even faster.

**(Later that evening, 10 minutes before dinner time, At Drake's ship) (2 weeks and four days till the Valmarian League)**

The gang was practically excited with what Drake's cheft prepared for them. The dining hall was filled with seafoods of different kinds ranging from your normal day fish to seaweed salad! (YUM!) "Come in everyone" Drake motioned to the gang that had been starring from the door, "There's plenty for all of you!" the gang gladly took up their own seats at the rectangle table and began chowing down their food. More like inhaling rather than chewing.

While the gang were eating like no tomorrow, Drake decided to pop in a conversation, "So, are any of you excited to be reaching Valmarian city?" most of the replies were nods and 'uh-huh' sounds since the gang were too busy stuffing themselves. "There's no need to rush children. The food isn't going anywhere" he laughed at them, which caused the boys to slow down their eating pace. "I guess you all must be nervous seeing that this will be the biggest match of the entire history of man ahehehee"

"Hey Drake" Richie decided to pop in a question, "You're a member of the Elite Four right? Can you tell us anything about the Valmarian league?" this earned the attention of the whole room. Even the crew members were curious if their captain was a part of the greatest match this world had to offer.

The old sea dog blew out from his pipe and gazed at all of them. They weren't gonna take a 'no answer' for an answer, "Well…" he began, "I guess you could say that it was probably the most difficult match in all my life" the gang dropped their spoon and forks and quickly turned their ears to the old man who could contain the key in winning the league. Drake quickly noticed the sudden silence and smiled galliantly at them, "The rules of that league had not changed ever since it began. There are about four preliminary rounds in which to take out the weak and bring out the strong. (silence) It will not be an easy battle, as all matches will be to the finish. The matches will come out randomly but I can tell you it will not be easy. Even my old friend… Lance (The Dragon master of Kanto), wasn't able to get into the top 32" this earned gasped around the table. "There had only been very few people who had managed to claim the Valmarian trophy"

Drake hid his mouth under his hands as he glared at all of them. He could tell that they were listening to every word he had to say. "Ten years ago, I participated in the league. In all my life I have never seen so many determined souls all gathered in one place" images from the tournament began circulating back into his mind. "I've battled with so many trainers that I could barely even remember their names" he breathed deeply before continueing, "When the elimination rounds are done, every trainer are to be split up into four groups, each group with eight trainers"

"So that means that there can only be 32 competitors in the whole match" said Brock with a nervous tone. There were probably more than a thousand trainers out there in the league and out of those hundreds of thousands…… only 32 will be picked above the rest. Merely thinking about it could already give the whole gang the chill around their spines. After Drake gave out the rough draft about the league, none of them felt like eating anymore. In fact, they felt more nervous than ever before.

Without much thinking, the competitors excused themselves from the table and walked right out of the room to get some fresh air. The info Drake gave them seemed to have messed up their appitite quite a bit.

While the others were chanting around in their own room, Ash decided to get his air from the bridge. But upon reaching the place he noticed that he wasn't alone. Dawn, the rookie trainer from Shinou, and the winner of the Shinou grand contest was starring at the evening sky, completely oblivious to the things around her.

"Hey Dawn" the girl jolted from her standing position and leaped a good distance from her and Ash. "Ahh!! Ash, you scared me!" she exclaimed. The boy just gave out an apologetic look and smiled, "Sorry, I guess I shouldn't sneak up on you ahehe" he then approached the port side of the ship and looked at the giant moon above. Many thoughts were racing through that boy's head. Half of his mind was preoccupied with the upcoming competition but the other half seemed to be more focused on something else. Probably something to do with that mark on his arm.

"Um…" Dawn muttered out which caught his attention, "Do you mind… if we uh… talk for a bit?" a blush began to form around her cheeks as she said those words. Ash stood there, confused on why she would ask something like that. She was his friend and his ears are there to listen to her problems anytime anyday. "Sure, why not?" was his cheerful reply.

As the two of them stood there at the side of the ship, a sudden chill began reeling through Ash's spine. He could feel something coming from the blue haired trainer, something strong, like a feeling that she was holding back for a very very long time. But of course, the boy was still clueless to these sorts of things. "Hey Dawn, you're looking kind of red, are you feeling ok?"

The girl quickly realized her red cheeks and hastily hid her face away. "I… I'm fine! It's nothing really…" her heart began to beat rapidly like an engine with twenty horse power. She tried to hide her emotion as hard as she could but sadly it wasn't working.

Taking her word into account, Ash decided to ignore her strange behavior and continued glaring at the moon. Just then, an old memory jolted into the boy's head. "This kind of reminds me of 'that' night doesn't it?" Dawn tilted her head in confusion of what he was saying. "That night on the semi-finals… I remembered that you were going up against Zoey (Arch rival of Dawn, A.K.A: Nozomi) You were so worried that you barely had any sleep when we got you registered" the Shinou girl immediately remembered about that strange dream a few days ago. She was catching a glimps of her most precious memory during her near death experience.

"That reminds me!" Ash remincise, "How's Bayleef doing?"

Dawn gave out a heart warming smile and pulled out a Pokeball, "Why don't you ask her yourself?" with one quick beep, the leaf Pokemon appeared right in front of them. (Baybay!) With a quick glance at Ash, the old grass Pokemon jolted up from 'softly' tackeld the boy to the floor. "Baybaybay!" it squeeled like a child who hasn't seen its parent for quite sometime.

"Hey Bayleef, cut it out!" Ash laughed as Bayleef licked his face with glee. It has been so long since they've last had a real talk together.

After getting reacquainted with an old friend, Ash noticed that Bayleef was somewhat… different, "Hey, is it me, or is Bayleef getting bigger?" he was right, the grass Pokemon seemed to have grown several inches taller and its body probably added a few pounds.

"Really? I haven't really noticed" Dawn replied, "I guess my mom likes to feed all the Pokemon with her special meals hehehehe"

After petting the little grass Pokemon on the head and laughing together again, Ash let out a small yawn to signal that he was sleepy… again.

"Oh boy…why do I feel so sleepy all of a sudden?"

The young Pokemon master's sleepy attitude and child like expression made Dawn giggle slightly. Oh those wonderful memories back in Shinou seemed to have crawled its way back into her head. Those times traveling with Ash, Brock, Pikachu and Piplup felt like a dream……… a dream she wished that should never had ended. After being the first rookie to win the Shinou contest and earning the region's trophy with Ash's Bayleef, she wondered how her career as a Pokemon coordinator be… if she hadn't met Ash at all.

She would probably still be wandering lost somewhere in the forest or stuck somewhere in a city. She wasn't exactly a natural at Pokemon training, heck… she barely even knew how to throw a Pokeball properly.

**(Flashback) (1 year 4 months 2 weeks 3 days 18 hours 13 minutes and 56 seconds ago)**

Ash was training with Aipom, Turtwig and Pikachu for their next Shinou badge. The time was somewhere between afternoon so Brock was probably preparing for their next meal.

"Alright guys, that's enough for today!" Ash called out to his Pokemons to end their training session. It has been one long day and if they trained anymore, they would probably collapse. "Good work guys. I'll let you rest until dinner time" after getting Aipom and Turtwig into their own respective Pokeballs and Pikachu back on his shoulder, Ash noticed something happening in the distance.

Several sparks of electricity were strangely coming out of the forest. It was odd enough to make go and check up on it. "I wonder what could be causing that spark" following the source of the noise and light, the boy came out into another open field where Dawn seems to be training herself.

"Dawn?" Ash called out which caused the girl to both mentall and physically jolt out from her position. "AHH! Ash, you scared me!" Dawn snapped, "Don't sneak up on me like that!" the boy let out a chuckle when he saw her face. It was so dirty that you could barely tell what color her hair truly was.

"What happened to you Dawn? You're a mess!" she practically had dirt covering her skin and clothes. It was very rare to see the girl like this, especially since she was more caring about her appearance than anyone else. It was then Ash spotted her Pachirisu and Piplup on a rock both looking very tired. "Well… it looks like you've been training pretty hard. I can't believe you actually made Pachirisu tired" he was right again, Pachirisu has been known to be very energetic, and for it to be exhausted would probably be a rare sight for any trainer. (see Pokemon episode: Twice Smitten, Once Shy)

"Actually…" Dawn mumbled, "I was trying to catch that…" she pointed at the Bidoof, the beaver like Pokemon who was chewing on stick.

"Hey, it's a Bidoof!" Ash exclaimed, "I haven't seen one of those in a long while now" and then it suddenly hit him, "Wait a minute… were you just trying to catch it?" Dawn replied with a nod. "Well, it looks tired, so I guess you can capture it now"

After hearing that, Dawn quickly pulled one of her Pokeballs from her bag and threw it right at the beaver. But suddenly, she realized that the Pokeball she threw was only meant for water Pokemons and so it didn't have an effect on Bidoof. "What the?!" she yelped and quickly grabbed another Pokeball to throw at. But this time, she forgot to inflate it (again) and thus it only tapped the Pokemon. "GRRRRRR!!!" losing her cool, Dawn pulled out three Pokeballs and threw them simotaniously at Bidoof. However, they all missed their target.

Feeling like a creature surrounded by clowns, the Bidoof took off into the wilds, never to be seen by likes of 'her' again. Dawn tried to give chase, but after the battle her body was exhausted of all energy. "Come back here… you little… Pokemon…" she collapsed onto the ground like a rock unmoved. Ash saw this and quickly came by her side.

"Hey! Dawn, are you ok? Dawn?!" it wasn't long till Ash noticed that she was asleep. All that training and battling, must've really taken its toll on the girl's fatigue. But Ash wasn't surprised. He knew how she really wanted to be like her mother and what length she would go to accomplish it. Her dedication to become the best of the best was nearly comparable to his determination to become Pokemon master.

**(Later that night)**

After recouperating from that stress, Dawn awoke to find herself once again, in her sleeping tent. She gazed around trying to familiarize herself with her surroundings. When the memory returned immediately jumped from her sleeping position and yelled out, "Hey!? Where am I!?" that shout was only rewarded by the stare of Brock and the other Pokemons who were chowing on their dinner.

**A/N: (Of all the characters in the series, Dawn seems to be the only one with a tent while Ash and Brock were in their sleeping bags)**

"Hey Dawn, your just in time for dinner" Brock gave out his cheery smile and handed out a plate of his delicacy.

Dawn was confused. She didn't know what was going on or what had happened after she battled against that Bidoof. Not letting her mind get the best of her, Dawn gladly took the plate and sat down near the camp fire.

"I see you're looking better" Brock commented. Though not appearingly better but at least she didn't look tired anymore. She still had dirt all over her clothes but that easily be cleaned with some water and detergine. "It's a good thing that Ash was there when you collapsed. Who knows what might've happen in the wilderness" upon hearing that, Dawn noticed that Ash wasn't around the camp, which was kind of odd seeing that he loves eating so much.

A few hours later, after Brock hit the hay sack, Dawn decided to take a little stroll around the pond near by. She wanted to get some thinking done before the next day comes. However… it seemed like someone had beaten her to it.

"Ash?" she said quietly. That single sound echoed through the quiet night making it sound more a shout rather than a whisper. The boy in question quickly turned his head around to meet hers, "Oh, hey Dawn. Are you feeling better now?" the girl nodded her head, "Yeah, I feel much better now thanks to Brock's medicine"

"That's a relief" said Ash. He then picked a stone from the ground and tossed it at the pond making it skip four to five times until it reached a small rock at the center of the area. It was a simple move, yet such an amazing feat.

"Wow! That's awesome!" Dawn said with glee. Ash blushed slightly and rubbed the back of his head. "You think so? It's not really that impressive. I do it almost everyday"

"Let me try!" Dawn quickly picked up a stone the same size as the one Ash used and threw it with a single move. But instead of skipping through the water, it sank instantly. "Huh? Let me try again" she tried again and again but with every toss, it became worst and worst. The second one was too big to skip through the water, the third one nearly hit Ash, the fourth and fifth were…… well… let's just say some of the Pokemons will have to find some other sactuaries to save them from her wrath.

"Darn it! Alright, this time I'll get it for sure!" with her adrenaline pumping up, she pulled out a boulder from the ground and aimed it towards that rock, "Here I go!!!!!"

"AHHHH Wait wait wait a minute! Why don't you start off with this?" Ash handed her a pebble the size of a grain of rice. After calming down a bit, Ash held her hand and showed her how to throw it properly. "Try to imagine this as a Pokeball. (hands her the pebble) Here… when you throw it, don't put all your energy into the throw. Focus on the aiming and let the pebble do the rest of the work" he then held the girl by the arm and waist thus causing her to blush, "Alright… keep your grip on the stone and look directly at your target" Dawn complied and focused her sight on the rock at the center of the pond.

"Ok… what next?" she asked with a slight trembling in her voice.

"When you're ready, twist your body half way so that when you spring back, it will give you that extra power. Put your right foot in and your left foot out" the girl did what she was asked but then felt strange. It almost felt like she was a doll and Ash was the puppet master. "Good. When you spring back out, take a step with your right foot"

With Ash's guidance, Dawn threw the pebble…………

Like being guided by an invisible flow, the pebble miraculiously bounced off the top of the water eight times, and eventually, it smacked right dead on target.

After seeing that… Dawn jumped from her position and cheered so loud that half the region would hear her.

After that day…

**(Flashback End)**

"That's right… after that day… I continued to learn from him" however… her thoughts were quickly disrupted when Bayleef called out to her. "Huh? What's wrong Bayleef?" the grass Pokemon pointed towards Ash who was snoozing at the balcony. Usually on normal circumstances, she would've called Brock to come and pick the boy up, but right now… she just wanted to look at him… for a little while longer.

But alas, her wish could not be granted, as someone came to ruin the moment. "Hey Ash, are you there?" it was Max.

"Oh hey Max, how are you?" Dawn asked gleefully.

"I'm fine" he then notice Ash's snoozing, "Awww… did he fell asleep already? I thought he and I could play a little game" he sounded a little disappointed.

"Well today has been a long day" said Brock who suddenly appeared out of the blue, "And I bet that he'll need all the energy he can get when we rach Valmarian" after a troublesome sigh he picked up Ash, "Well, I'd better put him in his bed. We wouldn't want to have him sick before the tournament right?"

As the four of them chuckled at his joke, Roselane stood nearby, not taking her eyes off the boy. "Just a little longer… just a little while longer… your majesty…"


	35. When Guardians Attack

**Chapter 35: When Guardians Attack**

Morning… the time when the creatures of the day come out to do their daily chores, the time when the night watchers go to their lairs and rest till the next moon shows its face. But… there was one task that was left undone today…… a task that was so important that it symbolized the very morning we wake upon.

The sun…

Aye, the sun. Its warming rays had failed to shine upon the face of the earth. Its bright shining light shrouded with a strange and eerie fog, like those that were made in darkness.

A storm was coming… and it wasn't going to be pretty for the captain or our heroes.

**(Drake's ship, Bridge area)**

"How bad is it?" said Drake to one of his crewmen.

The man lowered his binoculars and shook his head with disappointment, "Not good sir. With this fog, I doubt we'll know which way we're heading" he then turned to the cabin boy's papers, "According to the message we receive from the weather observers, there's also a storm coming this way"

The member of the elite four sighed heavily as he knew that was a sailor's worst nightmare, "We're lost in a fog and right in front of a storm (sight) wonderful…" it wasn't long then till the Ash, Richie, May, Anabel, Roselane and Drew came up.

"Hey Drake, is something… WHOA! What a fog!" Ash yelled out the last phrase, surprised to see such a thick fog during the early morning. "Did something happen?" the old sailor shook his head.

"We're not sure ourselves. This fog just suddenly appeared sometime between midnight and morning. And now we're unable to move any further" he then picked out one of his Pokeballs and summoned Salamence, "Salamence, fly up high and see if you tell where we are" the dragon Pokemon complied with its master's request and flew up towards the sky. Drake then turned to Ash, "If this fog keeps up, it might take us a while longer to get to Valmarian city" the two boys whined with a 'what' word in it. Just when they were so close to their goal, they were once again hindered by something. It almost felt like the whole world was turning against them or something.

A few minutes later, Salamence returned with a strange vibe coming from its wing. "Roar! Rarr!" it yelled out sadly. This only meant that it wasn't able to fulfill the task given to him. "So you weren't able to find anything? (roar…) I see… I guess it can't be helped. Good work Salamence, return" with the dragon Pokemon backed in its Pokeball, Ash thought of an idea.

"Hey Drake. Maybe we can help" said the boy. The old man gave out a brow of curiosity on how the young trainer could possibly aid in finding their way out of this mess. "We need to get out of this fog as fast as we can. I don't want anything to stop us until we get to Valmarian city!" he then turned to his friends, "Hey Drew, do you mind if you can bring Absol out?" the green haired boy was now the one who raised another curious brow, but then complied anyway. "Uh… sure ok. (picks out a Pokeball) Come out Absol!" with the dark Pokemon out of its Pokeball, it stood ready for its next command.

Ash then turned to Roselane, "Hey Rose, can you call out Pidgeot?" the blonde girl replied without question and released the bird Pokemon from its Pokeball. With the two Pokemons up and accounted for, Ash released his Swellow to aid with his plan, "Alright, here's the plan. Swellow and Pidgeot, you two use your flying ability and your foresight ability to find the safest route. Then Absol will use his razor wind to cut through the fog!"

The plan then suddenly popped into Drew's head, "Then the attack will clear away the fog! That's brilliant! Come on Absol, let's get to higher ground!"

Everyone was stunned by the fact in just a few short minutes; Ash had turned from a Pokemon trainer to a master strategist. With two flying Pokemons on the look out and one blowing off the wind, the boy further requested the aid of Richie's Zippo (Charmeleon) to be the beacon in the darkness and May's Blaziken as backup. With an inspiring cheer from Ash, the companions that were present dashed to their positions and awaited further orders.

Seeing the children act like that truly brought a smile out of the old captain's face. An invisible tear flickled down from his eye, a tear filled with pride and happiness to see that the new generation had finally surpassed them…… and at such a young age too.

Indeed… their part of the chapter… was coming to a close.

-The old have wisdom

-The young have strength

-The youth have curiosity

-But the new born…… have potential!

-Unknown-

Finally recomposing himself from that emotional feeling deep inside his heart, Drake turned his head to the crew, "Well!? What are you waiting for?! You heard the boy! Let's get this ship moving!" the men jolted up from their shock and with a quickly salute and a 'aye aye captain' they all began lowering the sails to get the ship moving once again. "All hands to your station! Raise the anchor and secure the life boats! I don't want to see anyone slacking off you here!?"

"Sir yes sir!"

With all the commotion coming about, the tension around the ship began to stir disturbingly serious. It was so intense that the remaining members that were sleeping in the cabins woke up to see what all the ruckus was about.

With the crew in full morale and his companions with him, Ash had no fear against anything. With Pikachu on his shoulder, and with his loyal friends backing him up with all their might, the world seemed to pale in comparison to his strength. (King's power) "All stations report!" yelled Drake from the steering wheel.

"All sails are lowered sir!"

"Anchor secured sir!"

"Life boats are tightened sir!"

"Excellent!" the captain took out his pipe and placed it back in his pocket, "Prepare yourselves everyone, this is going to be one long day!" and then, the old man did probably the most bizaar move that would make the gods choke on their own food. He flipped his captain's hat backwards with a single move. "Let's go!"

Ash also did the same and flipped his cap backwards, "Yeah! Let's do it!"

**A/N: Right now would be a perfect time for an exciting song to come out, but I'd be over exaggerating now wouldn't I?**

**(Fort Gregro, Altar room)**

Pallet walked along the top halls of the palace alone. He carried with him a miniature ship the size of an average man's hand. Along the way, he spotted Hagard laying patiently on the wall.

"What are you doing… Pallet?" it was probably a statement rather than a question. It was like he already knew the answer but he wanted to hear it from his lips rather than the mouth of his chosens. Without even looking at the Green Lucario, he answered back, "Just fulfilling a request" and with that he vanished back into the altar room, where it was sealed and locked up tight with two stone boulders.

Today was going to be a dark day… that was for certain.

**(Valmarian city slums)**

With the gang war growing out of proportion beyond the limits of the local police force, and the rising power of the Bail Outs and the Bicento Brothers, Gary had been forced to enlist the aid of another member.

The boy had been walking through the city slums for almost two hours now. Red had given him the details of where and when to meet this new member, but with the poor marksmanship on the map, Gary felt like he was following a fool's treasure map. "Oh man… where could this guys be?!" he mumbled out.

**(Flashback)**

"A new member?" said Gary in confusion. He was talking to Red in Uno café after his victory over the Voltegoths. The young professional Pokemon trainer nodded as he grinned wickedly. "Yes… he and I went through training together. He's an expert on all Pokemon types and has more than enough to skill to beat me any day" however… Gary showed no interest in that recommended trainer.

"You're wasting your time. Why do I need a new member when I got all the trainers I need?" the boy turned his back to his 'friend' and began walking away.

"He's a strong trainer…" said Red with his grin growing even wider, "Perhaps maybe even stronger than both of us…" this caught Gary's attention by complete surprise. A trainer stronger than him? Impossible! But the fact still remained that he and Red were friends. If this trainer was at least half of as good as he says… then he might just be of some use to him.

"Fine…" the leader said out finally, "If you really think he's that good. Than he can join us"

"Well… that's kind of the problem" Red said with a short laugh, "He doesn't exactly want to join us. So you'll have to… convince him to join us"

"If the guy doesn't want to than I don't care"

"Wait, Gary!" Red yelled out, "Come on… think about it. If you don't take him under your wing, then there's a good chance the others will. And I think that would be bad… for you and your gang, no?" the boss didn't reply… he just stood there… thinking of the possibilities that are to come. Without waiting for an answer, Red quickly sketch out a map on where to find him and what time. "Here…" he handed Gary the small piece of paper. "You can find him in the slums. He likes to hang out there for some reason. I'll let you decide……… boss"

**(End of flashback)**

"Geeze… to think that I would be the one looking for someone other than Ash" Gary mumbled under his breath as the cold air continued to worsen. The morning breeze isn't exactly a public spa. "Hmm… well this must be the place" after going through a series of crumbled building mazes and abandoned houses with broken roof tops, Gary had finally arrived at the meeting point. To his surprise, it was the old abandoned sewer system.

This place used to be the den of many illegal activities. Street punks and smugglers would come here without fear of the local authorities. Old crates stacked up together near one of the pipelines still contained some stolen goods from a long time ago. Either they were unpopular or not needed anymore.

Though all the free goods were scattered around the area, one thing caught the boy's attention. A dark figure looming over him from the pipe hanging on like a monkey on a steel bar. "You must be him…" said the boss. The stranger's eyes were like that of snakes. His silver lock of hair were nearly as spiky as Gary's but except that it was a little longer. His red and black top looked like those clothes a street punk would wear, and his fire marked long pants gave him the mood that he wasn't exactly someone to mess with.

"Who are you?" it sounded like a demand rather than a question.

Gary smirked and chuckled. It has been so long since he found a worthy opponent. "The name's Gary" he said grinningly, "You must be……"

The entire world echoed the path of destruction with the mere mention of the name. Birds fly off to find new trees to build their nests. Team of fishes moved away from the vibration of the voice. Tauros stampede away losing for something else to break. Star Wars seven finally came out! Jack Sparrow got married! Oh my god the world's coming to an end!!!!!!!!!

**(Rustboro city streets)**

Delia was walking around the city streets with professor Oak and the two Jennies in the shopping district. Due to the storm passing by, they were forced to stay within the city for a couple more days or at least until the storm goes away. "Oh my gosh this one looks so nice!" said Jenny 1. The two 'temporary relived' police officers were doing some window shopping at first but after awhile it became quite boring. They say that two shops don't always sell the same thing twice, but that metaphor so doesn't reflect here.

Unfortunately for the professor, he wasn't able to do any shopping of his own. He didn't want to put on the extra weight on the packages he was carrying. From a highly respected Pokemon scientist reduced to a carrier boy (sigh) can this get any worst?

"D… D… Delia… don't you think we bought enough now…" Samuel said with a forcefully made smile

"Oh but professor, we haven't even gone to the second mall yet" Mrs. Ketchum whined. This caused an invisible arrow to crack to old man's spines.

"A… another mall? Ohhh myyyyyy…" and with that he fainted with swirly eyes.

"Oh my! Professor, are you ok?" just before she rushed to help the old scientist back up on his feet, a dark cloud caught her eyes attention. The storm cloud was looming over the sea, making it impossible for surfers to enjoy the cool waves. But that wasn't the point. What caught her nerves was the fact that the storm clouds didn't look normal. It was darker, gloomier, evil looking cloud. Just a quick glance at it could make even the great Lugia cower in fear. "That storm looks like its heading for…… oh no Slateport city!"

"Don't worry Delia" the professor reassured her after recovering from that fall. "I don't think Ash would be in any danger"

"He's right" said the Jennies, "Besides, I think he's old enough to take care of himself. Right Jenny?"

"You got that right Jenny" was her twin's reply, "He may be small but he's got the brains of Noctowl" they giggled at the so called 'joke'

Seeing the woman's face relieved of some stress, Samuel decided to tell her that everything will be fine, "You shouldn't worry too much about him Delia. I'm pretty sure that he knows not to play in the rain anymore. I'm sure that he's already in Valmarian city playing on the dry land beaches under the hot warm sun"

**(Back with our heroes)**

Forget it…

Forget everything the professor just said. Dry beaches, hot warming sun? Quite the opposite to say the least. There wasn't even a sun to show them the way!

Waves splash, thunders crack, winds blow, tornados fill every corner of the sea. It was indeed a sailor's worst nightmare. "This is getting worst than I thought!!!" said Ash as he held for dear life on the balcony. Swellow and Pidgeot were having a hard time flying over the fog to get a clear view. "Swellow, Pidgeot! Darn it!" the boy quickly took out a Pokeball and recalled his Pokemon back. Roselane did the same and held tightly onto the railing of the ship.

Drake tried his best to hold on to the ship's wheel, but with the wind blowing on all direction, it was like trying to dig through Mt. Fuji with a toothpick! "Everyone, secure your life lines!" he ordered which all crew followed to the letter. It wasn't long till the sails began to rip, "Curses! All available crew, secure those sails!"

"Yes sir!"

With the crew up and running, the trainers recalled all their Pokemons to keep them from drifting away. But as the storm grew worst, something caught Duplica's eyes, "Rock!!! There are rocks up ahead!" she screamed to get the crews attention.

**(Fort Gregro, Altar room)**

Pallet was playing again with his 'games'. Instead of a chess board, he was now playing with that miniature boat in a large bucket of water. He placed a couple of stones in front of the ship and let it head straight towards it. "Ahehehehe" he giggled while it desperately tried to stop. With a simple blow on its sail, the ship headed towards the rock emplacement. How will our heroes counter this dangerous attack?

**(Back on the ship)**

With the boulders closing in on their ship the captain immediately changed course with skill and speed only a pro like him would know. Then suddenly… without any warning, a lighting bolt struck on the ship, tearing out a section of bridge. "T…this is bad!" Drake cursed under his breath, "If this keeps up this storm will destroy the ship in a matter of minutes!" upon hearing that Ash and Richie got into position with their Pikachus, "Pikachu/Sparky, thunder bolt now!" they said in unison. In an instant, the lightning bolts that came from the sky were thrown back with its own force.

But having them away was probably just the tip of the ice berg the size of a galaxy. There next challenge was just about to come right up.

**(Fort Gregro, altar room)**

With the ship avoiding the rocks by just mere inches, Pallet decided to make things more interesting. He began blowing on the ships sails, making it spin around and around like crazy.

"Pallet, what are you doing?" Sha-hear's sudden voice came through the boy's mind, making him stop. The boy looked back and smiled at him, "I'm just playing… that's all" he was probably half lying to him. Though he was playing… he was probably playing with the lives of an entire crew!

Sha-hear gave out a mean looking glare which clearly stated 'Don't mess with me!' but he digressed. Instead of yelling out to him, he just place his back on the wall and waited……… patiently… for now. With the White Lucario out of the way, Pallet resumed his spell on tearing the ship in two.

**(Back on the ship)**

"Captain, there's a tornado heading straight for us!" said a guy with a Scottish accent. And true to his word, the biggest meanest looking spiraling wind was coming just off port side. "It'll cut the ship into pieces if we don't do anything!"

"Drew, May, Anabel, GO!" Ash suddenly called out to the three of them. No one really knew why, but when he pointed at them to stop the tornado, they were going to do so without question.

"We're on it!" Drew gave out a thumbs up. "Alright Absol, Razor wind attack!"

May called her Blaziken, "Blaziken, use Overheat!"

"Alakazam!" Anabel called out. She rarely does her telekinetic powers anymore and speaks out her attack like all other trainers, "Use psychic attack!"

With the three Pokemons and trainers working together, the tornado slowed its pace, but it did not stop it from moving towards them. "No good!" Drew cursed, "We'll need more fire power! Come out Roselia!" the flower Pokemon appeared and awaited its next command, "Alright Roselia, combine your powers with Absol!" it wasn't long till Duplica joined in to aid them.

"Alright then! Mommy Dit, Daddy Dit, change into Alakazam and Blaziken!" with the extra help from the imitator, she quickly ordered the same attack which caused the tornado to stop dead on its track. "Alright! We did it! (Yo kat ta!) We're saved!" but unfortunately for them, that tornado was just the mother of many of its children.

A dozen smaller tornados were approaching both sides of the ship. And should one of them hit the hull, they can say good bye to their career here and now.

"This is bad!" Drake was now sweating buckets. "If one of things hit us we're fish food!" But Ash wasn't planning on dying here. His determination to get to Valmarian city could not die out with such a feeble force of Mother Nature (no offense to you nature lovers) He had no plans to lose now. It would be a disgrace to his name to be washed away at sea.

A few minutes later, a brilliant plan popped into his head, "Hey guys, use the tornados against each other!" they gave a 'huh' sound to him, "If you can move them against each other, they'll tear each other apart!"

"Causing the force to collapse!" Drake understood his plan, "A brilliant idea Ash!" he then took out one of his Pokeballs, "Alright Shelgon, Salamence, you two follow Ash ok? (nod) Now go!"

"Thanks Drake!" Ash replied with the two dragon Pokemons beside him. "Alright then, Shelgon, Salamence, use dragon breath on that tornado and move it against that one" he gave out the commands like a true professional, holding his name to the legends. With Ash holding one side on his own with the dragons, the others thought they should do something too. Immediately Dawn summoned out Pachirisu to help out with the lightning attacks.

Just when things began to slowly calm down and the tornados killing each other out, the helmsmen spotted something just behind the ship, "GAHHHHH!!! There's one right behind us!!!" the whole party looked to their rear only to be stunned by the father of all cyclones! It was about the size of the first one that approached them, but except that it was much more vicious looking and definitely much stronger.

With years of being at sea, the captain still had some tricks up his sleeves, "Ready the rear cannons!" immediately, eight men went back into the lower deck and readied the prehistoric cannons. "Fire on my signal only!" the crew gathered up the small sacks of gun powder, then loaded the shell, then stuff it all with a clog thing. "FIRE!!!!!" and with a lit from the torch, it fired away, giving the ship a much needed 2 second speed boost.

With the father cyclone far away, everyone seemed to relax a bit, but something else was about to cause more problems.

**(Fort Gregro, Altar room)**

With both tactics failed this ticked off Pallet quite a bit. But trying to lose his cool, the boy decided to play with his toy just a little while longer. He then place his fingers a few meters in front of the ship and began spinning it around, making a small whirlpool, which dragged the ship closer and closer to it. "Ahehehehehe" he giggled evilly like your NOT so average villain.

Sha-hear's ears began to twitch menacingly like a child was poking at it 24/7. He was beginning to question the boy's methods, but whenever he tried to correct him, Pallet always seemed to be the one who's always correct.

**(Back on the ship)**

"WHIRLPOOOL!!!! Whirlpool dead ahead!" yelled the helmsmen (Note: Helmsmen are those who are on top of the sails to see if there are any dangerous objects approaching the ship)

Drake temporary put the wheel on hold and glared at the mighty wave that had suddenly appeared in front of his ship. (its probably just the same size as the one in the great battle scene in Pirates of Caribbean: At World's End) Without any defense against this attack, the captain tried his best to give his men morale, "All crew, secure your life lines!" the whole crew immediately head back to the pole and held tightened their ropes. "By Shiva…" Drake muttered, "If we live this, I swear I'm quitting my pipe" he pulled out his pipe and take one last gulp before letting the giant creation of the sea suck them in.

Ash and the rest of the gang held on to dear life on whatever they could find, but with the ship going round and round, there was very little hope for survival.

Seeing how hopeless it was for everyone to hold on, Ash once again, took a daring 'try' to use his powers to save his friends. "Drake!" he called out. "Tell your crew to lower the sails!" this caused the man to raise a brow of confusion to him.

"Lower the sails? Are you insane?! They'll be torn to shreds!" he yelled back trying to hold on to dear life.

"Just trust me on this!" with one determined look on the boy's face, Drake knew that if he was going down, then at least he was going down fighting! "All hands!" he yelled out to the top of his lunges, "Get your behinds moving and lower those sails! GO GO GO!"

"Aye captain!" they all said in unison. With a blink of an eye the crew began lowering the four sails that were tied up just minutes ago.

With the sails being undone by the crew, Max's eye glasses left his eyes. The small boy reached for it, but then suddenly realized that letting go of the railing was probably the dumbest move he's done up to date. As he was pulled away by the strong winds, his life line rope snapped like a snake torn in two. "Ahhhhhh! Help me!"

With very little concern about her own safety, Misty gathered up her courage and jumped off to save the boy from demise. Her life line held off without breaking and not a moment too soon, he grabbed onto Max's arm and pulled him in back to the ship. "Hold on Max!" she gritted her teeth as Togepi squealed in her bag. "Just a little bit more!" with incredible strength that could possibly match up to a rookie wrestler, she got Max back into the ship's bridge in seconds. However… things don't always go that easy. With Max holding on to a new rope along with his sister, Misty's line broke off like magic. "WAHHHH!!!!" she screamed.

The echo of her voice rang throughout the night making Ash stop on his tracks. With great athletic ability, the boy reached out and grabbed the girl by her wrist, holding on tightly, like it was the greatest treasure he had in his life. "Don't worry Misty, I'll save you!" he said heroically. But even with great powers, the boy still wasn't wearing his life line. He thought that he didn't need it, but right now, he wished that he did.

With the whirlpool going faster and faster and the wind picking up speed, Ash suddenly felt his own feet were lifting from the ground. The currents were so strong that even a boulder would be flying through here. But before Ash and Misty could go flying off into the great beyond, a strong pair of arms wrapped itself around Ash's waist like Kingler's claws.

"Hang in there Ash!" it was Roselane, the physically strong rookie trainer. With her inhumane strength and agility, she was able to pull both Ash and Misty like a piece of cake. A few seconds after Ash got reacquainted with the floor he hastily dashed off to the back of the ship so no one would be able to see him use his powers. "Ash, wait! Where are you going!?" the blonde girl called out.

"There's something I need to do" was his reply, "Take care of Misty ok!" the moment he reached the back of the ship the crew had finally finish unrolling and tying the last of the sails. Now all they could do is to hope that the old king could pull out some sort of miracle to get them out of this mess.

"Ok…" Ash muttered as he took off his arm length gloves, "It's either now or never…" slowly by the moment, the marks on his right arm began to glow in the colors of light blue. A slight pain surged through his body as it began feeling kind of numb. It was like the whole world was coming down onto his shoulders by this very second. "Come on… come on! I need to save my friends!" the world around him began to blur slightly. If this keeps up any longer, he might risk losing consciousness before the spell is even cast, "Hurry… just a little longer…"

**(Back in Fort Gregro, Altar room)**

The small whirlpool that Pallet made in that bucket near the toy ship was becoming more and more violent with each spin. The sadistical grin that vanished some few days ago had returned to his sick lips causing the nearby chosens to shudder in fear. He was having fun just playing with his magical toys like that. It didn't even bother him to know that there were actually living beings in there.

Sha-hear saw this and was becoming increasingly disturbed by the moment. Either the kid was going insane or he was losing it.

**(Back with our heroes)**

The great breeze that feeds the land of its power. The gentle movement of its pattern leaves it unpredictable. With the guiding light of his majesty's arm, the power of wind flowed through his veins, thus creating a small but piercing flow of air that moved the sails like they were controlled by magic.

In mere moments, the ship began to lift itself up from the whirlpool and with the luck of gods, they landed a good distance away from the raging waters and directly under the eye of the storm. (The eye of the storm is the calm place at the center of a deadly storm. I have seen several of them on TV but none in real life so I'm not sure)

With the power of the king faded from his arm, Ash's body felt like it was once again made of lead. With his sights blurring out from reality, and darkness consuming him, his brain shuts down. But before falling towards the wooden planks, Roselane caught his failing body by just mere seconds. "Ash, are you alright?! Ash?!" she panicked as tears began falling from her eyes. With him in his arms, it seemed like the events that happened two million years ago began flooding in her head. "Your majesty, please wake up! Your majesty!" she yelled out. But luckily for her, the others were still recuperating from the storm, so they weren't able to hear her.

"What… what happened?" said Brock who placed his hand on his aching back.

Drake himself was a bit confused. The first thing he felt was some strong and powerful wind coming from behind, then after that, he realized that his ship was flying. For a moment there, he thought that his ship got thought in some sort of natural phenomenon, but when he and his crew were safe, he just didn't know what to think of anymore.

Usually, after surviving a catastrophe like this, the crew would be yelling out jubilant cries of victory over mother nature. However… everyone seemed to be too tired to even lift a finger anymore.

**(Back in Fort Gregro, Altar room)**

After escaping that last disaster, Pallet became furious. A single ship… was able to withstand against his awesome god like powers. With rage building up in his eyes, he raised his hand, preparing to deliver judgment to those humans with all his might.

Then… with a move that surprised the gods themselves, Sha-hear stopped him. His quick lightning reflexes were so dashingly fast that the background sound came after he caught the boy's hand. "Enough Pallet! If you keep this up, you'll get them all killed!" the boy looked back at him with his lifeless gaze. The boy was now merely a shell of a child once long forgotten. He didn't care who would lose or who would win…… he just wanted one thing, and one thing alone…… a friend…

"Do not forget that I am the leader of the Guardians!" Sha-hear gritted hit teeth as his grip grew even tighter, "Do not disobey me…!" as they continued to glare at each other with a look that would've made the chosens wet their pants, Pallet knew that he wasn't going to accomplish anything by destroying one lousy ship. He'll have to save his anger for something more important… much much later.

**(Back on the ship)**

With the crew recovering from that mysterious weather pattern, every seemed to be going great now. Though most parts of the ship were still damaged, there was nothing a few duck taps can't handle. (If it's broken… Duck it!) Probably half the ship was now sticking together with tapes and chewing gum. Drake however would probably say in his head, _"This isn't the first we've done this"_

"Damage report" he asked the second in command.

"Sir, the lower hulls are repaired and the upper decks are done. The sails however… are uh…" he gestured to the biggest sails which Drake would've been shocked to see. The whole thing had been torn to shreds beyond repairs and it would probably require a large bundle on strings to even begin to fix that! Though the other sails were still in good condition, without the primary wind catcher, the speed of the ship would probably drop about thirty percent or so. "Well…" Drake mumbled, "I guess we'll have to get a new one once we get to Valmarian city. Tell the crew to secure it and try to mend the others" with a salute the captain walked away to tend to his guests. "Well it looks like the trip to Valmarian will take longer than expected. You kids better rest inside your cabin, you all must be pretty tired" and true to his words, they were all indeed very tired.

**(Valmarian city slums)**

"So… you want me to join you?" said the new guy, "I'm surprised Mr. Oak. I didn't expect someone like you to be so…… demanding" he chuckled in a villain like manner. But the gang boss didn't even react to his silent taunts. He just stood there with an expressionless face, "Ok, first of all: I don't care if you join me or not. I'm just here because your friend Red told me you were good" the 'kid's' eyes visibly sharpened like blades. Just mentioning the name of the sponsor hit a nerve there, but Gary did not know if it was a good nerve or a bad nerve.

"Red huh…" he repeated that name, "It's been awhile since I've seen him" he turned around and gaze back at the sky. The dark clouds loomed over Valmarian city that day. Though a lot dislike the rain, the local police force seemed to love it. Because usually this time, the Pokemon trainers would stay in their shelters rather than to fight on open ground. The Jennies that were stationed there would sigh with relief and do the rain dance each day just so they could avoid work. But as the thundering clouds roared like a hungry beast waiting for its pray, the new kid went into deep thought.

"Ok… I'll join…" he said finally causing Gary to stir, "If Red's in… then I'm in…"

"Good…" Gary replied, "By the way… what's your name" A lightning bolt soared from the sky, breaking the sound barrier by a long shot. It would not be long……… until his name would be feared by all.

"Call me…… Brendan……"

**(Time skip, afternoon) (Back at the ship)**

Noon… a time when the sun rose to the top of the sky and warms the world with its mighty rays. A time where Pokemons come out freely and play…… unfortunately for our heroes however… they did not possess such fortunes.

The fog still remained, blocking their visions and sapping away their morale like a leech. If one should look at this sight, they would probably think of it as a curse of some sort. But with the Pokemon league so close by and Valmarian city just somewhere beyond the waters, they could only hope that this mysterious fog could just…… go away.

As the crew go on with the repairs, Roselane brought Ash to the boys cabin after that frightful disaster last night. The sad tears that fell from her eyes were replaced by anger. "That idiot Pallet!" she thought, "I asked for a fog and a storm! Not a whole tsunami!!" just when she was about to take her anger on the table, a knock on the door stopped the girl on her tracks.

"Ash, are you awake?" it was May who opened the door and saw Roselane sitting next to the boy on the bed, "I brought you some lunch" she pulled out a plate full of chicken curry, which was on today's kitchen menu. "Oh… is he still sleeping?" she then noticed the boy snoozing away peacefully. His face looked so cute that it would be so nice just to pinch his cheeks to see how soft they were. Knowing that's its not a good idea to wake up a very tired boy, May decided to leave the plate on the table and join Roselane to keep the boy company when he wakes up. He'd probably feel lonely when he opens up his eyes to see that no one was with him.

As a few seconds past by, the chocolate haired girl decided to start a conversation with Ash's new friend. "So… how is he?"

Roselane forced out a smile from her lips and politely replied, "He's fine. He's probably just tired from that storm this morning" luckily for her, May bought out her act.

"Well… I guess he hasn't changed that much" the girl mumbled, "He's still the lazy boy Ash I remembered a year ago" those passionate words vibrated through the room, catching the attention of the rookie trainer. "H… how long?" she asked May. "How long have you known Ash?" this made the girl blush slightly on her cheeks, "Well… I've known him for some times" she began twitching her thumbs together shyly.

"When you mean some times… do you mean a day, or a month?" Roselane asked while keeping her locked up emotions in check.

"Two years actually ahehehehe" May gave out a fake smile to show her embarrassing emotions, "It was a long time ago when we first met. I met him in Littleroot town. You could say I will still getting new to Pokemon training" she let out a small giggle which caused Roselane to look at her confusingly, "Anyway, when me and my brother Max traveled with him all over Hoenn, we used to argue with each other a lot. After that he went on back to Kanto to try out for the Battle Frontier challenge. And oh boy was that a lot of fun!"

"It looks like the both of you spent a lot of time together" Roselane spoke out just to keep in the mood.

When the atmosphere around the cabin began to brighten up, May began to loosen up the story, "After that… Ash and I split up. My brother and I went to Johto to compete in the Johto competition cup" she paused for a moment to catch her breathing.

"And so… did you win?" Roselane asked temptingly, "If Ash trained you to be like him, then you must be famous just like him"

May was stumped back for a moment, but then quickly analyzed what she was asking, "Oh uh… I uh… well… no…" she said finally, "I was only able to get to the top 20s" her head sulked down below her shoulders. "I was so sure that I was going to win that time. I didn't know what came over me…" her grip on the chair tightened as if she wanted to ball her fist, "When I was fighting in the stadium, I felt like I really wanted to win… no matter what" the image of the Johto ribbon trophy materialized in her head. It was the grandest dream of all Pokemon coordinators in the region, "I really wanted that trophy" she extended her arms pretending to reach out for the imaginary gold chalice. But by the time she got it… it vanished. May looked upon her hand and opened it with saddened eyes.

She must've really wanted that trophy for some reason. "When I look back at myself now on TV… I kinda feel like an idiot ahehehehe"

While the girl giggled her way out of the topic, Roselane began to see the sparkle in her eyes. She recognized that look almost anywhere. She used to have them herself. "You care for him… don't you?" she asked knowingly. May spranged back her head and flushed, waving her hand defensively, "What? No no no no no no no, of course not! Whatever made you think like that ahehehehe!"

"I see…" Roselane smirked as she knew that she touched a sensitive part in the girl's feelings, "Sorry, I guess I'm not that good in reading people's minds" the tone of that sentence didn't really fir the expresstion. She smirked and decided to leave the story for now.

But after that little unavoidable ranting, Max came in with sweat all over his face. It proof that the boy has been running around looking for something, "There you are May! Come on, we need your help with the ledge!" he yelled out to his sister. May gave out a small sigh of disappointment. She really wanted to stay beside Ash for a little bit longer but then she guessed things have to be priorities.

With the two siblings gone from the room and out of ear shot, Roselane took a closer look at Ash by putting her face right next to him. She gently removed the arm length gloves and scrubbed away any dirt from his skin. The marks on the boy's right arm were becoming more and more defiant. If Ash knew that his arm could crush a country with a single snap of the fingers, nations from all over the world would be bowing at his doorsteps. After removing the last spec of dust from the boy's face, Roselane took a better look at the boy. "You look… just like him…" she whispered softly.

But when her moments of happiness stretched on, the boy began to mumble which caused her to jolt right back down on her chair. Her breathing began rapid as her heart pounding like a rocket taking ready for lift off. "Oh… wha… where am I?" Ash muttered out but just barely. It sounded like a squeak rather than words.

"Your majes…" Roselane nearly slipped her tongue, "I mean… Ash! You're awake!" she tried to hold back the happy tears that were ready to burst out of her eyes.

Ash tilted his head slightly to see where the loud voice was coming from, "Oh… hey there Rose… what time is it?" he asked while wincing painfully.

"Its half past noon, so there's no need to worry" she replied. Ash gave out a smile and blindly starred at the ceiling to get some thinking done. After waking up from such an exhausted state, his mind was temporary blanked out at the moment. Noticing that empty expression on the boy's face, Roselane remembered that May brought in some food and water, "There's some food here if you like" she gladly picked the tray of food and placed it on her lap. The hot steam of curry rice smelled almost like heaven to Ash. He hovered over the plate and almost began to drool like a hyena, "Here… now say ahh" Roselane took a spoon full of meat and rice and fed the boy like a baby. Ash stiffened at first but then submitted to her persistence.

**(Valmarian city)**

Gary and his crew were taking a short stroll towards Uno café to get their lunch. The city was once again bustling with tourist and trainers from all over the world. Hotels and motels were quickly being drained of all its rooms and reservations were pilling in by the seconds. It was perhaps just another ordinary day here in the ever exciting city of Valmarian.

But as the most powerful gang walked down the streets, Havic could see several of his boys patrolling the area. The underlings that past by quickly lowered their heads in respect and moved out of the way without another word.

Emma quickly smirked as she was enjoying all the respect she was getting, "I can get used to this" she said lightly. But her smirk suddenly vanished when someone decided to block the gang's path. Gary stopped and glared at the small group in front of him. A team of three, the man at the center of the group was quickly recognized as a member of the Elite Fives from the Bail Outs.

"Hey…" said Binor the weakest of the five, "You Gary?" he pointed at the boy with the scar across his face. "Well? You him?"

Gary chuckled as he knew where this was going, "Yeah… I'm Gary…" he snickered which caused Binor to move forward, "And what are you gonna do about it?"

When Havic saw this he gave out a whistle to signal any of his underlings to rally to his position. In an instant, dozen by dozens began to gather up around the intersection which caused the civilians to run and hide. This was now a common thing to happen on the streets of the city. When people pass by to watch these 'fights' they began to realize that it was nothing more but your usual gang wars. A group of people challenging another group of people? This was no battle! This was nothing more but simple street fights.

Binor's bodyguards began to sweat by the buckets. Having all of Gary's minions surround them was quite a demoralizing tactic. "I challenge you!" he said finally, "I challenge you to a three on three match! Right here, right now!" he quickly pulled out a Pokeball and readied it for a fight. Havic's men were just about to move in and intervene but then Gary just waved them off to see how powerful he was. But right when he was about to send out one of his Pokemons, he felt a hand holding his shoulders.

"Wait…" it was Jaques, the flying Pokemon trainer. "It's a trap…" he said boringly, "If you fight him, there's a good chance the rest of the Elite Five will find out your weakness. Let me battle him instead" Gary was about to deny him that request, but after thinking for a moment, he knew that the blonde guy was right. If he showed his enemies his true potential, there's a good chance they might find out a flaw in his tactics and exploit it.

With a approving nod from the boss, Jaques gave out a smile that would probably melt a woman's heart. Though they could not see him smile due to his coat, his facial expression did show a slight lip on the left side.

Denied of his plan of succeeding, Binor now had to sweat along with his companions. If he wins this fight, he might stand a small chance in getting back at Gary, but if he loses… well… let's just say it won't be pretty.

"Alright then!" the member of the Elite Five spoke up, "Let's do this! I choose y---" just before he could even throw the Pokeball, another figure appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his arm, "What the?!" Binor turned his head around only to be shocked by the fact that his leader was there standing next to him…

"Now now Binor, is that a way to treat our nemesis before battle?" it was Kevin, the boss of the Bail Outs.

"B… b b b… b b b… Boss! W… what are you?" Binor's face quickly turned into a frightened kitten. He was so horrified that he was just about to wet his pants.

Kevin moved Binor's arms down and slowly made his way towards Gary. "I apologize for my companion's behavior earlier. I assure you that my group had took no part in this operation" the slyness in his voice made it impossible to tell if the guy was lying or telling the truth.

"Hn…" was Gary's reply, "Whatever, just make sure you keep him in a short leash" he then turned to his crew, "Come on. Let's get something to eat" with the gang slowly disbursing into fewer numbers and Gary out of line of sight, Kevin turned to the rock Pokemon trainer.

"What were you thinking Binor?" even though he didn't raise his voice, you could already tell by the aura he was giving that he was pissed, "Facing a strong opponent this early will only wear you down" he slowly walked pass the boy with a cold expression imbedded on his face, "If you don't want to be like the rest of those clowns…… then you must obey my orders… agree?" that last word sent chills down the spines of the two bodyguards making them freeze in their tracks. "Now come… we have work to do"

"Y… y… yes boss" with his legs still twitching from those cold emotionless eyes, Binor gathered up his strength and lifted himself up and followed his boss back to their hideout.

**(Time skip, night time) (10:00 PM sharp!)**

Just when Drake and his crew had finally finished repairing the smaller sails and reconstructing the wheel and other minor parts, a thick fog began envelop around the area making it impossible to sail forward. However, this time there was no storm nor any thunder clapping on top of them. This made it easier for Drake to navigate through with the stars guiding his path.

While Ash remained in his cabin (due to Roselane's insistence) his friends helped around with their Pokemons to direct which way to go. They didn't want to get lost now that they were so close to the city.

"Are all the preparations complete?" Drake requested from one of his crew.

"Aye aye captain!" the man saluted, "All necessary repairs are finished and we can leave any moment now!" with a reassuring 'hn' sound from the captain they dismissed themselves from his presence.

"All hands to your stations!" Drake yelled out to the top of his lunges, "Prepare to cast off! Raise the anchor and lower the sails! Ready the wheel and move out!" with a shout of 'yes sir' going all around, the ship began moving once again, but only at half of the original speed.

While the crew tended to the necessary procedures, Richie recalled Rose (his Taillow) back to its Pokeball to give it a good day's rest. "Thanks Rose, you rest up for tomorrow" with all the competing trainers out and ready for the battles that are soon to come, something unusual was bothering Drew.

"Something's not right…" he muttered slightly to himself.

"Hmm? Is something wrong?" Todd asked while wiping the lens of his camera.

"Don't you feel it?" the green haired boy raised his hand into the air and gently waved it around, "There's something heavy in the air" Todd decided to try out what he was trying to explain and waved his hand above his head. And true to his words, Drew was right. The fog that enveloped around the ship was heavier than your average everyday cloud. It was thick, but no one would ever thought of it to weigh so heavy around them.

"He's right…" said Anabel who agreed with the boy. "This mist… it's… unusual…"

Drake took a mental note of the fog's behavior into consideration but did not stop the ship. If they stopped now, there's no telling what would happen. "Keep a sharp eye men! I don't want anyone slacking off!"

"Sir yes sir!" just when they thought nothing could stop them from reaching the city of fame, the ship seemed to have hit something, which made it stop dead on its tracks. Everyone who were on the bridge lost their balance and fell to the floor on their faces like a pack of meat that fell off the truck. Luckily, no one was near the edge so no one fell off the boat.

**(Back in the boy's cabin)**

A sudden chill went through Ash's nerve systems. He could feel something coming close to the ship, "Hey… what's going on? (Pika?)" he felt the sudden crash and immediately got into worry mode. Just when he was about to get out of bed, Roselane came by and tucked him back in, "Don't worry, it's probably just your imagination" her words rang with so much uncertainty that only an idiot would believe her.

"Oh… ok (the gods face faulted) I guess your right" but Ash couldn't shake the feeling panging inside his chest. He felt this feeling before. Back during the time when he met the guardians and the councilors in the palace. The strong urge to run, the sudden fear creeping up to your skin, the sound of Pokemons roaring violently like madmen, it was all too senile for him to accept.

After the boy calmed down in his bed along with his Pikachu, Roselane checked the side window of the room. The fog was so darn thick that you could barely make out the waters. "So… it begins now… heh…"

**(Back on the bridge)**

"Damage report!" Drake yelled out while rubbing the back of his head. Several crew men head off to the front of the boat to see what they crashed onto. They pointed their flashlight to illuminate the dark, but sadly, it was still not enough to see the whole thing. "We seemed to have hit a shallow rock sir!" said the crewman. "Somebody get me a flare. We'll see what we hit" said another sailor. While a dozen of them were busy handling the front, Drake decided to put the big oars to good use. "Alright men. Get those long oars out. We'll pull ourselves out of this place"

The crew saluted and immediately got to work. The long oars poked itself out of the small sockets colliding itself with the water below. "Ok men! One two three push!!! (x3)" after the first few tries of towing the boat out of that object, the ship suddenly crashed onto another at the back. "What in Davy Jones?" the captain cursed, "You there" he ordered one of the men, "Go check it out!"

"Yes sir!" just when the sailor was about to reach the edge of the ship's rear, a pack of armored Gyrados rose from the banks of the sea which caused the entire crew to panic. "WHAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!" not long after that, the helmsmen spotted something coming from the starboard side of the ship. "Huh? What's that?" he quickly grabbed his binoculars and looked back at the multiple shadows that were hastily approaching.

The moment the first figure came into sight, the man was shock. The shadows that were traversing the vast ocean, were a pack of Pokemons of different kinds. The ones that did not posses the ability to swim merely rode on the backs of the Whailords that approached. It was an assault force! "Incoming on starboard side! Incoming on starboard side!" this caught the attention of the captain and the trainers.

"Everyone!" the captain raised his voice, "Defend yourselves!"

On the back of the Whailord, behind the rows of hundreds of Pokemons, a Yellow Lucario stood tall and proud like a true warrior. A wild guess on this one would probably tell that this Pokemon was the leader of the force. With a wave of his paws, the legendary ice bird Articuno flew overhead, freezing the waters below with its awesome powers. "Soldiers of the empire!" the Lucario called out, "Attack!" with that simple command, the Pokemons dashed off from the back of the massive water beast and into the boat, where the battle for the king shall now take place.

**(Back in the cabin)**

"What the?!!" Ash was startled when an explosion accured just right on top of his room. The entire ship felt like it was shaking onto a waterfall or something. Letting his worry take over, Ash threw himself out of his bed and dashed towards the door. "Come on Pikachu!" but just when he was about to turn the door knob, Roselane barred his path. "Wha? What are you doing Rose?"

"I…" she couldn't bear to look at his face right now. The girl still had a mission to accomplish and she wasn't going to let the plan get messed up because of some accident, "I'm sorry Ash. But I cannot let you go. It's too dangerous up there!"

"But my friends are up there!" he countered, "I have to know what's going on!" he tried to push the girl aside without hurting her, but it seemed like she was stronger than she actually looked. "Let me go Rose!" he demanded.

"I… I… forgive me… your majesty…"

"Wha? What did you…" Ash was unable to finish his sentence when Roselane cast a spell on him. At first, his sight became blurry, then his back began to ache, soon his nerves begin to shutdown causing his legs to lose balance. But before he fell to the wooden floor board, Roselane caught him by just milliseconds before impact. "Don't worry your majesty. It'll all be over soon"

"Pikapi pikachu!?" (Ash! What's wrong?) said Pikachu

But Roselane wasn't gonna let a little rodent interfere with her plans, "Silence you little mouse!" before Pikachu could even get a chance to charge up its electrical powers, Roselane cast her sleeping spell once again and put Pikachu to sleep. In the end, the mouse went straight to sleep.

Not trying to lose the momentum of battle, Roselane quickly removed Ash's Pokebelt and place them on the table so they can be found later by one of the passengers. With her inhumane strength, she carried Ash on her back like a sack of rice and walked out to take advantage of the confusion. On the way, she spotted several sailors running for their lives towards the main bridge. The battle that raged from above seemed to be more furious than anything she had seen so far, but strangely enough, the captain's crew and the trainers were putting up a good fight.

Drake called out Salamence and ordered another attack, "Salamence, use hyper beam attack!" the dragon Pokemon unleashed a deadly laser beam from its mouth and took down three armored Wartortles in one blow. But when one of them falls, twelve more comes to take its place.

The other trainers also called out their Pokemons to do battle against their unknown attackers. The crew members that did not have Pokemons tried their best to fight back. But with a fixed strength and no super powers like the Pokemons, they pose very little threat and were considered more of a hindrance rather than an enemy.

"Oars control!" the captain called out to the large pipe that acts as a communicator to the lower parts of the ship, "Get us out of here now!"

"We're trying sir!" came a sailor's reply, "But there's a Tentacruel here and it's… AHHHHH!!!!" just as he was speaking to the captain, the giant octopus-like Pokemon grabbed the long giant oars with its tentacles and with one strong move, it snapped them like tooth picks. "Captain, the oars are no more sir! We're evacuating the lower deck!" he then turned to the crew, "Everyone, get to the bridge, hurry!"

After losing the lower decks to the attackers, the captain felt like his last hope of surviving the sea have been snuffed out by the winds. In a matter of hours, the ship will be completely overrun and there would be no place for any of them to hide. He could not order the command to abandon ship, for the seas were now crawling with Pokemons that looked like they could tear a human body in matter of seconds.

Misty ordered up her Starmie to take down a Sneasel that managed to sneak its way up to the ship's sails. After taking down a few more, one of her Pokeballs began to act up, "Huh? What the?" immediately the Pokeball popped open to reveal… "Psyduck!" Misty yelled out, "Get back into your Pokeball, this isn't the time to act stupid!" she tried to return it to the Pokeball, but the beam simply missed its target. "Oh!!! Psyduck!" just when she was about to call it back again, an Articuno appeared from the dark skies and landed right next to her. "An… an Articuno?" the legendary bird immediately scanned the ship for the nearest threat and spotted Psyduck. "Hey, you leave him alone!" But the bird ignored her rambling and froze the duck Pokemon right in its track. "Oh no, Psyduck!" Misty yelled out in disbelief.

Just when Misty was about to order an attack with her Starmie, a voice came out from behind which caught her attention. "Articuno!" it was Roselane. She stood just as pretty as before but this time, she was carrying an unconscious Ash on her back.

"Rose?" May said puzzled by her actions. When the blonde girl was right next to the ice bird, she immediately ordered it to attack, "Articuno, ice beam attack!" the Pokemon unleashed a fury of its power towards the trainers but after countless days of training with Ash, they were able to dodge it before any of them froze to popsicles.

With the trainers and the crew distracted from the attack, Rose quickly placed Ash on the back of the ice Pokemon. "Rose, what are you doing!?" Brock yelled out. But in reply, the girl did not speak. Her body suddenly began morphing itself, thus returning to her original human form. Everyone's eyes opened to the sight… shocked with confusion. Roselane, the girl who they thought was nothing more than a rookie trainer, was Rosa… the fourth member of the old Empire's Guardians.

Upon seeing Rosa on Articuno's back, Chaucer (in his Lucario form) gave out a whistle to signal the army that their task was complete. With the sound echoed through the night, the Pokemons carried their wounded comrades off the ship and cast them to the Whailord, where they will be safely transported back to the fortress.

"Ash!" Misty called out. The rest of the trainers who were still able to fight saw this and were quickly stunned. The Pokemon thief (or so they think) had just kidnapped their comrade!

Not letting this get away without a fight, May called out her Blaziken while Tracey called out his Syther to give chase. "Scyther, go and get Ash!" the bug Pokemon quickly hastened its wings and flew over the boat to persue its target.

"Blaziken!" May commanded, "Use overheat!" the humanoid-bird-like Pokemon unleashed a beam of hot magma from its mouth, but Articuno simply turned its head and countered that blast with an ice beam. After taking care of that threat, Rosa knew that another one was coming. She motioned Articuno with her hands and made it take a sharp turn, thus avoiding Scyther's claws.

After saving up and recoiling after the turn, the bug Pokemon and Articuno starred at each other, not letting one side take advantage of their weakness. In a fair fight, Articuno would've won this aerial battle with just one use of its powers. But with an extra cargo more valuable than her life itself, Rosa wasn't gonna take any chances. Her left arm was holding on to Articuno, to keep her from falling while her right arm was holding onto Ash's jacket for dear life. "Articuno, ice beam now!" the bird gave out another shot, but Scyther managed to dodge it quite easily and counter attack before Rosa could even think.

Even with a slash on Articuno's wings, Rosa still did not intend of giving up. "Pidgeot, come forth!" she called out the only Pokeball in her a belt. "Now go!" with a wave of her hand and a well timed command, the bird Pokemon charged against Scyther to keep it busy while she withdraws back to the fortress.

"I don't think my Scyther can take it on!" Tracey pondered as he watched his Pokemon get thrashed by Pidgeot's peck attack.

"Then I guess some help wouldn't be so bad!" Drake immediately called out Salamence (again) and Altaria, "Salamence, Altaria, go help Scyther!" with a roar from both of his Pokemons they flew overhead to take on their next challenge.

With the combined strength of two dragon Pokemons and Scyther, Pidgeot was easily taken down with a steel wing attack. Luckily for the bird, Rosa managed to return it back into its Pokeball before they did any serious injuries.

Now with Articuno cornered in the skies with Drake and Tracey's Pokemons, Rosa now had to think fast before their plans falls into ruins. With Ash and her on the ice Pokemon's back, its speed has been greatly reduced by ½ thus making it an easy target to pick on.

Just as the pace began to die down, Rosa decided to make a break for it. She knew that her Articuno stood no chance against the power of three well trained Pokemons and so running seemed to be the best logical course of action.

As the three Pokemon gave chase while at the same time attacking Rosa, Articuno was still surprisingly agile and managed to avoid all the attacks given to it with ease. It truly did live up to its name as one of the legendary Pokemons of the world. "Hold on Articuno!" Rosa gave it some morale support, "We're almost there! Just a bit further!" but alas, it could not happen. Salamence hastily appeared in front of Articuno with its fast reflexes and fired a hyper beam attack directly at its torso. Articuno was stunned by the attack and so was Rosa. By the time she managed to recuperate from the blast, her right hand slipped off Ash, making the boy fall into the freezing sea below.

Ros could not believe it… her mission was about to fail the moment the boy touches the waters. The images from the pass began flowing back into her head like a vacuum spitting everything back out. Her eyes watered with tears of pain and sadness. A girl who has recovered her love… was just about to lose it… again.

"No!" Rosa gritted her teeth as she spoke, "Not again, not anymore!" In a move that would awake even the dead, Rosa willingly jumped off the back of Articuno and grabbed Ash's sleeping body like it was the most precious thing in her life. "I got you your majesty!" she placed his head on her chest and closed her eyes. If she was going to die because of the impact, then at least she would be beside the one she loved.

She looked at the face as they fall to the ocean

She hugged his body not willing to part it

She opened her heart to bath him in her love

If she was to die… then she would at least die with a smile on her face.

In mere seconds before the two of them collided with the ocean and rest in peace, Flygon, the loyal chosen of Rosa came just in the nick of time just to save them from the impact. For a moment there, Rosa actually thought that she died from that impact, but after a reassuring voice from her companion, she knew that she was alive.

"You owe me big time for this Rosa!" it was Chaucer, the Yellow Lucario.

"Chaucer!?" Rosa replied confused with what was happening. But Chaucer did not have time to sit and chat. With the three Pokemons from the humans quickly approaching he gave out a whistle to signal some sort of trap. In an instant, hundreds of flying Pokemons appeared from the thick mist and began distracting their enemies.

"Alright, let's get out of here!" with a wave of his hand, Flygon obeyed his command and used gust attack to clear away the fog.

With the isle of Fort Gregro right in front of her eyes, Rosa released some tension from her heart. With the day of the planet's alignment coming close and the king in her hands…… nothing can go wrong…… nothing.

Absolutely nothing!


	36. Rise of The Empire Part 1

**Chapter 36: Rise of The Empire (Part 1)**

There… that was it… When Ash had been captured by the two Guardians, the Pokemons that had attacked the captain's ship had withdrawn. At first, the gang wanted to traverse through the waters and save their friend, but without their companion to guide them, no one seemed to be able to move forward. After the great battle that had ended, the Pokemons that came by the ship had done more than harming its crew. During the attack, several of the water Pokemons took their sweet time in sabotaging the whole boat, making it impossible to move. The sails were torn to pieces beyond the skills of any seamstress; the oars were snapped like twigs by those Tentacruels and the rudder was utterly ripped off from the rear of the boat.

But even with the condition of the boat was beyond repair, some were more confused on what was actually going on. Roselane turning to into one of the White Bandits, the armored Pokemon attacks and that island that seemed to appear out of nowhere! The world just seemed like it has gone crazy for all of them!

"Alright crew…" Drake said depressingly, "Get the injureds into the infirmary and tend to their wounds. Helmsmen, give me a damage report when you're done" with a slow salute from the sailor, the captain walked towards Ash's gang to get some sort of explaination, "Are any of you hurt?" he asked first.

The trainers didn't really have much of a scratch, but Todd seemed to have been picked by a bird on his face. Duplica had spent two hours bandaging the boy who was more worried about his camera rather than his life.

They shook their heads in reply and glared at the island on the horizon. It was a few kilometers away, but it was still within reach of the life boats. "Drake!" Richie stated, "We'll need one of your life boats" he began untying the nearest lifeboat and prepared it for departure. But the captain wasn't gonna let some child go on a suicidal mission. If that's where all the armored Pokemons went, then he'll probably be facing more than he could possibly count. "Richie, no!" Brock hastily grabbed the boy by the arms and pulled him away from the raft in a head lock position.

"Hey, let go! Let me go!" Richie began whining like a child. But who could possibly blame him? His closest thing to a brother was being kidnapped by some strangers. "Don't be crazy!" Brock demanded while trying to hold the boy with his strength. Even though he was smaller than Ash, he still can up quite a fight. "There's no telling what's out there!"

But the boy refused to listen. He kept kicking and punching to break himself free of the squinty eyed man's hands but to no success. Brock may be a softy on the normal cicumstances, but when his friends are in danger he'd pull out some Hercules like strength and beat his opponents down. Though many of the gang really wanted help Ash like Richie, they were still stunned and confused on what was really going on. Without some logical explaination on the recent event that took place here, they were practically glued to the spot. Heck even Max wanted to help, but he was busy being restrained by Drew and Tracey.

After seeing Ash's friends fight each other on their decision, Drake felt like he wanted to pull his hair out. When the young determined Pokemon trainer was with them, the boys and girls were acting accordingly and were never out of line. But now… without that link to bind them together, they were just about ready to tear each other apart.

"Enough!" Drake raised his voice for the first time and called the attention of the gang, "Instead of just fighting here, why don't the lot of you help out with the repairs. Until things settle down first, I'm restricting all of you from using the life boats!" with a defining yell from the member of the elite four, the gang lowered down their anger and decided to head back to their cabins instead.

**(Rustboro city hotel)**

Delia's sixth sense began acting up again. Though it was not frightening like the other times, it still bothered her during her sleeps. The time was closing towards midnight and with the storm still lingering on top of the city, it was quite certain that she would not be leaving the city in another day or two.

Thanks to the help of professor Birch and to Samuel's popularity with wanabe scientists, they were able to get a three day free lodging.

Mrs. Ketchum looked at the dark storm outside her window. A worried look paled across her face almost making her want to cry. How long did she have to wait? Was Mother Nature against her? Is she to suffer even longer just to see her son again? Hopefully in a few days, she'd be able to hold her Ash in her arms again.

**(Fort Gregro, Courtyard)**

The armies of Pokemons that had just recently attacked Drake's ship awaited patiently at the castle courtyard. Rows, upon rows, upon rows of armored beasts ranging from the smallest of minions to the largest of giants stood proudly as Chaucer landed Rosa's Flygon onto the ground. Articuno landed on the flank of the carrier along with a wounded Pidgeot.

Sha-hear and Hagard awaited for the two at the steps of the castle keep. Their eyes darted from Rosa to the boy then to Rosa again. Right at that moment, they wanted to jump out and shout with glee that their task is now within reach, but they had an image to keep up and time was shortening by the seconds. In an instant, Hagard's Ursaring, one of his three chosens carried the sleeping boy on its back and made its way to the top floor where Pallet was preparing for his arrival.

By the times the Guardians made it to the halls of the palace and out of sight of the other Pokemons, Rosa's fatigued started to kick in. She bent down on one knee and panted heavily as if she had forgotten how to breathe. "Are you alright?" Chaucer asked worryingly as he extended his paw to help her.

But before any of them could react to what was happening, Rosa's human form began to change again, returning her into her old original form. A pink Lucario……

"I'm fine…" she replied, "My powers had just dwindled… I could no longer retain my human form" she forced her body to stand up and hastily made her way to the main parapets, where it was connected to all the floors of the castle Even though the P. Lucario would not show her exhausted state to her companions, Chaucer and Hagard could see the folds appearing in her eyes. She must've pushed herself through the limits for the success of the mission.

But Sha-hear could care less about their condition. "Then let us continue. The time of the planet's alignment is in twenty four hours (that means tomorrow midnight!) Chaucer, tighten security around the palace" the yellow Lucario nodded and quickly exited through the main gate. Sha-hear then turned to the green Lucario, "Hagard, have all the necessary supplies sent to the altar room. I want things to go smoothly for once" with a nod from his companion, Hagard dashed off towards the store house at the edge of the training ground. Rosa then awaited turned to Sha-hear to await for her orders, but to her surprise, Sha-hear simply told her, "Get some rest… you'll need it"

By the time Rosa spun her head around, the white Lucario was gone… like the wind.

**(Back at Rustboro city hotel)**

"Professor? Professor?! Professor, are you still awake?" Delia was knocking on the door of Samuel's room. She needed someone to talk to so that she could relieve some stress from her raging head. Dispite the fact that she couldn't sleep. By this time she would usually have some late night tea with the Jennies next door, but seeing that it was probably half past midnight, she'd rather disturb a long time friend rather than the two police officers.

After a few more knocks the professor finally answered the door with a sleepy expression written all over his face. "Delia?" he said drowsily, "Do you know what time it is?"

"I'm sorry to disturb you professor" she replied, "I know it's late but can I please use your Pokedex? I really need to talk with Ash"

The professor knew that the mother was getting her emotions up again. But instead of denying her, the professor picked out his old worn out Pokedex from his bag and quickly dialed Ash's Pokedex phone number.

**(Somewhere along the shores of fort Gregro)**

Ash's Pokedex began to ring violently along the waves of ocean. The sound of the sea silenced its beep making it impossible for anyone in a five kilometer radius to hear. Just as it was able to land safely onto the beach lines, a small platoon of Pokemons came by and stepped on it without even knowing what it was. There was no way now… for anyone to contact Ash.

**(Back at the hotel)**

A few minutes after the call was made, the line on the other side suddenly went dead. "Eh?" said the professor, "It looks like Ash turned off his Pokedex" he then turned to Delia with a smile, "It looks like he's probably still sleeping, which I think you should be doing too Delia" the mother looked a bit disappointed to not be able to talk with her son, but since she was calling rather late, he must be sleeping right now… Right? (WRONG!!!)

Thinking that it was probably just her imagination kicking her in the rear, Delia decided to leave the professor to his beauty sleeps and get a cup of hot coffee down at the lobby. "Thank you professor. Sorry to disturb you" with a slight bow, she left the room.

Seeing the love of his old life walking away with a saddened face, Samuel could not let this feeling for her go by. "Wait Delia" he said to her. "Why don't I treat you to a cup of coffee? It can get pretty lonely here in Rustboro city" the old man quickly got his lab coat and followed the girl with a smile on his face. Even though he was still sleepy, he couldn't let her go alone no matter what.

"Thank you professor… I'd really appreciate that"

**(Valmarian City, Uno Café) (01:00 AM) (2 weeks and 2 days before the Valmarian League)**

Red was sitiing on a stool sipping a cup of warm coco and eating a deliciously made crousant while reading the Hoenn's daily newspaper. The café had been officially known as Gary's crew hangout and no other customers were allowed but them. Outside the café were three rookie underlings. Their skill in Pokemon training would be nothing compared to Gary's skills.

But with the boss taking a little break in the city's Pokemon gym, and his crew taking a stroll out of the city, Red was now allowed to do anything he wanted. Money was now easy to come by, since many of them had been winning bets and gambles throughout the district.

Just when the boy was about to pay the bill, the café door bell caught his attention. The boy turned around only to be slightly surprised to see his long time 'friend' Brendan.

"I'll have coffee and ham and egg sandwich" the silver haired boy pointed at the menu. With a quick bow from the bartender, he took a book from his pockets and began rading the words in his head. Brendan didn't even bother to look at ever growing grin on Red's face. The two of them sat four stools apart, which could only tell that these two teens weren't exactly going in good terms.

"You're a hard man to predict… Brendan" Red began as he ordered another batch of his food. Brendan ignored his words and kept reading his book without a care in the world, "I must admit, I didn't really expected you to actually accept Gary's offer" again, Brendan refused to reply. Red grew out a smirk as the bartender took his empty plate and replaced it with a new batch of his old order.

"Will that be all sir?" the bartender asked.

"Yeah… just put it in my tab" with a quick nod from the old man, Red took the cup and drank the whole cup with one go.

"So why did you join?" all eyes turned to the silver haired kid as his cold voice filled the whole café. His eyes were still on the book as he spoke. "The Red that I know doesn't usually hang around with wannabes like him" the boy in red chuckled slightly as he finally got the kid to talk back to him. "You know as well as I am: That I'm stronger than both you and Gary. So why?"

Everyone in the room grew quiet as the temreture dropped down below zero. Brendan's voice may be cool, calm and collective like Jaques, but it was more demonic than anyone could ever imagine. If the guy had an actual conversation with an average person, that person would probably be wetting his pants with the first two or three sentences.

"I have no idea what you're talking about" Red spoke as he grinned with the word E.V.I.L imprinted on his lips. "But let's just say... that I have plans of my own..."

That last phrase managed to catch Brendan's attention by a second. His eye tilted to the side and glared at the boy in red. By the time Brendan's food order arrived, Red placed his cap on his head and left the café. Only god would know where he was going and what he was planning to do.

By the time the boy had left the café, Brendan went into a deep thought. He had faced Red before and won, but after several battles and this notious conversation, he was beginning to think that something big was about to happen, "Just what are you planning this time……… Red…?" those were the thoughts that ran through the boy's head as he finally took his face off the book he was reading.

**(Back in Fort Gregro, castle courtyard) (03:00 AM)**

The Pokemons that were now completely loyal to the old empire were assembling at the castle courtyard by Sha-hear's orders. Chaucer had just sent a whole company of their strongest Pokemons to patrol the beaches and possible landing zones in the vicinity. Hagard spent all of his spare time at the store house and the granary just to make sure that they all had adequate provisions if any trouble should arise.

As the time for the king's return draws near by each passing second, tension began drawing higher than your average happy new years eve. Pokemons of different species were mumbling and planning what to do when they finally meet their old resurrected king.

But as the Pokemons go about their daily routine, Chaucer arrived at the store room looking for someone. But unfortunately, the only person he met was the green Lucario, Hagard. "Oh, it's only you Chaucer" he said while checking the amount of supplies the army had left in store room. "Is there something you need?"

The yellow Lucarior scanned the room a few more seconds before replying, "Nothing really" he said, "Have you seen Rosa? She was not in her room when I checked" Hagard gave out a chuckle as he knew how worried that guy was. "I imagine she should be with the king. Have you checked his room yet?" before he knew it, Chaucer was already gone. And true to the wise Pokemon's words… there she was.

Rosa sat on a stool right next to the sleeping king with her eyes focused onto his face never moving… like a statue that would never blink. Even being in such an exhausted state, the girl could not abandoned the one she loved.

"There you are Rosa" Chaucer spoke out with great relief. Just when he took a few steps closer to her, he noticed that the pink Lucario was practically tired to the bones. Her food plate was empty so it would mean that she ate at least. But what Chaucer wanted for her to do is to rest. "I've been looking all over for you"

"I'm sorry" she replied not once moving her eyes away from the boy. "I couldn't sleep… not while he's here" Chaucer stared at the boy's peaceful face. The spell that had been cast over him was powerful enough to make him sleep for about a week. "It won't be long now Rosa" her friend said with worries written all over his face. "The next time he wakes up, he'll be his old self again. Now come on… you need to rest. You don't want the king to see you in that shape after all these years"

But before Chaucer could lay his paws on her shoulder, Rosa stood from her stool and walked towards the bed. In an instant, she lay beside his bed and gazed softly at his cheeks. Having the king close to her was all that she needed to close her eyes. "My king… not long now. The six of us shall be together once more. I swear… as long as I live… I shall not allow anyone to harm you… ever again…" she whispered as she held the boy's marked hands and held it tighter than anything she had before.

Right after the girl lay in that comfortable position, her mind began to drift off to slumber thus making Chaucer give out a sight of relief. Her love for Hsa was more enormous than anything he had seen before. At first, the yellow Lucario wanted to bring Rosa back into her room, but if he tore her away from the king……… it would be like a nail being torn from its finger.

So instead of bringing the pink Lucario to her room, Chaucer simply took a blanket from the cabinets and placed it on her to keep the girl from freezing at the cold temperature.

**(Drake's ship, boy's cabin)**

Even though the moon had already past its way point from the center of the sky, none of Ash's companions could sleep. In fact… none of them even wanted to talk to each other. The whole thing was just too complicated for their simple minds to understand. This was supposed to be a simple go to Valmarian city and compete with all their skills then come back and party, but with all this interference, they began to think that the whole world was beginning to turn against them.

Both the boys and the girls were in the same cabin. They didn't really care about it. It practically felt the same but without that cheerful mood that Ash gave, the place lacked…… the atmosphere.

Suddenly, a knock came from the door which jolted them up. A moment later, Drake came in with some bad news imprinted on his face. "I see you guys are still up" the old captain spoke.

"How's everything Drake?" Brock asked hoping that he would allow them to come out.

"The sails are too badly damage and the rudder has been taken off" Drake sighed, "The fog is worsening by the moment, and if our condition doesn't change…… then I'm afraid that we'll be stuck here for a long long while" he pulled out his pipe and placed it back in his pocket.

"Then we should go and save Ash!" Max suggested with a yell, "We can take one of the life boats and go to that island!" Richie and the other girls wanted to agree, but then Drake beat them to a sound of his voice. "That… is impossible" he said in a different tone. "If you take one step into those waters, you'll stand little chance against the currents. The sea is very dangerous during these time" he pointed to the window at the raging sea. The waters were moving so rapidly that you'd probably think that it was alive. "No one is going out there without my permission… understood?" he turned to the gang with a very serious look.

"But what about Ash?" Richie snapped out of his bed.

"We'll search for him in the morning when the weather clears up" Drake quickly shuffled his coat and moved towards the door, "I'm sorry… but that is all that I can do"

By the time the captain left, the gang felt like their morale had plummet down way below the earth's crust. Some of them even thought of charging through the ship and getting on the nearest life boat and make a break for it.

Back outside, Drake looked around to see if any of the crew was in sight. In a blink of an eye, his body began to glow in a blue color, enveloping the entire deck with light. By the time he finished… he turned into… Loin?

"I'm sorry…" he muttered to himself, "But this is a path, that he… must walk alone" in a fraction of a second, the man vanished from sight before one of the crew passed by to check what caused the giant flash.

**(Outskirts of Valmarian city) (12:30 PM)**

Gary was walking around a small plain to get some meditating done. He was followed by Jaques, his loyal companion who seemed to have grown fond for the kid. Though he doesn't talk much, he does seem to be a good company for a man with few words. "Ahh… this looks like a good spot" said Gary to no one in particular. He stood upon an empty hill surrounded by several medium size oak trees. There was a natural spring at the back and a river next to the hill which gave out a calm soothing sound. Having finding the perfect spot, Gary got into his meditating position and began to relax. The blonde haired Pokemon trainer didn't even make a sound when he sat behind the boy. If one should meet these two, you would actually believe that he might be Gary's personal bodyguard or something.

As the boss of the gang breathed in and out in a controlled rhythm, a sudden sound of two kids playing grabbed his attention. It appeared that two kids, probably about the age of six or seven were fishing at the river. Just as the boy was about to go back into relaxing mode, his mind suddenly clicked when an old memory decided to resurface from the depths of his strange mind.

The memories of the time when Gary and Ash were fishing in the river popped into his head like an old rocket being shot out from the ground with a new engine. He remembered that time when a Goldeen jumped off the water and slapped Ash with its tails. That mere smudge of a memory made him giggle slightly which caught Jacques attention.

However… his happy thoughts soon came to an end when a shadowy figure appeared out of nowhere. Jaques was so surprised since his senses were actually twice as effective of a normal human being. The only way to surprise him would be to become a ghost itself.

Gary scowled at the well known presence. Jaques took a defensive stance just in case if that intruder should be hostile.

"Hey boss" it was Red, the ace Pokemon trainer "How's it going?" he said in a kind manner. No matter how kind the boy may look or sound, Gary and Jaques could never fully trust him. His smile was like a mask hiding the criminal within. His movement felt like they could backstab you at any minute. And his mind was like that of a scientist and a warlord. It was a pattern which no one could possibly predict.

"Gary is meditating right now" said Jaques who blocked his path with his presence. Not once did he let his guard down, especially with this guy around. Red's untrustworthy face was enough to make anyone raise their suspicion and move cautiously without any mistake.

Do not take a man who betrays his master into your service, less he betrays you as well

-Prince of Persia-

"Let him through" Gary said, still not looking back at them. Jaques quickly moved to the side to let the boy pass but still he did not dropping his guard. "What do you want Red?" Gary's tone gave out a chill of distrust that would probably insult anyone who he spoke to.

"Well…" the boy gestured to Jaques who was glaring at him with killing eyes that would break a guy's spirit in half. His brows deeply sharpened like swords that were sent to the smiths… and his pupils were like that of an eagle, never letting its prey out of its sight. With a wave of Gary's hands, the blonde haired Pokemon trainer turned around and walked out of hearing shot to leave them be.

With no one around to hear them, Red took the opportunity, to put his plan… into motion.

**(Uno Café)**

Havic and his fellow members Steve and Emma were having a big lunch that time. Money was no longer an object when in Valmarian city. With all the wannabes and rookie trainers coming in and out of town, the place had practically been a goldmine for the pros. Bets were being offered, tournaments with prizes held in abandoned warehouses and streets alleys and not to mention the notoriety influence. When you're that famous in town, people start to treat you like a man who owns the key to the city. Even though Gary was feared and respected by many trainers, Havic still held his skill above pro trainers.

"Oh boy…" the ex-boss sighed boringly, "Two and a half months and still no Ketchum"

"May be he dropped out" Steve said while picking on the food on his plate, "May be he got into an accident. May be he's stuck somewhere on a deserted island and lost at sea"

"Maybe you should keep your mouth shut!" Emma snapped, annoyed by the fat guy's ramble.

"Hey, can we stay on the topic here?" Havic spoke as he took a bite off his chicken. The other two quickly gave a hmph sound and slowly gobbled what was on their platters. "It's not that I'm worried about that Ash kid. I'm more worried about what our boss's gonna do if HE doesn't show up" he chuckled under his own term of a sense of humor, but Steve and Emma quickly paled like papers as if their soul went out of their bodies. They've never seen Gary angry except on unsuspecting occasions, which was more than enough to send chills down their bones.

"But…" Havic continued, "I'm more worried about that Red and his pal Brendan" he eyed around, trying to see if anyone was close enough to hear their discussion. "They're not in the league for the money, and they're not here for the trophy either"

"Did you see Red fight?" Emma asked as she wiped the food from her mouth with a tissue, "I hate to say it, but that kid has more skill than I am"

"I also checked their Pokemon registrations and accomplishments" Steve added opening his laptop, "It looks like both Red and this Brendan guy came from different towns, but they meet a lot during tournaments and competitions" he tilted his head a little as he was astonished by the next files, "According to the records, it seems that they met during the Sinnoh and Hoenn league last year. Red was able to catch a lot of Pokemons from both regions but Brendan…" he stopped as the list of captured Pokemons went above twenty pages. Havic raised a brow as he snooped in to see what he's got. But when he saw the screen, his shades fell to his nose, revealing his 'I don't believe it' look on his face.

The list of Pokemons that Brendan captured ranged from the most common to some fine rare additions. He has won all competitions in Johto, Kanto and Sinnoh, but was soon defeated at the league in Hoenn, last year. He has over six hundred Pokemons and are currently being taken care of at a ranch back in his home town. His most prized Pokemon that he had in his arsenal, was a Zangoose, a master of attack and defense. It wasn't the greatest Pokemon, but heck it sure can beat the hair out of the Voltegoth's Pokemons any day.

"Whoa…" Havic said in disbelief, "Now he's something. Look at all the Pokemons he's got"

Emma quickly put down her spoon and fork and glared at the laptop screen, only to be as equally amazed like the other two.

**(Fort Gregro, Strong Point) (sun set)**

The Guardians that were currently active and awake had assembled at the inner wall where the defenses were at its peek. Chaucer, Sha-hear, Hagard, and Pallet were sitting at a round table waiting for the time to pass. Everything was now settled and ready. The patrols had all reported in with no contacts, the necessary supplies were in storage and the castle was now in near completion. There were still several loopholes to fill up but they decided that it wasn't necessary. They had a legion of Pokemons ready to lay down their very lives to protect this place. And when the fort was this well supplied… it was now officially impenetrable.

While Sha-hear tended to some time in silence, Chaucer decided to play with a tennis ball he found back in one of the human city's he visited. He began banging it on the wall and let it bounce back to him in a song like rhythm. On the other side of the room, Hagard was busy looking at the sky as it slowly darkened by the seconds.

By the time the spark of the stars appeared before the clouds, Pallet stood up from his seat which caught all their attentions. "It's time" he said with a frown. The three Lucarios nodded in unison and patiently made their way to the castle keep. On the approach, the Chosens that were allowed to keep guard opened the main gate which snatched the attention of every Pokemons in the courtyard. The time for man's judgment…… was fast approaching.

"Chaucer" Sha-hear spoke as they traverse the castle hall, "Wake Rosa up and tell her to meet us at the altar room" with a nod from the yellow Pokemon, Chaucer vanished from sight, leaving no evidence of his presence there. "Hagard" he then turned to the green Lucario, "Check with the security one last time and report back when you're done" with another nod, Hagard ran back towards the entrance and talked with the Chosens to tighten the patrols around the castle. If someone was gonna attack them, they'd have to go through every last Pokemon these guys had to offer.

**(Rustboro city hotel)**

Delia had not gone out from her room that day. She didn't feel like doing anything at all since she couldn't speak with her son. The professor had put all of his persuasive powers to convince her that Ash was probably training somewhere and probably did not want to be disturbed. It was a simple logical theory, but no matter what he said, Delia still couldn't shake the feeling that Ash was in trouble. It was like she had a sixth sense for the boy or something like that.

After all the thoughts poured into her mind, the young mother got up from her bed and stared out of the window. The storm had continued to rain down on the city with no sign of it ending. The water level was rising so fast that it was probably up to a man's knee. That was also a reason why she couldn't get out. The hotel staff barricaded the door and locked up all the windows so that the water wouldn't gush in.

"Mime mime?" her thoughts were quickly thrown away into oblivion when a familiar sound came through the door. It was Mr. Mime, the Ketchum helper. The Pokemon had a tray carrying food and water with a worried face. "Mime mime mime?" it asked

"Oh hello there Mimie" Delia replied though she couldn't really understand what it was saying. "Are those things for me?" the Pokemon nodded and placed it on the table for her to eat. "Ok Mimie, I'll eat" the woman quickly shut the curtains and sat on one of the chairs. Mr. Mime as half pretended to be like a butler, serving her 24/7

**(Back in Drake's ship) (7:00 PM)**

Silence…

The members of the gang sat on their respective spots with nothing to nor anything to see. Richie sat on his bed with his back against the wall. Sparky tried his best to cheer up Ash's little Pikachu, but nothing seemed to work. It was like the little critter lost all of its spirit.

Brock, Drew and Tracey were sitting still wide awake, though their bodies kept telling them to go to sleep.

Max who was still young at his age, tried to stay awake just in case if Drake should reconsider his decision, but sadly, he could not keep up with time and fell asleep right where he sat. The girls were taking it hard as well. None of them could've expected this of all things to happen. So many questions rang through their heads like a list that would've already made hundreds of large size tissue roles on papers.

The Ash look-alike glared at the faces of his comrades. In the past two months they had been doing nothing but having fun together. Sure, there had been times where their lives were put at risk, but who would've expected something like that to happen? Besides, no adventure would be complete without a little excitement.

All those times that they smiled together, laughed together, heck even snore together were now replaced by a frown that would probably last an eternity. Seeing this, the boy decided that Drake won't help them, then he'll just have to do it on his own.

"Hey…" Richie spoke with Sparky on his shoulder, "I'm going to the rest room for a minute" he slowly left but before he could close the door, Drew came by and said, "Me too…" he scowled.

By the time those two left, May got up and let out a single groan, "I'm gonna go out and stretch for a minute" she then left the room with a fake yawn.

A long silence engulfed the room again, leaving a few people behind. But once the coast seemed clear, Duplica and Anabel stood up and said that they were going to the rest room too.

As the number of people dwindled in the room, Brock decided to take this opportunity to redo the mistake he had made. "Ahhhh…" he breathed out before heading towards the door, "I'm gonna get some fresh air for a minute. Be back in a bit" the squinty eyed boy then left, leaving the room with one less inhabitant.

A few minutes later, Tracey could no longer hold his need to do something, "I uh…" the Orange islander said with a soft voice, "I think I'll go and uhh… practice my drawing skills… yeah" he was then joined by Todd who made a lame excuse about taking pictures of birds… (yeah right! Birds at night?)

With the three guys gone, Dawn followed not far behind. "I think… I'd better get something to eat" the Shinou girl said putting her usual cap on. "We'll need to keep our strength up"

Just as they all left to do whatever they were doing, Misty was left with a sleeping Max to do some thinking of her own.

She did not know what has been happening in the past few days, but all she was able to make out was the fact that they were nearing their destination. But… what happened to Ash? Why did they take him? Was it a kidnapping incident? Was it terrorism? No… Misty could feel that it was something much more serious.

But just as she tried to hold back her heart, a single drop of tear came down her cheek. She could not understand. Why was she crying? Why was her heart hurting with every passing moment? Why was her thoughts all focused to Ash? It was like torture just waiting like this. But it the end… she could not hold it. Her body began acting against her mind. She rose from her sitting position and quickly made her way towards the door with Togepi on her backpack. At first, she took a peek through the slightly opened part to see if anyone was around. Once she saw that it was clear, she took whatever supplies she could find in the room and sneaked out towards the ship's bridge. If she's lucky, the fog would cover her escape.

**(Rest Room)**

Richie went into one of the doors and waited for Drew to enter the next one. Once he heard the 'bang' sound, he signaled himself to get out of there before Drew was done. "Ok… the coast is clear Sparky" he said to his pal. He slowly opened the door to his toilet and left without making a sound.

Just when Richie was out of sight, Drew peeked through a small opening of his door and looked around if anyone was inside. He thought that Richie was still in his side of the toilet so he took this as an opportunity to get to the life boat and try to save Ash with whatever strength he had.

The moment Drew was out of the lavatory area, Duplica and Anabel arrived on sight and did exactly the same thing as those two boys did. Right now would probably be a good metaphor for 'Great minds think alike' but I'd be exaggerating now wouldn't I?

**(The bridge)**

Brock was going to the bridge area in a very suspicious way. He was going all sneaky like, trying to avoid all unnecessary sounds. He was just about to make his way towards the life boat when he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. The guy nearly screamed but fortunately, a hand covered his mouth thus only making an 'emph' sound rather than a loud 'AAHHH!!!'

"Tracey, Todd?" Brock whispered surprised by their faces. "What are you doing here?"

"We were gonna ask you the same thing" Todd said smiling. "You're going to rescue Ash aren't you?" Tracey added pulling both of them to a crouching position.

"Well if Drake wasn't gonna do it, then I will" Brock replied holding a serious face. "Besides… I owe him a lot more than he owes me" he reached out for the life boat, but Todd stopped him.

"Let us help you" the sketcher said, "Like they say… the more the merrier" the squinty eyed boy smiled and accepted his help.

**(At the same time)**

As Richie approached the stairs that led to the bridge area, he made sure no one saw him. His small size body went through secured area without much problems and Sparky was there with him all the way. Just when he was about to make a break for it, the voice of three sailors forced him to run back and hide. He placed himself against the wall making him flat like a disfigured pancake.

"Hey, did you guys hear something?" said one of the sailors

"Hear what?" said the second one.

The first sailor pointed his flashlight at the area which produced the sound but due to the darkness being so thick… he was only able to get a glimpse of a small creaky wooden plank.

"Nothing…" he said finally.

With the sailors out of sight and out of ear shot, Richie hastily made his way towards the stairs. But because his eyes were looking elsewhere, he wasn't able to avoid hitting another head that was just as hard as his skull. "Oweeeee!" the two of them said softly. When Richie's eyes reopened, he was quite surprised to see… "Max?" he said the boy's name in a whisper.

The young Mr. Maple was wearing his usual green shirt and shorts which actually fits his style. As Max finally got up his feet, Richie noticed that he was wearing Ash's Pokebelt and his Pikachu was right next to him, "Oh hey there Richie" Max said in an obviously fake tone, "What a coincidence meeting you here ahehehehe" they both gave out a fake laugh which ended up letting the two of them explaining why they were here.

"You're going to save Ash, aren't you?" Richie said with a smirk. Max's fake smile soon lowered into a frown as he lowered his head as well. "Well… I guess I could use the help" those words made the kid shot his eyes up like dinner plates. "Really really?!" the little boy asked in a chibi form. Richie gave out a nod and held his hand on Max's mouth before he yells out a cheer.

"Ok, follow me" Richie led the way and got to the stairs before anyone could 'Fruit salad' When he arrived on the bridge, he was glad that the environment was just as he wanted it to be. The fog was thick and the life boat was just in sight. "This way Max. And keep it quiet" he whispered to the boy. Both Sparky and Pikachu nodded and slowly made their way towards the Starboard side of the ship.

Just as they approached the life boat, Richie gave out a whisper signal, "Ok, one two three pull!" but at the same time that they pulled, another force seemed to be pulling on the other side. "Whoa" Richie said in amazement, "This rope is harder to pull than I thought" and once again, the two of them pulled together.

Suddenly, Max felt a foot pressing against his toe, "Yeowwww!! My toe!" he screamed which made Richie gasped.

"Max?" the two boy quickly turned their heads to the opposite side, only to see Brock, Tracey and Todd on one side, May, Duplica and Anabel inside the boat ready to cast off and Misty, Drew and Dawn trying to keep the boat together.

"Sis?" Max replied in astonishment, "What are you doing here?" as they all looked at each other, they could already tell that they all had the same plan. They all gave each other a hearthy laugh, but that laugh soon ended when another deep voice called in from behind.

"And what do you children think you're doing?" the whole group turned their heads to meet the scary face of Drake, who still had his pipe on his mouth.

"Mr. Drake sir!" Brock waved his hand defensively, "I… uh… I mean we… uh… we can explain!" the Elite Four member raised a brow to see what sort of crazy explanation he would conjure up, "We were uh… just… tightening the boat ahehehehe" the gang gave Brock a sighed of disbelief. What kind of an excuse was that?!

"We're going to save Ash!" Max snapped, "That's what we're going to do!" Drake was taken back by the sudden outburst of a small boy, but quickly recovered to keep his esteem up to date.

"Sir…" Tracey began, "I know you don't approve to this… but Ash is our friend. And… and… and I can't just sit back while I know that he's in danger!" he yelled out the last part of his sentence to get his point out.

"Please sir" Dawn pleaded, "Please let us go…" she held tighter to the ropes of the boat, hoping that the captain would come to understand their feelings.

Drake took a step closer, not backing down and hearing what they have to say, "And ho do you intend on saving him? If I'm not mistaken, those Pokemons are sure to come after you. Defeating them… is impossible" he was mentioning the Pokemon army that they fought last night.

"I…" May began, "I think…" she then shook her head violently, "No… I know we can save him! If we put our whole heart into it, nothing is impossible! That's what Ash taught me when we battled together! If we believe that we can do something, then we should stick with that!"

"May…" Max gazed at her astonished on how brave she was, to speak against an old man like that.

"I know it's a dangerous thing we're doing, but believe me when I say this" the chocolate haired girl paused for a minute before returning the gaze back to the old captain, "Ash and I… have been through worst" the others quickly nodded in agreement. They have all went through a death threatening quest and every time… Ash would be there to give them morale support. If they've been through all that adventure… then facing a couple of hundred Pokemons should be a snap.

"Please Drake… I beg of you! I beg of you… as his friend…!" May quickly lowered her head and bowed down to the old man which made him stiffened a little.

"Please sir!" the others quickly followed, lowering their heads to the ground, bowing to the man like a god., "Please let us go!" they all said in unison.

At that very moment, when all eyes turned to the old sailor, Drake felt like he was becoming an ant not even worth stepping on. The glares that were given by the children that surrounded him felt like swords, that pierced his very soul. If you put all of these kids together, their determination would actually rival against Ash's dreams to become a Pokemon Master! For the first time in all his life as a member of an Elite Four, Drake was afraid. But even if he said 'no' to these kids, they would definitely defy him and go on with their own motives. So now… what was the point of thinking if he already knew the outcome?

"Very well" the captain sighed, "Follow me…" with a wave of his flashlight, Drake gestured them to follow him towards the lower deck, to the one door that only he can open.

**(Secret room of the ship)**

The gang watched, as Drake unlocked the secret door with a key that resembled a crown. As they entered the room, they were amazed by the size of the place. The whole room consumed about 1/20 of the ships entire deck, at the center of the room connected to the waters.

As the gang looked around they all gasped when they saw a speed boat lying peacefully near the water. It had a dragon insignia on the hood. A graffiti paintjob, blinker lights that can change colors, a custom made engine filled with the latest parts money can buy and last but not the least, a small refrigerator with nice cold sodas to fill in. "What is this place?" asked Drew who turned to the captain.

Drake simply smiled and tilted his hat slightly on the side, "You children once asked me about my dreams… correct?" this earned some confused stares from the group, "Well… let's just say I never always wanted to be a Pokemon trainer in my days. About forty years ago, I wanted to become the world's greatest speed boat driver hehehehe" He turned to the gang and quickly tossed a pair of keys towards Richie, "Here…" he smirked, "You know how to drive a boat… don't you?"

The Ash look-alike quickly smiled from ear to ear and hastily climbed onto the speed boat along with the others. It was nearly the same size as S.S Jennifer but it was still under some constant upgrades. With a twist of the ignition, the engine started with a powerful rumbling sound. "Whoa…" was all the gang could say.

With the boat starting up, Drake quickly made his way to open the hatch so they can go. But before razing the hatch, he yelled out to them, "Be careful with her ok!? I just finished her paintjob!" with a reassuring smile from the trainers, Drake gave out a thumbs up and gestured them to go and……

"Get out of here!" here said with a smile.

With a press on the accelerator, Richie was able to make the speed boat go about 40kph. And that is what anyone would say… amazing.

With the speed boat going out to the distance, Drake felt a bit of happiness in his heart, but at the same time… disappointed. He always thought that he'd be the first one who would pilot that boat, but I guess hard work pays in different way. "Good luck kids…… and be careful" those were his last blessings before they vanished into the fog.

"_Hang on Ash… we're coming!"_ those were the thoughts of the gang as they approached the island fortress… of Gregro.

**(Back on the ship's bridge)**

Loin glared at the speed boat, as it hastily made its way towards its destination. A slight chuckle came through his lips as the words of the children repeated through his head, "Friends huh…" he said softly, "Looks like things might just go our way" With a quick motion of his hand, he vanished into thin air, leaving no trace of his existence.


	37. Rise of The Empire Part 2

**Chapter 37: Rise of The Empire (Part 2)**

When we last left our heroes, they were on their way to save their friend Ash from the clutches of Guardians who were now in their final stages of preparations on the revival of their old king. With very little time and so many things to do and so many questions left unanswered, the gang had to put the peddle to the meddle if they would have any chance at all in saving their hero from the clutches of history.

But… they were not the only ones who were part of this long war. In the distance, the old council of the once great empire stood against this tide of power, hoping to hold this darkness a little bit longer. But with such little strength and their powers drained of all life, they stood little chance like a strong oak tree against the typhoon.

**(Somewhere along the seas of fort Gregro)**

Richie and the rest of the gang held on to whatever objects they could find so they wouldn't fall off due to the strong winds that were gushing against them. Though the island itself was a fortress, the place was indeed a place where no man would land without a death wish. It almost looked like mother nature herself had taken the enemy's side and lended them her powers to manipulate the very weather.

"This is bad!" said Brock as he struggled to hold on to the railing while his other hand was busy holding onto a map. "If this wind keeps up, we'll be blown out to smithereens!"

"May be we could take another approach!" yelled Tracey from the back of the boat.

But Richie wasn't gonna back out now. The faster he gets this boat on that island the faster he gets to save his friend. "There's no time to turn back now!" he yelled out while putting everything he's got onto the steering wheel, "If we turn this ship around, there won't be a next time!" with a push on the peddle, the boat began to go even faster than before. Drake must've put some sort of customized engine, cuz no legal speed boat could possibly go up to 300kph now could they?

Just when they thought that it was all over and that they were gonna die from the sea, the boat made miraculous come back and sent them straight towards one of the empty landing beaches on the southern part of the island. Luckily for them, the patrol that was supposed to be here just left a moment ago, which should give them enough time to gather up their courage.

Max and Richie wasted no time in packing. The moment the winds shifted, they gathered up their Pokeballs and supplies and prepared for a rescue mission. Brock would've been proud of them if only they actually knew what they were doing. Sure they had the gears and equipments for the task but they even know what they were doing or what strategy they were gonna used? If he's lucky, these two wouldn't go to the front door and politely asked for them to give back Ash now would they?

"Come on guys, let's go!" Richie ordered which most of them acted almost immediately.

"Hold on Richie!" Brock halted them, "We don't even know where Ash is. He could be anywhere on this island" suddenly, a great light resonated from the nearby mountain which totally screams evil from any point you look at it. With a wave of Richie's hand, the whole group followed him to wherever he may go.

The gang rushed through the forest not caring about the thorns and bushes along the way.

**(Rustboro city hotel)**

Delia was once again wide awake, not letting a single thing blink pass her by without notice. She could not sleep nor could she eat. Her sixth sense began to tingle bit by bit and it was becoming stronger by the second.

Fortunately, the storm had finally ended and the people of the city were celebrating some sort of festival to greet the night. Fire works were launched into the sky decorating the stars with its magical lights. Though it may only be a few second short, it still illuminated the skies quite beautifully.

Right after the last drop of rain fell to the ground, the professor wasted no time in getting the next tickets to Valmarian city. In fact, he wasn't surprised to see hundreds of people lined up in front of the ticket counter. People even decided to camp outside the airport just so they could make it to the greatest competition the world has to offer.

"Ash… please be ok…"

**(Fort Gregro, hallway)**

"Hmmm?" Chaucer turned his head around as he thought that he heard a voice coming from the distance. He scanned the area with his psychic abilities but still… nothing.

"What's the matter Chuacer?" Hagard called out from behind. "The ceremony is starting in a few hours. You don't want to be late" the yellow Lucario nodded, "I thought I heard something… it must've just been the wind"

**(Back with the rest of the gang)**

Richie and the gang weren't exactly having the best of times. Just as they thought that they were getting closer to the mountain protected fortress, the forest seemed to lead them to another direction. They've been wandering the woods around thirty minutes now and with the time of the planet eclipse coming close, they will have to find Ash soon or the whole human race will perish. But of course… none of them knew that the world was at stake.

"Where are we now?" asked Drew who was fluttering his jacket to keep off the heat. Though it was still nighttime, running around an island for thirty minutes doesn't exactly relaxes one's body. "I think we're on the other side of the island" Tracey replied holding one of his sketchpads. The young little Pokemon observer was trying to map the place as fast as he could, but with the gang racing against time itself, it was hard to keep up.

"This is hopeless!" Richie yelled out, "We'll never find Ash like this!" in a sudden burst of anger, the boy pounded his fist to the ground hoping that some sort of miracle could save them.

"This forest is like a maze" Brock inquired, "If we this up, we'll probably be going around in circles"

But Richie wasn't about to give up yet! "Well… the only thing we can do now is to keep moving forward!" and with that, he gave out a stare that would make everyone do a forced march. Nothing was gonna stop this boy… not even death itself would have the guts to show himself here, seeing that the end of the world was fast approaching.

**(Valmarian city) (07:45 PM)**

After meditating at the park for awhile, Gary decided to take a stroll around the city. The disturbing offer from his friend Red rang through his mind like a messenger that awaited an answer. The suggestion made by that boy was as troubling as the roaring skies above. As he walked down the empty street lane in downtown central near the fire department, something in one of the gift shops caught his eyes.

An old Pokeball looking medallion in the shape of an Arcanine dangled along the pile of hundreds. It was part of a large set, from Pokemons ranging from the cutest to the fiercest of monsters.

"Hey gramps" Gary called out to the old salesman who was just about to close up shop, "How much is this?" the old man took a quick look at the product and smirked, "Oh that? I was planning to throw those away in a week or two. But if you want it, you can have it" Gary gently nodded in respect and took the Arcanine medallion.

Who knew that something that nice would cost nothing at all? I guess no one really does appreciate arts anymore.

But just as the gang boss was about to make a quick retreat back to his suite in five star hotel, Gary caught sight of Jaques who was still being the loyal lapdog. He has been trailing the boss ever since he began his fight against the other gangs. The guy was afraid that one of their rival gangs would come and make a sneak attack on the boss, so he decided that it would be best to keep an eye for him. It didn't matter where Gary went, he would follow him like a boomerang coming back to its wielder.

"You're still here?" Gary asked in a humorous tone. He didn't mind being followed around twenty-four-seven, it just didn't seem right that's all. Jaques didn't reply, he just stared at him, making no attempts to strike a conversation.

After several minutes of smiling like an idiot, Gary approached the blonde haired Pokemon trainers and handed him the medallion. "Here…" he said calmly. Jaques willingly took the gift but was struck with a great awe of confusion. With no more words being exchanged, Gary decided that it time to turn in. He'll be needing all his strength to fight tomorrow.

An Arcanine…… the Pokemon symbol… of loyalty.

**(Fort Gregro, narrow corridors) (08:00 PM)**

The four original members of the Guardians awaited patiently outside the altar room as Pallet walked in to perform the ritual. Only a few hours remained until the planets aligned with each other, making a imbalance in the cosmos. During that time, the earth will have the ability to do almost anything, and at that moment, the powers of all magic would gradually increase a thousand folds. And with that amount of power at the palm of Pallet's hands… he will use it to bring back the fallen king from the boat of the afterlife.

But as Sha-hear waited for the fifth member to give them a report, a Murkrow flew in by the window and gave him a message he didn't want to hear. "Murk murkrow!"

The white Lucario's eyes widened slightly but then turned back into their original forms. He then waved off the bird Pokemon and turned to the rest of the unit. "It appears… we have an intruder" Rosa gave him a sharp look which did not go unnoticed. "Who…?" she asked in a threatening tone.

"We do not know" he replied, "Our patrols have discovered a boat near the west side of the island. It appeared to have made landing an hour ago" it was then Chaucer spoke up, "I'll have the chosens double security around the keep"

But before the yellow Lucario could even think of moving, Hagard stopped him, "No Chaucer!" the green Lucario yelled, "We're at the most critical stage of our plans. We cannot allow ourselves to be distracted by such inferior matters. Let the patrols take care of them. We are needed here!" he heightened the last part of his sentence slightly. But then at the same time, the door to the altar room suddenly opened, making a loud bang sound when it slammed against the wall.

Coming out from the room was Pallet himself, dressed in ceremonial robe and holding the magic staff of Kear "What is the problem?" the boy asked the four Lucarios. Hagard gladly answered, "It appears we have some intruders on the island. But it is nothing to worry about. We should have the situation contained in a matter of hours" but then Chaucer had other things to say, "I suggest we tighten security around the palace. We don't know what these humans are capable of!"

"Don't concern yourself Chaucer" Pallet waved him off, "They won't get through the forest of mist… and even if they do… I think our soldiers can take care of them" just when he finished his sentence, a great beam of light ensued from behind catching the attention of everyone in the narrow corridors. "It's time…" Pallet once again grew out a grin and walked into the altar room with the rest of the Guardians.

Inside the altar room stood several artifacts from an empire that is long forgotten and a boy… whose fate… would decide the world.

Ash was sleeping on a stone pedestal with his face so peaceful and calm. The roof on top of the castle keep was open, letting the stars shine brightly along the room. If one should bring a disco ball here, it would definitely be a worthwhile light show.

"It's here! The constellation is finally here!" Pallet yelled out in pure joy as he gave upon the planets that had aligned together above the castle keep.

**(Back with the gang)**

Richie and the remaining members of the gang dashed through forest of mist once more only to find themselves on the other side of the island. No matter how many times they tried going straight towards the mountain head on, they always seemed to find an obstacle that makes them turn the other way around.

"Not again!" Tracey yelled out as he pulled the hair on his head. "We'll never get there if we keep this up!" suddenly, something caught the eyes of the Drew, "Hey guys…" he pointed at the sky, "Look at that!" the whole gang turned their heads to see one of the most amazing sights ever. A great majestic beam was shooting at the skies going for billions and billions of miles across space. "What is that?" Max asked. But it seemed like nobody knows the answer.

"It looks like some sort of constellation or something" Brock let out a wild guess not knowing how close he is to the truth. Letting the stars become their guide, Richie decided to follow the planets instead of following the mountain.

**(Back with the Guardians)**

As the four Lucarios wait as Pallet did all the complicated ritual preparations something odd began clinging onto Rosa's mind. Was what she was doing the right thing? Was it right for them to take a life from the humans? Was it right for them to take an innocent child's life to serve their own purpose?

The pink Pokemon shook her head violently to remove the thoughts away. She was not doing this to serve her purpose. She was doing this for the sake of all Pokemons and the sake of the natural balance of the world.

"Rosa?" Sha-hear called her attention, "Is something wrong? You were out for a moment there" but she just waved it off, "It… its nothing. My mind is just weary that's all" but then suddenly, a strange wave of power surged throughout the land like a tsunami overthrowing the trees.

Anything and anyone that could feel this powerful force would quickly shake in fear. The Guardians were of no exceptions as well. They knew this power well… and it could only belong to those they once served…… the councilors of the Empire.

"W… what is this? Did any of you feel that?" Hagard said hoping that he wasn't going crazy. Sha-hear visibly sharpened his eyes as the hatred for those illusions grow larger by the second. "This power… this aura… (sniff sniff) There is no mistake… it is indeed the old councilmen of his majesty. But… how is it possible?" it was then a thought struck him, "Where are the torches?!"

"I believe we left them back at the temple when we moved our operations here" Rosa answered. But that only made Sha-hear angrier than before.

But no one was angrier… than Pallet himself, "No…" he said quietly, "Not this time… not anymore! Not again… Sha-hear, Chaucer, Hagard!" the three said Pokemons stiffened as their names were called up. "Take the army and stop them! Rosa, you guard the front door. No one will interfere with my plans… NO ONE!" with a snap of his fingers, the four members of the Guardians vanished to accomplish their designated tasks.

**(In a campsite just outside the fortress gates)**

A few kilometers away from the main strongpoint of Fort Gregro, three men sat along the campfire near a giant boulder that seemed to have been lodged there for about two million years ago. "Do you think we got their attention?" asked the newly resurrected Furo as he put his staff on his back. His question was soon answered when they all began hearing angry cries of Pokemons coming from within the walls. "Yeah… I think we got their attention" Noeh said as he put out the campfire with a bucket of water. Being killed then brought back from the afterlife wasn't exactly a joyful ride for any of them.

"Come on… I think our hosts are finally coming out to greet us" said Loin with a smirk. "It would be unwise to ignore such hospitality" But then something panged at the back of Noeh's head. "That reminds me: Where's Azal?"

"I sent him on an errand" Loin replied, "Don't worry… he'll meet us when the time is right. Come on… it looks like they're getting impatient" the guy wasn't kidding. If one could hear the roars that were coming from the other side of that wall, he would probably think that it would be wise to stay on this side than to go onto that side.

**(Back with the gang)**

Just as the gang made their way through the woods by following the stars, they were finally able to reach the slopes of the mountain which encircled around Fort Gregro. "We… we finally… huff huff we finally made it!" said Richie as he panted like a dog that had been running around chasing his tail. "But how are we gonna get into the mountain?" asked Max. "It'll take us a whole day if we go around it looking for an entrance"

"Max's right" Brock added as he placed his hand up to his chin, "From what I've seen so far: This mountain covers just about everywhere around the island. We'll need to split up and (crack…) Huh?" Just before anyone could possibly think of what was going on, a sudden crack caught the gang's attention. Apparently they were standing on a soft spot somewhere near the mountain area and just as the god predicted… the slope opened up faster than any of them could even believe. The gang held on to the surface for as long as they could, but unfortunately for all of them, the hole on the ground began to rumble causing anyone who was left on top to lose balance and fall down.

The slide they went through lasted for about three minutes if one was correct. At first they all believe that they were gonna die or something, but after the first few slides and jumps, they began to think that this trap was kinda fun. After they finally reach the end of the nature made ride, they somehow found themselves inside the mountains… but more importantly… they found themselves inside the fortress.

"Woo hoo! Who's up for round two!" yelled Duplica as she was the last who came out of the ride. The gang gave her a 'shhh' sound signaling her to shut up before she draws attention to herself and the rest of the group.

"Where are we?" Tracey asked as he took a peek through the bushes. "It looks like we're in the lair of the Pokemons that attacked us earlier" Brock noted as he gazed at the many Pokemons that were around the area. If any of them made any sudden move, they can kiss their career as Pokemon trainers goodbye.

"Pikapi…" (Ash) Pikachu mumbled as he pointed to the top of the castle. For some reason… the little yellow mouse seems like he got a sixth sense for the boy.

"Can you sense something Pikachu?" Richie asked. Pikachu simply nodded and pointed at the top of castle again. "Ash must be in there" the boy said balling his fists.

"But how are we gonna make it through all of those Pokemons out there?" May ask worryingly. She could take on a few Pokemons on her own, but the ones in armors seemed to be way tougher than your average Pokemon. "I'd say we charge them!" Dawn suggested which was automatically refused by everyone around. Going out there with no plan at all seemed like to be inviting death to have a tea party with you.

"Hey guys, look!" Tracey said in a whisper. As the gang silently watch the huge army of Pokemons roaring angrily at something, three Lucarios appeared out of the blues and began ordering the troops around. "Hey!" Todd noted, "Isn't that the Pokemon that attacked us on Drake's ship?" he was talking about the Yellow Lucario, Chaucer.

**(With the Guardians)**

"All troops! Assemble to me now!" Sha-hear ordered with a defining yell. "Hagard, you make sure the air units and prepared to attack from above. Chaucer, you gather up the reserve troops and we'll head out. GO!"

"Yes sir!" the two of them said in unison.

"Open the gate!" the white Lucario demanded which was complied too almost immediately. With him leading the grand legion of the king and Chaucer and Hagard by his side, they were now indeed a force NOT to be reckoned with unless you have a death wish.

**(Somewhere in the river of the afterlife)**

The grim reaper was dancing around as he just received some list of the new victims that were coming today. With permission from the 'higher' authorities, he was allowed to be a temporary captain of the cruise liner 'The Flying Dutchman' due to the amount of souls that were about to come today. His usual boat raft wasn't gonna cut it that's for sure.

"Hey… what's a dead guy gotta do to get some service around here?" asked the grim reaper to the undead crew.

**(Back with the gang)**

"Look guys! They're moving out" Misty said as she took a peak through the bushes they were hiding. As the Pokemon army move away from the castle courtyard, and through the main gate, the whole group took the opportunity and dashed off into the castle.

"Great! Now's our chance to get in and save Ash!" Todd suggested in a whispering voice, but then Max had to decline, "But it will take us forever to search that castle" the boy was right though. The castle was too big for just the few of them to search on their own. And Ash could be in any of those rooms.

"Ah, I got it!" Brock boink his hands together as he thought of a brilliant idea. He then began searching through his bag and miraculiously pulled out an old Pokemon league cap. "Hey Pikachu" the squinty man called out, "Do you think you can get Ash's scent from this?" Pikachu began sniffing the cap's exterior and interior getting the old sweat onto the electrical mouse's nose.

"Alright Pikachu… can you smell Ash's scent?" Max asked his friend's Pokemon. The little yellow mouse then began sniffing through the floor with great amount of concentration, and after a few minutes, his nose caught onto something familiar. (Pikapikapi!) he shouted then dashing off into the main stairways. "I think he smells something!" Anabel inquired as she was the first to follow it. The gang didn't fall far behind.

Surprisingly for everyone, the castle seemed to be unprotected for some reason. There were no guards no soldiers and no staff to protect the hallways. It was like the place had been completely abandoned just minutes ago.

But right now, none of them cared about that. The only thing that mattered was to follow Pikachu until he reaches Ash…… or at least they hope so.

"Come on guys! Pick up the pace!" Richie yelled out to the members who were following behind. The ones that were being left out were Tracey, Todd, Drew and Dawn. "Oh boy… when this is over… huff huff… remind me to start doing work outs" said Tracey as we wiped the sweat off his bandana.

With no time left to lose, the gang hastened their pace once more through the long parapet staircase that seemed to stretch on just like that time when they got to Kear's tower. But of course, this one was much shorter and they didn't have a Kabutops chasing them every step of the way.

**(Back with the councilors)**

Loin, Furo and Noeh stood upon a giant rock right outside the castle next to an empty plain which was wide enough to support a huge army. "Looks like that's our welcoming wagon" Loin humored as the gates of the fortress opened up before them. Hundreds of upon thousands of Pokemon began pouring through those metal barred doors like a swarm of ants covering the horizon. At the center of the army, Sha-hear, the white Lucario stood at center with his blades ready to tear through the bones of his enemies. Hagard stood on his left flank and Chaucer on the other giving out angry glares at his opponents.

"Azal is late" Noeh noted that one of their members was not with them. But Loin kept his cool, "Don't worry too much Noeh… or you'll be growing white hairs in your ears in no time. Come on… we can still do this even with just the three of us"

With the three counselors, Loin, Noeh and Furo marching down with nothing but sticks and strength on their backs, the Guardians ready themselves for one heck of a battle that would ultimately determine the face of the old empire.

"What are our odds of winning Loin?" Furo asked his friend. But truthfully… the guy could care less about winning. "Our objective here is not to win Furo" he began, "Our mission… is to keep the Guardians busy… while Ash's friends make their way to the castle and rescue him. Our lives today is as expendable as it were two million years ago. But no matter what the cost, we cannot let the enemy turn back! We must keep their gaze fixed upon us and nothing else…"

(A/N: Now would be a good time to say 'Keep them blind to all else that is moving' but that would just be redundant wouldn't it?)

**(Altar room)**

Pallet place Ash in the chambers of rituals as he prepared for the return of the king. No words and thoughts were exchanged on that moment. Just being with the only person he could call a friend… and a family was more than enough for the boy to live. Wasting no time at all, Pallet removed the arm length glove on Ash's right arm and touched it right at the tip. "Yes… this is the one" he said quietly to himself.

Right after confirming that the mark was real, Pallet lifted the young Pokemon trainer with some sort of telekinetic ability. Taking every inch of the process with precision beyond precisions, Pallet place Ash in a small pool that seemed like a mystical pond or something.

**(Back with Sha-hear)**

The white Lucario gritted his teeth like a log through a saw mill. It was true that they had the advantage in numbers, but facing against the greatest minds of their time wasn't exactly what I would call… an even battle. The Pokemons know of the danger that they are about to face, but it wasn't gonna stop them from bringing back their old king.

"Chaucer, you take the left, Hagard, you take the right" Sha-hear ordered, "I'll take the center……" with one wave of the guy's paw, the Pokemons began to move out with their own roars, making it look like a battle that would be worth a million songs. The two sides approached first by walking, after a minute they begin to jog and then after another minute… they sprint…

With both groups just a few hundred meters away from each other, Sha-hear called out to the army, "Soldiers of the Empire…… charge!!!"

"Raaaaarrrrrrr!!!!"

**(Castle keep, 12****th**** floor)**

As the gang kept running the stairs like crazy following Ash's scent through Pikachu's little nose, they began hearing some sort of fight going on outside. "Come on guys!" Richie ordered, "Let's keep up the pace!" those who lagging behind were Tracey, Todd, Drew and Dawn.

"W… wait for us guys" the young sketcher pleaded in an exhausted tone. Climbing up the stairs brought back some painful memories when they were climbing up into Kear's tower. But at least now they didn't have a Kabutops chasing them all the way to the top floor. "If we make it out of here alive… huff huff" Drew said as he breathed between words, "I'm going to start working out again"

But just when the gang were about to reach the top floor of the castle, an Ursaring, Linoon and a Pidgeot dressed in gold full combat armor stood in their path like they guarding the place with their very lives. The moment the three chosens caught sight of the humans, their eyes visibly sharpened with anger. With their renewed vigor coming from hatred for humanity's sins, the three Pokemons unleashed their attacks at the gang which forced them to go back two levels.

"Everyone, run!" Misty yelled as she picked herself up from the ground. But Richie wasn't gonna back down because of just three Pokemons. If one would see him now, you would either accuse him of ignorance or stupidity rather than courage and bravery…… or was that the same thing?

"Sparky, Pikachu, Thunderbolt attack!" the boy ordered which the two Pokemons followed to the letter. The two Pikachus unleashed a powerful strike which was more powerful than anything the world has ever seen in a hundred years. But the Chosens were not going to be taken out that easily. After shrugging off the paralysis status off, Ursaring charged up a hyper beam attack from its mouth and launched it towards the boy, but luckily for Richie, it only missed him by an inch.

"We'd better double back!" Brock suggested, which was probably a good idea… for all of them. With the whole gang agreeing to the idea, they dashed off back down the stairs to find a new way to the top floor.

**(With Rosa)**

A sudden rumble around the narrow corridors alerted the pink Lucario as she was meditating in front of the steel bared doors. "Hmm? What was that?" she quickly returned to her meditative position and began scanning the castle grounds one by one.

As she focused her mind and ignore all the physical sounds of nature, a vision flashed through her mind faster than anyone could say 'Tango'. She could see the fight between the chosens and the humans. She could see them coming closer towards the top floor. And as the minutes passed by, she knew that she had to do something to… 'welcome' her guests.

**(Back on the battlefield)**

"Hyaaaa!" Noeh unleashed a powerful flurry of attacks against a couple of Wartortles as they tried to wash him away with their watergun attacks. "Come on you dum dums! It's gonna take more than that to take me down!" he taunted out having one of the goons reply, a green flashed came through catching him off guard. "Oofff!" the two million old man grunted.

"It looks like you're losing your touch Noeh" said Hagard, the green Lucario. But the old councilor simply smirked at him with his quarterstaff on his back. "Hagard… my old friend" he began, "It's been too long… I almost didn't recognize you" they both gave out a chuckle, which was kind of odd for two who were fighting for their very lives. "But you are correct though" Noeh replied with a normal smile, "I haven't been exercising for two million years now. May be a little stretching will help loosen things up!" and with that, he charged at the Pokemon with his staff, landing a slight blow on its shoulder.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

On another side of the battlefield, Furo was rapidly taking down the smaller Pokemons with his hand held powers. He knocked out many of his opponents away, but after a few minutes of fighting, he began to feel somewhat weak within his chest. "Gahhh…" he fell on his knees. "Ok… note to self: Don't exert too much power" but then his rest was soon interrupted when a yellow figure laid its foot on his nose. "Ooofff!" he grunted as he made several backward rolls on the ground.

"Didn't I tell you to never let your guard down Furo?" it was Chaucer, the yellow Lucario. "I'm disappointed… I thought I taught you better than that"

The old councilor didn't really know who it was until he finally got his face back up from the ground. Furo swiped away the dirt on his cheeks and let out a semi friendly smile, "I'm sorry master" he said sarcastically, "I guess I haven't been doing much of my homework"

Chaucer was gonna let out a laugh, but then he noticed one of his very (x 2000) old students was missing, "Hmm? Odd… where's Azal? I thought the both of you were stuck like brothers" Furo let out a chuckle, "Sorry master. I think he's currently looking for a present for you. Besides… the three of us have a lot of things to catch up on"

This time, Chaucer could not contain his laugh. "Hahahahaha! That's the little Furo I remember… always a joker… and never paid much attention in school"

"Don't get me wrong master Chaucer. You're a wonderful teacher… it's just the subject I'm not really interested in" Furo smirked, letting out bit of a laugh at the end. Chaucer saw this and quickly became irritated, but he knew that his old students wouldn't be interested in his words of wisdom. "Even after all these years, the two of you refuse to grow up" he said with a sad smile. "I wonder how you two even got admitted to the chamber of councils" but before the two of them could continue with their minor chat, a small battle cry caught their attention.

"Oh oh…" said Furo as he gazed upon the tattered grounds, "That doesn't look good"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

At the center of the battlefield, Loin was fighting for his life against the Groundon that he unleashed a few days ago back at the palace. He was clearly regretting making that thing enemy. "Grrr!" he scowled, "The next time Azal brings back a pet, I'll have to make sure it's harmless!" he then gave out a galliant charge at the beast's head and smacking it right out of its poor misery. At first, the giant fire breathing Godzilla felt a bit light headed, but then after a few more smacks on the head, the beast fell to the ground with a defining crash, making some of the nearby Pokemons to lose their morale. The shake was so powerful that it even made a puff of smoke which hid everything under a thin layer of dust.

"Phew… That's one heck of a st…" he never got to finish his sentence when a blade came from above catching him a bit by surprise. The blade missed him by a strain of hair, and a string of his cotton jacket leaving nothing but a mess on his fashion.

Once the smoke finally cleared, the sight of his attacker only made Loin smirk heroically. "Well well well… if it isn't the great captain Sha-hear himself. It's an honor…" the man let out a slight sarcastic bow, but the white scared-eye Lucario did not smile. In fact… his face consisted of nothing but seriousness. His eyes were focused, but did not show anger. His mouth was locked in a line form, making others unsure if he was either smiling or frowning. "I guess it's too late for me to beg for forgiveness isn't it?" Loin said with a smile from ear to ear. And again, Sha-hear did not reply… he only stood there, with his blades drawn and an expressionless face imprinted on him. "(sigh…) I guess there's no point in talking with you now, is there?" with nothing more left to say (there wasn't really much to say anyway) the two of them began fighting like there was no tomorrow. (Well… for the human race, there won't be much of a tomorrow)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Geeze… Sha-hear is taking this quite seriously" Furo said with a grin facing his old master. "Yes… that guy could never take a joke" Chaucer replied with the same smirk. But then all of a sudden… the two of them grew serious, "But it doesn't matter now!" the yellow Lucario began, "Come at me Furo! It's time I'd show you… how masters punish their students!"

**(Back with the gang) (11:30 PM)**

Back in the castle keep, things were not that different. The gang members were now being chased by the powerful chosens of the Guardians. No matter how many times they turned through intersections or go up and down a stair case, the Pokemons suited in gold armors were everywhere. By the time they lost them, they had already lost three hours of their time.

"Come on guys… this way" Tracey suggested as he climbed up the stairs in a very exhausted state. As a matter of fact, the whole gang was dead tired… even Richie himself thought that he had lost five pounds after running for so long. But even though they were tired, that did not mean they were gonna stop now. Gathering their strength from the bowls of their stomachs, the gang once again began their ascend through the ragged staircase, taking every floor with caution. If they meet those Chosens again, they wouldn't be able to sprint like that ever.

"Alright Pikachu" said Richie to his friend's Pokemon, "Can you get Ash's scent from here?" the little mouse nodded and began sniffing once again for its master unique smell. Rows upon rows of hard marbles lined the steps with every inch of the way. The sight of such a long staircase made everyone wonder: how much more do they need to climb to reach the top?

As the minutes went by like sand through an hourglass, they finally reached the end of the long road. (Pi? Pika pikachu!) Pikachu began pointing towards a largely barred door which looked like it was meat to withstand a siege. The metal plates on the side held as firm as it was the day it was built. Its reinforced steel cages were like those that you use in prisons and that complex opening device at the center was a clear call sign that this thing wasn't gonna open unless you know the password.

Ash's Pikachu pointed at the door gesturing to the rest of the gang that their friend was in there. "He's in there?" Dawn asked to which the little mouse nodded in reply. Before anyone knew it, Richie was already heading towards the door to ram it with his own body weight. But then something caught Brock's sharp eye. A thin line of string was laying just a few feet from the door, it was attach to several sharp objects, and… "Richie! Look out!" the squinty eyed man didn't need to analyze the whole thing to know that it was a trap. The moment the thing was activated, Brock and Todd pulled the boy out just before the arrows pierced him like a balloon.

"Whoa… thanks guys…" Richie apologized for his recklessness.

"That's ok Richie" Brock smiled, "But let's take things easy from now on ok? We wouldn't want to get ourselves chop and sawed before we hit the road to Valmarian city"

"But unfortunately for all of you… your road ends here" the gang turned their heads to the sound of the voice which appeared in front of the steel door. "I will not allow you to interfere with our plans…" it was Rosa… the pink Lucario.

"A Lucario?" Max yelled

**(Back on the battlefield) (11:43 PM)**

Chaucer laid a fist (paw) on Furo's chin sending the guy towards the wall on the other side of the battle zone. The fight between student and master wasn't exactly the most cheerful of battles, because it almost resembles a fight between families. "Had enough, boy?" Chaucer asked as he fell to the ground on his back completely exhausted from the fight. But Furo only smiled back at his taunts as he too fell on the ground, "What? Is that all, my great master can take? Come on now… I thought you were better than that"

Many Pokemons of different kinds and elements littered around the ground heavily injured like they've just gone through a massive beating of a life time. Even though there were only three attackers, the councilors had proven to be a force deadlier than the creatures of the sea.

"Insulting as always aren't you Furo?" the yellow Lucario replied with a smirk. Some part of his left eye was swollen, and the cuts and bruises robbed the Pokemon of all of his fighting strength. Right now, those two just want to have a little chat before the whole thing blows over "You haven't changed one bit"

"I could say the same for you master" the old student replied wiping the dirt off his face, "Even after all those years, you still use the same old dirty tricks"

"That's because the past is the link to the present. Through history come the present and the present comes the future. It's basic timeline knowledge"

Furo chuckled, "Strange… I don't remember you teaching logic in our class master" his eyes turned sad as his thought were mildly preoccupied.

"I learned that from Hagard" Chaucer answered back, "He may be crazy at times, but the man knows what he's saying…… sometimes"

"Yeah… the only thing you were ever good at was teaching us how to fight" once the two of them finally recuperated from their short break, they stood up on their feet and got back into battle positions. "I guess break time is over………. Let's end this…"

"Yes… let's"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Loin and Noeh were now fighting side by side against Sha-hear and Hagard at the center of the battlefield. The Pokemon army that was supposed to be near invincible was now defeated but fortunately for them, none of them seemed to be in fatal conditions.

After three intense hours of non-stop fighting and powers being cast from one side to the other, the councilors managed to pierce through the first line of the fortress's defense making the entire area go up in flames like a raging inferno. But Sha-hear still had more surprises up his sleeves. With a trick move he learned back from the old days, he took Loin's feet by surprise and pinned him down to a death-by-death position. "Give it up Loin!" Sha-hear said finaly. "You cannot hope to defeat all of us! The human race face is destined for extinction and you know it as well as anyone!!"

But those words only made the man angrier, "That is not something for you to decide!" Loin pulled out his arm and blasts the white Lucario off him. "The day of extinction is still far from now!"

"The human race is nothing more than a parasite!" Sha-hear countered, "Their existence alone consumes the world of all its life. They must be destroyed!"

"THEY, have the right to choose!" Loin quickly pulled out his quarterstaff and slammed the tip part against Sha-hear's head sending him flying towards the castle courtyard.

Seeing the battle turning against their favor, Hagard whistled out loud and in the reserve units that from the back of the base. With the army restored to a portion of its size, Loin knew that this distraction plan was gonna be harder than he thought.

"It's over Loin…" the white Lucario said with a serious death like tone as he stood from his prone position, "There's no chance for any of you to escape. Surrender now… or be destroyed"

The situation seemed to look a bit tight for Loin and Noeh at the moment. Surrounded by Pokemons with claws that can rip your skin to shreds, with very little strength left to fight…… the condition of their battle seemed to hit rock bottom. But like the people say: When things hit the ground level… there's no other way but to go up!

"Oh… I think I'll take my chances" Loin stated as he pulled out a smirk from his lips. The two Guardians looked at him confusingly until they felt a sudden rumble coming from the mountain. Before anyone could even recover from the fight, an explosion occurred which grabbed everyone's attention in an instant.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Rayquasa, the long green dragon of the North Pole, one of the greatest, largest and longest Pokemons ever to fly across the skies of the world… had appeared before them. Its roar was more powerful than fifty Crowbats combined using super sonic. Its size and length was so long that if it wanted, it could actually encircle to castle three times and then biting its tail at the end. (kinda like Jormunganda but way way way smaller)

**(Castle Keep narrow corridors)**

As the fight on the battlegrounds continued to rage, Rosa was busy keeping the gang which now had the reaction to call 'annoying whelps' busy. She kept dishing out shadow balls and other attacks but Pikachu and Sparky seemed to be more than a match for an ancient Pokemon such as her.

"This isn't good" Brock stated as she saw the anger in Rosa's eyes. It was burning with determination to protect the door even with the cost of her own life. "We need to find a way to get through that door or we'll never get to Ash!"

"We need some sort of a distraction" Misty suggested as she took cover behind one of the pillars. "Something to block her eyes for a minute!" however… no one had any idea on how to stop the mad raging Pokemon from her guard duties. With only one point of entry and no way to out flank the pink Lucario… Todd thought of a brilliant idea. "I got it!" the photographer yelled out, "Give me five minutes and it'll be done in no time!" he suddenly took out his cameras and began tampering with the lenses. "All right… now here's the plan… (whisper whisper)"

**(Battlefield)**

Sha-hear and Hagard withdrew from the main defense line of the fortress as the old councilors snapped back at their heels. The Rayquasa that Azal lead into the castle grounds was making a good mess out of things. With a giant dragon hovering over the area, it felt as if defeat was almost inevitable. "Hmph!" Sha-hear grunted as he dodged another one of Rayquasa's attacks. Seeing that the situation was getting worse by the minute, he waved up his hands and ordered to the Pokemons behind him, "Titans, move out!" in an instant, a Zapdos, Moltres and Rosa's Articuno flew up from their nests and attacked the giant dragon that haunted their skies. With three legendary Pokemons up in the air and a whole battlefield left desolated on the ground, Azal knew that it was time for him to join in.

"Hmm… looks like things are getting way too much for me up here" the man said as he gazed around the burnt fortress. He then turned to Rayquasa's ear, "Alright buddy. I'm leaving the rest up to you. Happy hunting!" even though the guy was at least a hundred feet off the ground, Azal jumped from the back of the long green dragon and made landed on the ground smoothly as silk itself. By the time he got there, he met Loin and Noeh who looked like they've just been through a sauna bath or something, "Hey guys, the cavalry's here!"

"You're late!" Noeh yelled back with a sarcastic angry face. Azal quickly waved his hand defensively and gave out a sweat drop on his forehead, "Hey, catching Rayquasa wasn't exactly an easy job you know" ignoring the glare that Noeh was giving him, Azal turned to Loin who was gazing up at the exterior of the altar room.

"How much time do we have?" Azal asked his companion. Loin took a look at his watch and made sure that it was telling the correct time. Every second that counted seemed to draw closer to humanity's end. "Three minutes…… probably less" he replied with a sigh at the end. Azal simply chuckled which was quite amazing seeing that the end of the world was coming. How can someone remain so calm when he knows when death was nearing?

**(Castle Keep, narrow corridors) (11:57 PM)**

"Zippo, Sparky, I choose you!" Richie called out his Pokemons next to him along with Ash's Piakchu. "Blaziken, Eevee, Squirtle, come on out!" May ordered which was then followed by Anabel, "Espeon, Alakazam, come and help me!" with eight Pokemons by their side, Rosa felt like she was gonna have a bad day. With a single motion of their hands, the Pokemons unleashed a powerful attack altogether. Rosa saw this and quickly activated two of her attacks. Double team and protect! (Hey I've just learned that in Japanese they call Double Team 'Kagebunshin' which means shadow clones!)

With Rosa split into dozens, the eight Pokemons had to pick their targets wisely or they'll be having one heck of a fight on their hands. But unfortunately, lady luck doesn't seem to be with them on that particular moment.

The pink Lucario dodged the attack and let her clones get hit giving her a few moments rest. Seeing now that she was overwhelmed with numbers, she let anger get the best of her. Gathering up what's left of her energies, she came out of her hiding place and began throwing shadow balls at an alarming rate along with hyper beams coming from her mouth.

The gang was surprised by the outburst that they quickly hid behind the marbled pillars just to get to safety. Luckily for them, the pillars were strong enough to withstand much of the attacks. For the past thirty seconds the only thing that could be heard from that area was 'boom', 'bang', 'ka-pow!' etc

After a whole minute passed by, Rosa must've given them everything she's got! The pillars that were supposed to standing was utterly destroyed, the walls looked as if a battering ram had been slamming itself for almost an hour, the surrounding decors were tainted black with burnt marks from the fire power she unleashed and nothing… not even an ant could've survived that.

Sensing that her opponents were dead, Rosa walked up to the pillar where they hid to make sure her kills were confirmed. There was a short silence. Nothing but the sound of battle outside the castle keep was filling the air. However… this all seemed too easy for the pink Pokemon.

And her theory had been proven correct when she felt a presence coming from behind. Immediately she charged up a shadow ball the size of a watermelon and prepared to shove it down the stomach of her attacker. But before she could unleash it, Todd said with a smirk, "Say cheese!" with a click of his camera and with the flash turned on to maximum effect, the light temporary made Rosa blind. This made the pink Lucario accidentally throw the shadow ball on her paws to the metal door that she was supposed to protect.

Seeing Rosa vulnerable for just a quick moment, Richie and May called out to their Pokemons, "Sparky, Pikachu, use thunderbolt attack!"

"Blaziken, use overheat!" the attack was so strong that it sent the Lucario all the way to the metal door, breaking it down to nothing but a pile of stones.

"Alright! We did it!" Richie cheered out in victory. With no time left to lose, the gang made their way through the door only to find………

An empty room…

It wasn't really empty though. There was an altar at the center of the room surrounded by five artifacts. A ring, a staff, a sword, and a glove. But what caught their attention the most was a strange pool in front of them. It emanated in a noble blue color and was gave out a slightly bright light that illuminated the room. It was just about the size of a small pond that you would see small school of frogs playing around. But right now all of that didn't matter. What really matter was the fact that Pikachu was pointing at it. To their surprise, Ash was there… and his face was just floating above water level which allowed them to see him, "Is that Ash… in there?" Drew asked to anyone who could give him the answer.

Acting on pure instinct and the love for his new found brother, Max ran towards the pool with little care about his own safety. "Ash!" he called out hoping to get a reply, "I'm coming for ya!" but just as he approached the pool, a shadow ball came from behind destroying a portion of the wall near Max's side.

The gang quickly turned their heads around to meet the furious glare of the pink Lucario who they all thought was already down for the count. With such little strength left in her body and fatal wounds all around, Rosa dragged her wounded half dead carcass from the rubble of the great door and approached the enemies of the empire. She limped with her one leg, dragging the other wounded one through the solid marbles, scowling at the humans that dared to defile this sacred ground. The gang moved away as she dragged herself closer to them. However… before she could even make it half the way, she felt a hand on her shoulder, which surprised her quite a bit.

"That's enough Rosa…" said Pallet/Chu, "You can rest easy now…"

"Pallet!" Rosa said, "I'm sorry… I could not stop them" she apologized

But Pallet just grinned back at her, "Don't worry Rosa…… its ok now. There's no need to worry. The ritual is done…" this caused the Rosa's eyes to widen considerably. "You…… you mean…" the boy nodded, "Yes…… he's back…" a grin escaped the boy's lips holding every moment like a treasure of a lifetime.

Just as he said those words, a sudden sound began to emanate from the pool where Ash was.

**(Back outside)**

As Rayquasa and the three legendary titan birds fought over the palace, something caught the attention of all life form on the island. Whether they were fighting or just limping out of the area, no one could take their eyes on that unusual sight.

The time of the planet's alignment… has come. The sight of all the planets was so clear that you could even see it from the farthest side of Kanto. Pluto, Mars, Neptune, you name it, it was there!

Loin and the rest of the councilors glared up, hoping that nothing would happen in the next two minutes. They could only hope and plead the to the gods that their distraction was enough to buy Ash's friends enough time…… time to save the world and the boy from total chaos.

But alas…… their prayers were not answered. A few seconds after the planet aligned themselves… a great beam of light pierce through the planets sending a wave of immeasurable energy to the altar room. At that moment, the only thing that Loin could say from his mouth is.

"We failed…"

**(Altar room)**

Everyone in the room shielded their eyes as the energy beam struck down from the heavens and then onto the pool where Ash was floating. No one understood what was happening; the gang was probably so confused that they'd probably match the intelligence of a Slowbro.

"Wha? What's happening!?" May yelled as she covered her eyes with her hands.

No one was certain how Ash was feeling at that moment. Since the boy was still asleep he would not be able to explain how it felt like to have the powers of the gods in the palm of his hand.

A minute after the energy beam hit the boy, everything went silent. The gang recovered from the blast attack but was still unsure on what was going on. The water that filled the pool was now dried up as if it had been put in a really hot place for a long time and now it was all evaporated.

Suddenly… Misty saw Ash's hand twitched a little, this brought so much joy into her heart that it nearly filled her entire body with relief. But when the boy stood up from his sleeping position… Pallet could only grin with pleasure… as his friend had finally returned.

"Welcome back…… your majesty…"


	38. Return of The King

**Chapter 38: Return of The King**

On that moment… everyone in the altar room froze as Ash rose from empty pool after being struck by a bolt of pure energy. Questions filled in the air. Though some were happy to see the boy alive and awake, there was something different about him. The posture he was giving resembled that of a child who just learned how to walk. When Rosa saw that he was about to fall, she miraculously manage to pull out some strength to her legs and jolted towards the boy before he fell towards the floor.

"Your majesty! Are you alright?" she asked worryingly.

But before anyone could even think of a reply, Rayquasa tore through the roof of the altar room and ripped the stones off from the wall like paper. Its roar was so frightening that made a Rhydon's roar sound like an ant squeaking. In fact, it was so frightening that Max nearly wet his pants. With the ceiling gone from the top and with no marbles between them the giant dragon, the gang could see Raquasa's face as clear as day. It was a beautiful sight, but at the same time horrifying.

"Ahhhhh! A Raquasa!" Brock yelled. Then he noticed that the giant dragon was about to unleash one of its attacks, "Everyone, get down!!" the gang ducked for cover, but it seemed hopeless. No one could possibly survive a point blank shot from Rayquasa's hyper beam.

As the dragon charged up its power through its mouth, the gang ducked for cover, Rosa blocked Ash with her own body hoping to save him from the destruction, but Pallet…… that boy… only grinned.

**(Back down below)**

A mighty explosion boomed out the altar room causing both the Guardians and the councilor's eyes to go nearly as wide as frisbees. Raquasa may have been a wild strong Pokemon but Azal didn't really thought that the dragon would actually go that far. The debris from the explosion caused the Pokemons around to shield themselves from the small particles and rocks that had been lucky enough to survive the blast.

At that point the councilors began to hope that the attack was strong enough to destroy everything… if that should happen, and then at least their deaths would have some meaning.

But once again, the gods seemed to have lost favor on those four illusions. As the smoke some-what cleared up from the ruins of the altar room, the whole army gasped in shock as a blue energy shield blocked Rayquasa's awesome might. Sha-hear, Hagard and Chaucer opened up their jaws and let them dangle freely like there were no bones left in them.

**(Back in/on the altar room)**

The gang heard the explosion and felt the impact like an earthquake rumbled just beneath them. The flash of light of the hyper beam attack seemed so surreal that it nearly shattered the very core of the planet. But after a minute later… they realize that the blast never came. Seeing that the attack was done, the gang lifted their heads to see an even more shocking sight.

Ash had pushed Rosa away from him and used his arm to generate some sort of force field that was strong enough to hold against a nuclear attack. "A… Ash?" Misty muttered under her breath. But she did not get a reply from the boy.

Rayquasa was not pleased to have some human block his attack so easily. With a roar from the mighty dragon, Rayquasa lifted away from the palace and prepared an even stronger attack. But Ash wasn't gonna let that happen. The moment his feet left the ground, everyone's eyes grew in complete shock. He was flying… the boy was actually flying!

"RAAAAAARRRRRR!!!!" Rayquasa roared angrily as it stared upon the tiny figure in front of its face. Though Ash maybe small, the long green dragon could see the overflowing power originating from the little boy. It glowed with the pure essence of magic and if someone would touch him, it would almost feel like they were touching the gods themselves.

Taking all that into consideration, Rayquasa wasted no time in launching another hyper beam attack, but this time, Ash only blocked the blow with just one hand. But the young boy didn't just block it this time. Two seconds after the attack hit the shield the boy created, the beam deflected, slamming right back at Rayquasa itself. The mighty dragon roared in anger of this and was now afraid of the little shrimp. Seeing that its regular head on tactic wasn't gonna work against the resurrected king, Rayquasa tried a different maneuver. With its long mighty body able to move swiftly across the area, the mighty dragon encircled Ash trying to get the boy confused.

But Ash was not one to get so confused so easily. With one swing of his marked hands, the giant light emitted the boy's nearby surroundings, damaging them with an invisible attack. Rayquasa felt like it was being hit by a hammer, a whip, a bomb and an axe a hundred times per second. With all that pain coming and going like a decease spreading all over its body from the head to the tail, the green dragon submitted to the greater power and fell from the skies like a snake falling from a tree branch. Luckily for those below, Rayquasa only fell on top of an unpopulated area thus there were no casualties.

A few moments later Ash decided to turn around to meet his friend's faces. His eyes were hidden under a lock of his hair which gave him that cool-silent-type look and he no longer had his Pokemon league trademark cap. Misty and the others quickly perked up with a slight bit of happiness to see the boy alive and well… and not to mention those cool powers he got. But their smile soon faded when the boy's features began to change. His hair suddenly began to turn white. Every last strain of black raven color vanished from sight leaving nothing but silver linings across the center. The next thing that happened was the tattoo mark on his right arm. It soon began to grow in an alarming rate going all the way to his torso and face. If one should see him now, they'd almost believe that he was some kind of cultist leader.

"Ash? Is that you?" Dawn asked in a worried tone. But the boy simply walked passed them and approach Rosa and Pallet who seemed pretty winded.

When Ash got into hearing distance, Rosa quickly bowed her head in respect. Pallet simply grinned goofishly. The two of them exchanged silent looks which seemed to speak way louder than words. "ASH!" Richie yelled out which caught the boy's attention annoyingly, "It's us, we've come to save you!" Ash stared at Richie with a hateful look for a quick moment, but after seeing that he was human, Ash raised his arm and began sending out a blast of power.

"WAAHHHH!" Richie and the others ducked behind covers as they barely manage to dodge the attack. "Ash, what's wrong with you?! You could've hurt someone!" Misty yelled out giving him an annoyed look, but with one click glance at Ash's face, they knew, that this wasn't the boy they were looking for.

Realizing their situation, Anabel made a quick thought, "Metagross, I choose you!" her Metagross appeared just near the edge of the room overlooking the whole battlefield. "Everyone, get on!" the Salon Battle Maiden ordered which everyone complied. Just when Ash was about to charge another attack, the whole group held onto Metagross as it glided down the air like a paper with too much weight on its shoulder.

"They won't get far your majesty" Pallet said grinning, "The Guardians have surrounded the entire fortress surrounded. It'll take a miracle for them to escape" Ash didn't reply. He only walked towards Rosa who looked badly injured. The pink Lucario tried to look up but for some reason, she could not. The shame of her defeat had tainted her honor. She never wanted to see the king see her in this kind of state.

"**Rosa…"** he said her name in a different voice. The young Pokemon would've jumped with joy if she could, but her injuries deny her that pleasure. She recognized that voice. It was indeed him, it was indeed… her king. **"Rosa…"** he said again kneeling down to her height level. He extended his hand and reached her head with a gentle touch. A moment later, the wounds around the girl vanished, as if they were never inflicted at all.

"Y… your majesty… I am here for your return" the girl said finally holding all of her emotions back. Ash smiled and slowly made her way towards the ledge. With Pallet and Rosa by his side, the three of them JUMPED off the castle keep and floated down through the levels like a bird making a landing.

**(Back with the gang)**

When Metagross finally hit down to the ground with its tired body, the gang quickly got off to get themselves some fresh dirt on their feet. Having one's foot far from the surface wasn't exactly a cheery experience for anyone. "Everyone ok?" Brock asked which they all replied positively. But then their answers quickly changed when a bunch of armored Pokemons appeared around them. They were barely able to take down one of these soldiers how much shorter can they last against an entire army?

"Uh… guys?" Drew began, "Does anyone have a box of Pokechow?" this was probably one of the worst times for him to crack up a joke but it was probably better to die laughing huh.

As the Pokemon soldier came closer, the gang pinned themselves around Metagross hoping that someone would come and rescue them. And by the gods their hopes were answered. Before those Pokemons could even lay a finger on them, Azal and Furo came out of the blue and began swinging their staffs like crazy. "Back! Back you little munchkins! Back I say!" Furo shouted. "Go on get out of here! Human meat are off the menu, now get going!" Azal barked.

"You!" Dawn quickly recognized Furo once he took off his hood. She could still remember the time when he burned down the mall back in Petalburg city. "Aren't you that guy…" she didn't get to finish when the councilor grab her hand. "No time to talk. Right now we need to get all of you out of here! Come on follow me!" Furo then turned to his partner, "Azal, cover our backs!" with a reassuring nod from the guy, Furo led the way towards the main gate.

But then suddenly, three Registeels came out of nowhere and blocked their escape route. "Whoa!" the whole group halted on track. Soon later, they found themselves completely surrounded from left to right.

"Furo… please tell me you have a plan B" Azal asked holding up his weapon.

Furo paled for a moment at first but when he looked up, he grew a smirk, "Ok… how about… GET DOWN!!" the whole group immediately ducked after noticing a bright light coming from above. In a matter of seconds, two hyper beam shot down to the ground forcing the Pokemons to move back a few paces. The gang then saw another two figures wearing the same hood as Furo and Azal drop by armed with staffs as well.

"Furo, Azal! I thought I told you to take these kids out of here?!" Noeh yelled but continued to stare at the Pokemons that were approaching. Suddenly, a shadow ball came out of nowhere which was bounced back by Loin with baseball like stance. "I would be worrying about myself if I were you… councilors" said Sha-hear as he walked out of the crowd. "Because in a matter of time, neither one of you will live to see the next sun rise"

"Let the kids go Sha-hear" Loin demanded, "There's no need to draw any collateral damage"

The white Lucario simply chuckled, "You should've thought of that before using them as tools for your plans" he then raised his paw to signal the attack. "Soldiers… atta"

"**NO!"** that single voice alone shuddered the very core of the earth itself. Sha-hear was quite angry to hear someone demanding him to stop, but soon all his anger vanished when he saw who it was.

Ash, Pallet and Rosa landed majestically at the center of the battlefield making almost no noise at all. Once his appearance became clear, the whole army lowered their heads in respect of their king. The gang quickly turned their attention to the boy. With confusion and riddles written all over their faces, the king could only smirk at their pathetic existence. But then the councilors hastily block his path making a human wall with their own bodies.

"Hsa… leave these kids alone" Loin asked politely. Though he showed no fear with his face, you can tell by his eyes that the man was afraid of the king.

Again, the king remained silent to all of them. He did not even bother responding to Loin's request. He just starred at them, like they were figurines on a private display.

"There's no point in fighting or escaping councilors" Pallet spoke for the king, "Now that the king has returned, the war will now resume to its final phase!" he paused and grin evilly at them, "The fall of mankind starts right here!" but Furo didn't quite agree, "Not as long as we're around!" he was about to charge but Loin halted him.

"Now now Furo…" Loin began as he tightened the grip on his staff. "We don't use threats in negotiations"

"We don't?" Noeh said sarcastically. He noticed Loin giving out a wink sign which meant that he had a plan.

"Of course not" a smirk grew over Loin's face as said those words. "WE USE FORCE!" with a wave of his hand the three other councilors followed his example and shot out a hyper beam attack from their hands which gave a good amount of breathing room. "Azal, take the kids out of here now!" Noeh ordered which he followed immediately. "Come on kids. Follow me, this way!" with Azal leading the gang out of the fortress grounds, the rest of the councilors found themselves in a very bleak situation.

"Ok… now what?" Furo asked.

"We make our stand right here!" Loin replied. With one galliant charge, another battle ensued, marking the beginning of the end of a very long war.

"It is futile Loin…" said Pallet as he continued to grin maniacally, "You cannot hope to defeat the empire that you once destroyed" but that only made the man smirk, "If I want to know your predictions Pallet, I'll ask for. But for now… I think I'll write my own future"

**(With Azal and the others)**

The fourth member of the old council rushed through the Forest of Mists followed by the gang and some of their Pokemons as well. By the time they reached the old campsite, Azal le out sigh of relief. "Ok… this should be far enough. Let's rest here for a moment and catch out breaths" he sat on a flat shaped rock and breathed normally as he was slightly winded by the sudden sprint. The boy and girls however were totally gasping for air. After running up to the castle, and escaping from the person they sought to rescue, the list of questions seemed to pile even more upon their aching heads.

A few minutes later, Azal stood up from his sitting position, "I'm heading back" he said, "All of you should head directly south from here. You'll reach the east side of the island. Once you get there, you'll see a small raft that should be able to take all of you to safety" just when he was about to leave, a certain friend of Ash suddenly blocked his path. "Hold on!" Richie said with a dead serious tone, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going back to the fortress to do what I can" Azal replied moving around the boy to get pass him. "If we're lucky… Loin might think of something to stop the process"

"Process?" Max said in a questioning tone, "What process?" but Azal simply sighed in return, "Sorry… I don't I can explain evey… errrgggg…" a sudden pain came across his chest as he remembered the jump he made from the sky. Free falling from a hundred feet from a giant green dragon wasn't exactly something you would call a relaxing jump. He limp the first few steps until he finally lost balance of his own foot. But before the man could fall onto the hard surface, Brock managed to catch him by the shoulders.

"Whoa… are you ok? You look pretty beat up" the squinty eyed man said as he helped him up. "I… I'm ok. Just give me a few minutes rest" Azal then took a seat back on that flat rock he was sitting a few seconds ago. "I guess I must've pushed my body a little too much there" he let out a soft chuckle as he took a water canteen from his jacket and drank from it with large gulps.

As a moment of silence pass by, Azal began to feel a bit uneasy as he noticed everyone was starring at him with confusing eyes. They didn't really know if he was an ally or an enemy to be truthful. "What's wrong?" the man said finally with a smile on his lips, "Do I look like one of your circus clowns or something?"

"Well not really…" Brock replied professionally, "It's just that…… well…… we don't really know what's going on. So we're kinda hoping you could tell us" Azal looked at all of them. All their eyes radiated the same things. First was confusion, then followed by puzzle, after that is even bigger confusion, but on top of all of those emotions, laid one feeling he could not ignore……

Determination…

It did not matter how confusing the situation was to them. As long as they had a common goal they wouldn't even mind going to the world of madness just to accomplish it. As long as the gang stuck together, they were practically a force to be reckoned with.

"Oh boy…" Azal sighed, "I should've guessed why Noeh sent me to lead you out of there" he exhaled slightly, inhaling more oxygen to his lunges. It was gonna be a long time before this bed time story ends. "Tell me… does anyone here know of the Pokemon king?"

**(Back with Loin and the Guardians)**

"Gahhhh!!!!" Noeh grunted as he flew across the battlefield towards the dirt pile near the fortress gates. Apparently, his old friends were giving the councilors the old way to show their 'unwanted' guests out the door.

"Noeh, Furo!" Loin commanded their attention, "Focus your attacks on Hsa! No matter what happens, we cannot allow him to recover back to his full strength!" the two of them nodded and quickly charged back at the king. But with Rosa completely healed of her injuries from her last battle, she was like a living shield for both Hsa and Pallet. "Not this time humans!" said the pink Lucario as she lodged another shadow ball at them. The councilors dodged it but now felt like they were gonna have a rough time just getting to the king.

"Pallet!" Sha-hear barked out as he unsheathed his blades from his paws (they look more like katars rather than blades) "Take his majesty to the chambers and complete the ritual! We'll deal with these pests!"

"PEST?!!!!?" Furo snapped at his insult, "Ok that's it you little K-9 freak! The gloves are now officially off! I'll make you think twice before calling ME a pest!" Furo didn't like taking insults that much and was one who had a very short fuse for those kinds of things. "Come on Sha-hear!" the man shouted as he approached the Guardians, "Why don't you come over here and say that in front of my face!" he taunted back angrily.

"I always knew he had a short temper" Chaucer mocked, "I guess you humans just don't know how to control your emotions nowadays huh?"

Seeing how angry Furo was, Hagard smiled and chuckled under his breath. The green Lucario then turned to his comrade, "Well… he's your student Chaucer. Why don't you deal with him?" the two of them giggled.

"Focus you two!" Rosa barked which jolted their nerve for a moment. With Pallet slowly making his way towards the castle keep with Hsa by his side, Loin felt like their chance of man's survival was slowly slipping away. _"I need to do something fast, or everything we've done will be for nothing!"_ he thought. But with so many Pokemons surrounding them and not to mention the Guardians and their Chosens, things seemed pretty bleak for them right now.

And then it hit him! (not literally) He turned his attention to the downed Rayquasa that was still healing on the ground. The poor beast was so badly beaten by the king's attack that it nearly lost an ear back there. Putting the last of his magical energies to good use, Loin telepathically communicated with the mighty dragon and healed it. _"Come on Rayquasa"_ he began, _"Obey to my command. I am Loin, your new master! You will obey!"_ with some of its wounds gone from its body, Rayquasa opened up its fierce eyes and once more took to the skies with a mighty roar not far behind. _"Good… now go… destroy everything on this island!"_ with that last command, the long Pokemon roared like a mad beast and quickly began destroying the castle which he luckily made as its first target.

Rosa knew if the castle was leveled down to nothing, their plans would be set-back for another twenty years or so. "Articuno!" she called out her favorite Chosen. The ice winged bird hastily made its way to her side with a quiet squeak. The pink Lucario then stood on its back and quickly ordered it fly high. With both Moltres and Zaptos aiding her with their awesome powers, a victory against the powerful dragon might just be possible.

"Hagard, Chaucer, you go and help Rosa!" Sha-hear commanded, "We cannot allow it to destroy the castle! GO!" with the green and yellow Lucario off to aid their comrade, Sha-hear knew that was one mistake he just had to make. Alone against three councilors, he knew that he would stand no chance against them even with the Pokemon army by his side. But despite the major odds against him, he was still determined to hold them back with his own life.

"You two go on ahead…" Loin said suddenly. His two other companions looked at him confusingly at first, but with a reassuring nod from the man, Furo and Noeh hastily took a side step and moved on ahead. But Sha-hear wasn't gonna make it easy for them. "None of you will get pass me that easily! Soldiers, attack!" but when he gave out the order to his army, Loin gave out a leap and swung his staff right at him, but Sha-hear managed to block it but just barely.

"Sorry captain…" Loin began, "But I'll be your opponent today!"

**(Back with the gang and Azal)**

The fire in the old campsite gave out a cracking sound as it burned the remaining firewood with its intense heat. Brock had spent the last ten minutes fixing up Azal's sprained ankle while the man explained the story to the gang.

"The Pokemon king?" May replied to the Azal's first question. "Yes, the Pokemon king. Does anyone know of the story?" the gang nodded slowly not taking their eyes off him. "Well then… I guess that saves me the time to explain the whole story"

"Yeah… but what does that have to do with Ash and the Pokemons?" Misty asked after taking her seat on a log. Azal looked at her normally and replied with a smirk, "They're very much the same thing young lady. Very much indeed" this caused everyone to tilt their heads with even more questions. It was then May remembered that she still had that history book that she was supposed to give to her dad from Professor Ivy. "But according to this, the Pokemon king died at least two million years ago" the young Ms. Maple inquired to them.

"Correct…" came Azal's reply. The other looked at him as he inhaled some air to begin a story… long long ago.

"I know I may not look it…" he started as he gazed at the night stars, "But I'm actually two million and twenty-six years old" they all gave a glare of disbelief. "The part of your story is probably just the beginning on how the boy became Pokemon king yes?" they all nodded, "But… do you know what happened after that? (silence) I thought not…"

It was then Max raised his hand, "Umm excuse me… no offense. But you don't look old enough to even become my dad"

"Max!" his sister nudged him with her elbow and gave him a look that said, 'Be quiet and listen!' But Azal simply laughed at his comment, "Hahahaha… Well…… traveling through the afterlife can give you that kind of experience friend…" he put down his staff and rest on his backside against the rock he was sitting on.

**(Back with Loin and the others)**

"Keep the Rayquasa away from the castle!" Hagard shouted as he jumped onto Zaptos's back. "Aim for its head and center body! That's its weak point!" with the information given out, Chaucer acknowledged his position and quickly jumped off Moltres. "Understood!" the yellow Lucario barked back.

With Chaucer attacking the green dragon directly, Rosa supporting with her Articuno and Hagard coordinating the attack, the three of them truly showed that they were not named Guardians just because of their looks.

As the king stood on the steps of the ruined castle along with his long lost friend Pallet, the little boy grew out a grin so big that it reached both of his ears at the same time. "How is it Hsa?" Pallet asked the king who still remained silent after all this time. "Does this entertain you?" the king still did not reply to him. He just continued to look at the battle as Sha-hear and Loin fought for their very existence.

"Come on Sha-hear!" Loin yelled out trying to get the Lucario's attention, "I thought you always wanted to be free from the empire's service"

"True… being in the service of the empire was painful" he admitted, "But to see my fellow Pokemons enslaved by you humans is a thousand times more painful than life in service!" Sha-hear quickly charged out with his katar blades only to miss the councilor just by an inch. "For six years Loin. Six years, I had served you. For six years you had been one of my most trusted friend" a tear escaped his eye holding an abundance of emotions, "But when you turned against my king and my people, you have crossed the line!"

**(Back with the gang)**

Even with such an intense battle ensuing back at the castle, Azal kept telling the story of his past to the gang, so that hopefully, it would be able to answer some of their questions. "Loin and I were once a part of a great group of people called the Councilmen. We were the brains and idealists of every city the old empire. With our guidance, and the powers of the great king of all Pokemons, the empire flourished beyond anyone could've expected"

"So, what was his name?" Drew asked as he took a seat on the hard pile of dirt.

Azal nodded to his question and answered truthfully, "His name… was Hsa. Though he may just have been a ten year old boy, the child was more intelligent than each of us put together. Even though he was small, the boy could stop a war with just a wave of his hand" Azal made the old king sound like a god rather than a boy.

"Wow…" one of them replied

"Yes… 'wow' indeed" the councilor spoke, "Now where was I? Oh yes… The empire…… (ahem) Food was bountiful, and the country was rich. People and Pokemons from all over the world flocked into the empire by the thousands. Lands were fertile and were forever green with the soft touch of grass. Meadows in deep forests echoed with the sound of birds, rivers and lakes so crystal clear that you could see the bottom of the waters. We were content with what we have and no one wanted anything at all. In was a heaven built on the face of the earth"

"It really does sound like paradise" said May who could already imagined the place that the man was describing.

"Yes… it was paradise… until we became stupid…" Azal bluntly spoke as he lowered his head in shame. And as if an anchor had pulled them, the heads of every member turned to him faster than the speed of smell. "Five years after Hsa became king, a great famine shadowed over the northern part of the country. At first it was all's well since it did not harm anyone but the crops. But after a few months…… it began to spread even further south, leaving nothing but starvation along the way. As the famine continued to grow, a plague followed not far behind, leaving the entire country on its knees" the man stood up, making every moment he felt last an eternity. "By the time we acted upon it… it was already too late. Food began to dwindle at an alarming rate. Families began to fight over petty things like crumbs of bread littered on the floor. People die with every passing second, civil unrest grew among the people, it was chaos!" he fumed the last part out with a yell.

Everyone around him felt like they were campers hearing a camping story from the head ranger. They said not a word and made no sudden sounds. Their eyes and ears were plainly focused on Azal and Azal alone.

"It was then… till the bond of our empire… began to weaken" he continued as he remembered how all this war started in his mind. "Pokemons and humans began blaming each other for this curse. The humans say that the Pokemons were the cause of all this, because they did not worship the gods like they did. The Pokemons blamed the humans because they were the ones who were ruining the land with their constant improvement of technologies. By the time before the king could interfere, everything went down the drain" he paused and looked at the ground, "War……" he said fearfully.

**(Back with Loin and the other Guardians) **[Special Scene adapted by movie making

Just as Rayquasa unleashed another hyper beam attack against Rosa's Articuno, Hagard shifted Zaptos's wings making the legendary bird take a sharp turn avoiding the powerful attack. Since Rosa specialized in these kinds of battle, she practically had no problem in dodging and dishing out attacks at the same time.

"_War?" Misty asked with some hint of disbelief in her tone._

"_Yes…" Azal replied. "But why would the humans start a war?" this time, Brock asked._

_Azal sighed because he knew that they wouldn't really like the answer. "When we humans are do not understand something, it is only logical that we fear it"_

As Chaucer quickly made his way from the tail of the long green dragon of the North Pole, he signaled Moltres with a whistle to give him covering fire, just in case Rayquasa should decided to eat its own behind just to get him off his back. As he approached the center portion of the body, the yellow Pokemon readied his paws for a smack he wouldn't forget. "Come on, just a little bit more!"

"… _When the war first began, it was obvious that the Pokemons held the advantage over the humans" Azal continued, "With their supernatural powers overshadowing our every move, it was certain that we stood no chance. The king knew of this and thought that the war would be over without any bloodshed" he gave out a short pause making the atmosphere look a little more dramatic, "But then… after two months of no fighting……… a madman came to us…… with a weapon that could change the course of the war. A genius inventor named: Galyoken" his name along put fear into the man's voice._

"Grrr!" Noeh and Furo were trying to make their way towards the king at the top of the steps. They weren't worried about him nor his little friend Pallet. Getting to them was the easy part… the hard part was plowing themselves though the almost infinite numbers of Pokemons blocking their path. "Ok…" Furo began as he kept the grip on his quarterstaff tighter than before. "Why don't we split this evenly Noeh? You take on half I'll take the other?" but then he noticed that his friend was already busy dealing with another group behind him. When Furo turned his eyes back to the pact that was coming towards him, he let out a soft smile, "Alright then… I'll take them all!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sha-hear flung across the battlefield as one of his more powerful Chosens flung right towards him. Quickly exploiting this opportunity to his advantage, the old councilor took out his canteen and quenched his thirst with a couple of gulps before continuing the fight. A man can get thirsty too you know. "You know…" Loin wiped the drip from his lips and crouch down for a little bit of rest while Sha-hear tried to recover from the fall. Both of them looked equally wounded and exhausted to a near state of collapsing. "Fighting with you like this does bring back old memories does it?"

"Yes… it does" came the Lucario's faint reply. "The final battle at the king's palace, near the capitol city…… who could ever forget that place?" the Pokemon pushed his Chosen away from his body and let it sleep for a well deserve rest. When Loin saw that the captain was back on his feet, he readied himself as well. "If I remember correctly… it only took fifty of us to take down every last one of you" he chuckled with a hidden agenda to taunt his opponent into attacking him first, "If you are attempting to trick me Loin, then you are sadly mistaken. Besides… I have heard better taunts coming from a Jiglypuff"

This conversation truly wasn't going as planned as Loin wanted. With Sha-hear not taking the bait, he had to enact his plan before it falls into ruins. Putting his canteen down, he placed his hand into his wide pocket and pulled out an old contraption that resembled much like a Pokeball. Its shape was still a sphere, more like an oval if you looked at it at a closer perspective. The strange markings that bore around surface of the device looked as if they were magical runes of some sort. Though it may just look like an old piece of relic…… that object alone was able to make Sha-hear raise his perceptions. "What are you hoping of accomplishing with that infernal device councilor?!" he asked, sending out a shockwave of killing intent towards the man, "Are you attempting to capture a Pokemon and bringing it into your service?"

"Oh this old thing?" Loin giggled as he played with the old Pokeball for a moment, "Sorry… but this thing isn't meant for you. I'm saving this for someone more special" he let out a grin which was half the length as Pallet's. "Furo! Think fast!" with a little nudge on his arm, Loin threw the device like a professional American Football quarter back player.

Sha-hear was caught a little confused at first, but when Loin tossed the old Pokeball to Furo, the plan was showed right in front of him. They weren't planning to capture any Pokemons with that contraption, instead… they were planning to use it on Hsa. "No… not that…!"

"That's right, you got it" Loin said as he blocked the Lucario's path. "Since Hsa is half Pokemon, there's a slight chance that the Pokeball might actually work" with the plans fully explained to him, Sha-hear ordered to his Pokemons, "All units, protect his majesty at all cost! Don't let the councilors near him!" in an instant, the Pokemons that were badly wounded from the fight began to rise up on their feet with determination to stop Furo from getting anywhere near his majesty.

"_Galyoken was a genius, a madman, and a prophet… but a genius nonetheless. When he came to us, he declared himself to be the savior of man (tch!) We were fools to believe him. (pause) With his talents and scientific knowledge… he developed a weapon you all now call… the Pokeball" Azal sighed as he continued, "With the help of that strange device, we were able to convert any Pokemons we wanted to our side and with it… the war was turned to our favor. With victories occurring all over the empire, Hsa asked us to stop this senseless fight. But it was too late………… Loin and the other including myself were in too deep to stop. With total victory so close at hand we were powerless to stop it"_

"Furo, over here, I'm open!" Noeh shouted as he waved his hand to signal his partner where to throw the Pokeball. Furo looked at him first. He took aim and quickly threw the old Pokeball before pulling out his quarterstaff to knock back a Weavile that was about to sneak up on him. If anyone should look at this chase, they would probably think that this wild goose chase resembled something like Rugby.

"Go Noeh, I'll cover you!" Furo cheered. With Noeh closing in on the Fortress keep, Sha-hear began to panic. "NO!" the white Lucario then turned to the skies, _"Guardians, his majesty is in danger! Protect him with your life!"_ he sent out a telepathic communication which the three Guardians responded immediately.

Rosa was the first to react, "I'm going back! Hagard, cover me!" the green Lucario nodded and quickly ordered Zaptos to provide cover for Chacuer who just arrived at the center of Rayquasa's body. "Chaucer, you'd better hurry up, we got a situation!" Hagard said telepathically. "We need to get to ground level, fast!"

But the yellow Lucario really wanted some time to catch his breath. Walking up a miniaturized Jormunganda (a snake in Norse Mythology) isn't exactly a walk in the park. Just walking slowly on the mighty beast required so much concentration that even one small mistake can send you down in the dumps. _"huff huff… Alright then… huff huff… I'll see you on the ground!"_ with a smack on the center bone of the giant green dragon, Chaucer held onto one of Rayquasa's scales as it plummets down towards the surface (again)

When Hagard saw that he had completed his task, he wasted no time in diving down with Zaptos flying him back to the castle keep.

As Loin continued fighting against Sha-hear and his never-ending waves of Pokemon soldiers, Rayquasa came down in the most crucial moment which caused everyone to get stunned for a few short seconds, which gave Furo enough time to get to Hsa and put him into the ancient Pokeball.

"NO!" Sha-hear barked out endlessly. As he attempted to get pass Loin, the old councilor blocked every means for the white Lucario to get through. They battled each other endlessly, making their weapons clash, giving out a frightening sound. Both of them were exhausted with no energies left in reserve. They had pushed themselves way pass their limits and if they do anymore sudden moves, it would probably cause a week worth of pain around every inch of their prehistoric bodies.

As Noeh quickened his pace by adding more pressure to his feet, he was finally able to make it pass the huge gauntlet of Pokemons that blocked his path. Now comes the easy part: throwing the Pokeball at Ash…… or at least he thought that it was the easy part.

But just when the guy could become a hero for all of humanity, an ice beam attack caused the area in front of him to turn into a small mountain of ice. "What the heck!?" the man cursed. But then it all became clear when a voice from the sky shouted out with an angry female tone, "Articuno, ice beam!" Rosa ordered. The great legendary bird quickly charged up another attack and laid it directly towards Noeh. The man dodged the attack, but just barely. Half of his left leg was frozen solid making popsicles up to his knee. "Noeh!" Furo called out from behind, "Are you alright?" the other man simply scoffed and chuckled at the end, "Don't worry about me. Here (gives Furo the old Pokeball) whatever happens…… do not stop until the king is inside this Pokeball. The lives of an entire planet are counting on us!"

"Great… no need to worry about pressure huh?" Furo remarked sarcastically. Without wasting another second of his precious time, the man quickly got up and made his way up the stairs avoiding all unnecessary contacts. As Hsa came into view, he knew that he made one wrong move here, it will be all over.

Noeh limped out of his sitting position with his frozen leg and tried standing holding both his feet together. Immediately he began using his quarterstaff as an ice pick to drill his leg out of its chilling state. "Tch… I've heard about chilling out, but this is just plain ridiculous" he grunted

Back on the battlefield, Sha-hear had been given a blow to the arm leaving it temporary crippled, "GAHH!" he groaned in pain. Loin did not smile when he delivered that last blow. Fighting against a dear old friend from the past wasn't exactly something anyone would call a joy ride. It was actually more painful than the bruises and bumps that were laid on his face. Trying to ignoring the pain embedded in his heart, Loin caught the sight of Furo who was just about to reach the king. "GO Furo! You can do it!" he cheered.

When Pallet saw one of his oppressors approaching at an unusual but amazing speed, he immediately grew angry and began dishing out attacks from his arm. But Furo was too agile for a kid who 'nearly' as old as him. The king however… strangely did not react to his movements. It was like he was stuck there, starring at the battlefield for almost ten minutes now. His eyes unwavering with emotions and his body unmoving like a statue made of steel.

As Furo drew closer, Rosa unleashed another shadow ball attack from her paws towards the councilor, making a thick gust of smoke. "Gotcha!" the pink Lucario smirked with victory, but that smirk soon faded when the smoke vanished, revealing nothing but an empty pile of stones and marbles. Rosa quickly looked both left and right from her Articuno and scanned the area. It seems like the old councilor used the smoke to mask his attack.

Pallet looked around and told the remaining Chosens to keep an eye out. But when he was five feet away from the king, a shout came from behind which caught all of them completely off guard.

"I got you now shrimp!" Furo leaped out from behind catching the Pokemons with their pants down (metaphorically speaking). With a little swing of the councilor's arm, he activated the Pokeball and threw it harder than your average baseball.

The little contraption smacked against the king's shoulders which made all three councilors smile with victory. But again, that smile faded when five seconds past with nothing happening. The Pokeball activated… but the king didn't even seem to react to the impact. Instead, Hsa just picked up the little device with his hand and crushed it like paper. This either made Loin very scared or very confused…… perhaps maybe even both.

"No… it can't be!" Loin stated in disbelief, "I was sure that the Pokeball would work!" but then he was rudely interrupted by a Pokemon's voice, "Heh… it seems like you made a miscalculation in your plans there… Loin" said Sha-hear as he struggled to get up.

But as Furo tried to conjure up a solution up his head, Pallet took this opportunity to strike him with one of his hyper beam attack. The blast hit the man directly, sending him off towards Noeh who was still trying to get his leg out of the ice. The two of them rolled down the long steps hitting each pavement with either their heads or their backs. When they finally reach the bottom, they felt like their bodies just came from a Tauros stampede. "Oooohhh… I'm gonna feel that in the morning" Noeh said as he pushed Furo off him.

"_Our Pokeballs were very different than the ones you use today, young trainers. During that time, our Pokeballs were equipped with a spell that turns any Pokemon inside completely under mind control. With it… any Pokemon that is captured inside immediately turns to our side like a puppet"_

"_That's awful…!" May gasped._

"_Aye… it was terrible… but very effective" Azal continued, "But we had to do it. For the sake of all humanity, we had to do it……… or so at least we thought" along pause filled the air, making it almost impossible to breath through the growing intensity of pressure. "When both our armies clashed at the final stronghold of the king, Hsa made no attempt to fight back. Even after being shunned away by his own people he still refuses to hurt them… tch. Our victory over the defenses were swift and palace fell into our hands in minutes" he paused again, catching his breath for some much needed air. "Even when he was outnumbered and victory was beyond his grasped……… that idiotic boy acted like a king till the very end. With the power of the artifacts, he split the northern part of the empire and cast it away into the sea! And with the country split in two…… the king made sure that no one would remember… anything………"_

"_He wiped away their memories?" Duplica guessed_

"_No… even though he had the power to do that, he knew that wiping other's memories is wrong. So instead of taking the memories away… Hsa sealed it within a box"_

"Loin!" Furo shouted, "Please tell me you have a plan C" the entire group of councilors was completely surrounded by the Pokemon army both from the ground and the skies. With the three great titans of fire, ice and lighting hovering over them and the Guardians and their Chosens glaring at them on the surface, victory seemed to be pretty bleak. "I'm open for suggestions" Loin replied holding his half broken quarterstaff.

Just when the Pokemons were about to tear them to shreds, a loud majestic voice perked up from behind saying, **"STOP!"**, which caused all of them to fall into a deep silence. Rosa and the rest of the Guardians turned their noses to the king. It was his first word to speak after hours of silence. As the wind flew by carrying the leaves straight towards the sky, the lone figure stepped down from his position and glared at the councilors who were about to face their doom. **"Bring me…… the box…"** Pallet's grin grew even wider if it was even possible. With a snap of the boy's finger, a Registeel appeared carrying a small rectangle box on its hands.

"There it is Loin" Noeh whispered to his partner, "The box of memories…"

"More like Pandora's box to me" Furo spoke up. But this only gave Loin time to conjure up a plan. "We'll have to take the box away from here as far as possible" he then turned to Furo, "Furo, do you think Rayquasa can fire another hyper beam attack?"

Furo quickly took a small glimpse at the green dragon that laid on the ground aching painfully. The wounds inflicted on the back of the great Pokemon was so severe that it would take more than just medicines to heal that thing. "I don't know Loin. That thing doesn't look like it could handle another fight"

"We don't need it to fight" Loin replied, "We just need it to fire one last hyper beam attack" Furo took another glimpse at the Pokemon. After a few seconds, he nodded to Loin signaling that it might just be possible.

While the councilors conjure up a plan to save mankind, a voice interrupted their conversation, "You should consider yourselves lucky councilors…" said Pallet as he grinned evilly at them, "You are about to witness the end of mankind"

As the box was placed on a pedestal, Hsa, Pallet and the Guardians approached the object and surrounded it from all sides. The box was probably the size of your average laptop except that it was much much thicker and on the sides of the box were four keyholes, each with its own unique shape and functions. "Guardians…" Pallet began, "Present your keys" with that single order, the four Lucarios nodded and began the ritual to open the box of memories.

First came Hagard, who pulled out a key with the tip in the shape of castle tower (chess game rook) he then put the key in its respective slot and slid it down to the maximum. Second, came Chaucer, who pulled out a key in the shape of a paw without hesitation, he slid the key into the socket and turned it down with a defining 'clunk' sound. Next came Sha-hear, whose key turned into the shape of a shield. With no words or emotion coming from the white Lucario, he quickly slid it to the socket and turned it with a jerk.

The last but not the lease came from Rosa, who already had her key in front of her face. Her grip on that small object was so tight that it would actually match p against a giant mechanical crane. Though her mind was telling her to put the key and end all of humanity, something in her heart was telling her not to. What could possibly hold her back now after all these years?

She had waited patiently in slumber for more than two million years and fought against opponents far larger than her in everyway. For decades she had been waiting for this moment… for decades she had been waiting for her king, her sovereign…… her love. Whatever was bothering her mind sure was making her take her sweet time.

"Rosa!" Sha-hear barked out which snatched her out of thought, "What is the matter?" the girl lowered her head in shame for thinking, "I'm sorry…" was her reply, "I was just… thinking…" this made Hagard raise a brow of suspicion, "You'll have plenty of time to think when this is over. Now. The key…" the pink Lucario nodded and forcefully put the key into its socket. Once the last of the four Guardian keys were in, the first group of locks on the 'Pandora's box' released themselves, falling onto the solid ground in the process.

A few seconds later, the box began to rumble as if something really wanted to come out.

**(Back with the gang)**

"A box?" May asked, hoping that everything she's hearing so far was a total lie. But alas, Azal did not look like he was kidding at all, "Correct…… a box. Pandora's box if you would call it that" he paused and took out his canteen for another gulp of water, "All the anger, hatred and despair of every Pokemon is sealed in that tiny box. And if it should ever be open, every Pokemon in the galaxy will rise up, waging war against human till the very end………… That is why Loin and the others are doing everything in their power to stop that box from opening. To prevent Armageddon from occurring"

"But why Ash?" Misty asked.

"Yeah, it's not like he's royalty or something" Max added

"He may not be of royal blood, but regardless of his lineage, the boy was picked among billions of people. Perhaps it was fate… or maybe even destiny. We'll just have to wait and see how things unfold" just as he finished his story to the gang, a great beam of light surged out from the fortress catching the whole group's attention.

"Oh no…" Azal gasped, "I've overstayed my rest! You kids head south immediately! Take the raft and get out of here quickly! None of you are safe on this island" but Richie was too stubborn to listen a two million old man. With a quick pounce on the boy's feet, Richie dashed off towards the fortress with hopes of getting his friend out of there. "Hey!" Azal yelled out, "Didn't you hear what I said? You have to get out of here now!"

"No way!" was the boy's reply, "I came here to get a friend and I'm not leaving without him!" with no words left to give, Richie dashed off towards the light along with his Sparky and Ash's Pikachu.

"Ah… hey Richie, wait for me!" Drew yelled as he followed the boy's example. Just before Azal could even speak, the whole gang ignored his warning and left with smiles on their faces. "Tch… friends huh……? Tch… ok… I'll go with that" he quickly followed their trail towards Fort Gregro, where the last battle was about to be held.

**(Back with Loin)**

As the beam of light gushed out of the box, Pallet continued to grin as he put in the next set of keys on the second group of locks. With all keyholes undone and unlocked, all heads turned to Hsa, who still strangely remained quiet after all this time.

But as the king moved his hands, every Pokemon seemed to lose their breath slightly. It wasn't really shocking since the boy's arms had enough power to destroy the world with a move of pinky. Hsa, waved his hand in a circular motion like he was casting some sort of a spell. And within seconds, a key with the tip in the shape of sphere materialized before them. Now the Guardians were certain… this was their king, this was their true king.

But just when the king was about to insert that last key into the final socket, several strange voices began to ring up behind his head. They were somewhat familiar but he could not tell who they belonged to.

"_Hey Ash, don't forget your Pokedex, you'll need it for the registration"_ the first one sounded like Brock, but of course, the king couldn't tell.

"_Hey there Ashy boy, still dreaming of becoming a Pokemon Master? Hahahah!"_ the second one sounded like Gary who was taunting him.

"_Come on Ash! We're going to be late for the boat!"_ the next one sounded like May and on the background, you could hear Max's voice as well.

"_Hey Ash…… if we get to battle each other again, don't hold anything back… ok? Cuz you know I won't hehehehehe"_ the following one was definitely Richie's. You could actually see the smile as he gave out those comforting words.

"_Ash… don't forget to change your you-know-what everyday"_ this one was obviously Ash's mother, Delia.

As all the voices came together in his head, a mixture of sad emotions began pouring into the king's mind. Sadness, joy, hardship, determination… everything just seemed to be so mixed up that it almost looked like jigsaw puzzle with hundreds of missing pieces.

"_Ash… you do your best…… ok?"_

Misty……

What were these strange voices going around his head? What were these pangs of guilt building up inside his chest? But before the boy could cut through the painful uncontrollable tears, Loin quickly ordered his plan to get into motion, "Rayquasa, NOW!" with a defining yell from the head councilor, the green dragon raised its head from the dirt and quickly fired a hyper beam attack the size of San Francisco (metaphorically speaking)

"Everyone, take cover!" Sha-hear quickly ordered and took the ground as well. With the mighty green dragon so beaten and wounded by hundred of attacks, the accuracy of the beam was pretty much awful, but that did not make it any less dangerous than it truly was. The beam soared around the remaining troops that were still conscious. It tore the courtyard garden into pieces, the castle keep's west lounge and the statues that decorated the place.

As the attack move somewhat further away, from the king and his Guardians, Furo took this opportunity to snatch the box away with his cunning speed. "Gotcha!" he smirked as he grab the box.

"Alright, let's run for it!" Loin suggested, which they agreed right away. By the time Pallet realized that the box was taken, his anger grew out in a considerable amount. "NOOO!!!" the boy yelled, "They're escaping with the box of memories! Destroy them! NOW!!!!" with a roaring order from the 'man' himself, the whole army got up from the cover position and once again began a massive chase for the councilors.

"Tell me…" Furo huffed, "Why didn't we get the box in the first place?"

"Because of I just thought it now" Loin replied exhaustedly, "Now just keep quiet and RUN!" the three councilors immediately head for the gate that was probably their ticket out of this hell hole. When the Guardians caught sight of where they were heading, Sha-hear wasted no time in ordering its closure, "Close the gate! Don't let them out! Rip them to pieces, and bring me back the box!"

"Rarrrrrrrr!!!!"

Just as the order was given, the Pokemons who were stationed at the gates began to work the mechanical contraption on closing the marbled gate. Loin saw this and quickly hastened his pace, "Come on you two, pick up the pace!" he commanded his companions. "We need to get out of here now!" they rushed faster and faster and faster again! They were about a few more meters until they reached home base.

Ten meters…

Nine meters…

Eight meters…

Seven…

Six…

Five…

Four…

Three…

Two…

One…

BANG! The door shut with a loud band sound, telling all the inhabitants the gate was now officially closed.

WHAM! POW! PLUNK! Loin, Furo and Noeh all simultaneously smashed onto the door with speed of light. They were not able to make it through the door in time.

"Ok… next time we run like that… I'll remember to wear a helmet" Furo joked as they all got up. And that guy couldn't have cracked up a joke at the worst possible time too. Because when they got up, the first thing the three of them had to do was dodge for dear life. The Pokemons wasted no time in formations and column strategies, they just move in and attack without any remorse. "Furo, I'm open!" Noeh yelled at the top of the rampart. Once his companion heard his voice, he tossed the box towards the man, but unfortunately for them, Moltres managed to snatch it whilt it was still in mid air.

"No!" Noeh yelled, "Come back here you bird! I'll barbeque you even if it's the last thing I do!" some were now wondering how do you actually cook a bird that was already on fire? "Grrrr! Oh no you don't!" just when Noeh was able to slip pass the defenders, he jumped off the rampart of the fortress wall and clinged onto the Moltres's wings. "Aha! I got you now!"

"Kweeeeeee!" Moltres shrieked for a moment. Having that extra weight on its wing threw the bird off balance and turned its course directly onto the mountain interiors. "Kweeeeee!" it yelled to Noeh with anger. "Oh 'kweee' all you want! But I'm not letting go until I get that box! Now hand it over bird brain!" the titan of fire didn't take that last insult very lightly. Having rage take over its mind, Moltres charged up a flame thrower attack which made the guy regret was he just said. "Hey now… there's no need to get angry. Now just give the box and we can have…" but before he finished his sentence, he immediately let go of the wing.

By the time the fire bird understood why the councilor let go of its wing, the fire bird smashed onto the mountain rocks, sending it to dreamville with one quick swap.

Noeh dusted himself for a few seconds and quickly caught the box as it intentionally fell right into his hands. Before he left, he gave one last remark to Moltres, "Remember to always watch where you go or you'll crash" but when he finished, a flash of black and pink caught his eyes which made him duck almost instantly.

"Give me back the box!" shouted Rosa as she dished off punches and kicks at Noeh. But the councilor was more agile than she had thought. The white haired man quickly pulled out some sort of a break dance move out of nowhere and dodged all of her blows with just one smooth go. But the guy knew that he couldn't avoid Rosa forever.

"Noeh, over here!" Furo shouted waving his hands. Noeh saw this and quickly tackled the pink Lucario down. With strength that would rival a Slaking, Noeh threw the box of memories with such precision that Furo managed to catch it without any harm. "I got it!" Furo stated as held firmly onto the box, but before he knew it, a dozen Pokemons of every size came from behind and plunged the boy into ground like a squashed watermelon on the beach.

The box drifted a few yards away making a loud 'thunk' sound on the hard surface. When it finally stopped, a yellow figure flashed through the area faster than the speed of smell itself. The councilors knew that it was Chaucer, since he was probably the only Guardian who could move that fast. With the yellow Lucario running off with the box, Loin appeared out of nowhere and began attacking him with his half broken stick. But once again, Chaucer showed the reason why he became one of the Guardians. He threw the box in mid air and began dishing out several jabs at Loin which he skillfully blocked.

By the time the box began making its way back down, Sha-hear popped out of nowhere and grabbed it before it could hit the ground, but in turn, Loin threw out his stick which caused the white Lucario to fall and dropping the box of doom onto a small pile of snow (its still winter remember?)

With Chaucer fighting Loin

Rosa battling Noeh

Furo under a lot of pressure

There was no one around to get the stinking box! But this only raised one question that's been hanging around the back of the councilors mind: Where the heck was Azal?

And their question was soon answered when a massive explosion pieced through the main gate. All actions froze for a mere ten seconds until a single figure walked out carrying a quarterstaff on his back. "Hey guys…" said Azal with his favorite smirk, "Did anyone miss me?" he was soon followed by several other figures who were obviously the kids he was supposed to escort out of the island. "Azal!" Noeh yelled, "What are they doing here? I thought I told you to bring them out of the island!"

"Yeah yeah yeah, I heard you the first time old timer" Azal jerked his hand and waved his companions off, "But who am I to stop them from saving a friend?" he quickly scanned the area around and noticed that the fortress in a complete and total mess. "Whoa… this must've been one heck of a party that I missed" he wasn't kidding. Every Pokemon around him were tattered like they've all been through a whirlpool of punches all day long. The walls were damaged, the garden was a mess, and the castle keep was destroyed in so many ways that you can't really tell if it was a either a building or a huge pile of rocks.

But as the remaining Guardians and the Pokemon army converge on the humans, the gang knew that this was going to be a battle they have to win…………… or die trying.

Every member of the gang quickly pulled out their strongest Pokemon out for battle and readied it even though their chance of victory was slim. May called out Blaziken, Anabel called out Espeon, Brock called out Steelix, Drew called out Absol, Richie was of course, Sparky and (temporary) Ash's Pikachu. Dawn chose Piplup and Buneary, Tracey called out Scyther, and last but not the least, Duplica…… who's her entire Ditto family morphed into the strongest Pokemon they could lay their eyes on.

"Hey what's this thing?" Max suddenly ran over the box that was lying on the ground and picked it up with great curiosity.

Once everyone saw the box being held by a mere human a massive power of killing intense waved out from across the room sending chills to the entire country populous. Seeing that the kids were ready to give it their all, the councilors withdrew from their opponents and formed a line formation to fill in the gap in the exposed areas. "Next time Azal, when I ask you to take the children AWAY from the island, I want them AWAY FROM the ISLAND" Noeh growled as he glared at the man in question. Azal simply shrugged and gave out a 'hn' sound to notify the guy that he didn't have a care in the world on what he was saying.

As the Guardians all glared at them with eyes glowing with crimson color, a single yell from a very angry boy silenced them all like someone pressed the mute button. **"ENOUGH!!!"** that was definitely the voice of the king, and from the tone he was using, they were sure that his patience had finally reached its end. "His majesty's patience has reach its limit" Pallet continued for him, "Return the box and your lives will be spared…" that was probably the worst lie that kid could ever conjure up from his brain.

"This box?" Max asked with a confused look on his face. "It doesn't look that unusual" he began shaking it and tapping at the sides to see what was inside. From what he could guess from the weight and the hallow sound inside, it felt like the box was empty.

"Yes… that box. Now give it!"

Max quickly tightened his grip on the box and pulled it into a cover, "Where's Ash!? What have you done with my brother!?" Pallet simply smirked as his so called plea. With a flash of a second, Ash /Hsa reappeared from behind and stood right next to Pallet with an expressionless face.

With one look at the old king, they immediately knew that it was Ash, but with some slight differences. First of all, was his strange hair that suddenly turned from black-raven to snow-silver-white. Another was his eyes. They weren't shiny and golden like they used to be…… in fact, it looked almost like he wasn't even there anymore. If one should look at his pupil-less eyes, you would actually believe that he was now just a shell of a man.

"Ash… is that you?" Misty asked hoping to get some sort of reply. But the king simply looked at her with a cold expressionless face and shrugged her words like they meant nothing. "Ash… it's us. Don't you remember?" the Cerulean girl tried to get his attention but all attempts seemed to have fallen under deaf ears. She was going to try again but a hand grabbed her shoulder telling her to stop before she goes to far from the group. "It's no use young lady" said Azal, "Ash isn't there anymore. He's now replaced by another soul that simply looks like him"

"Ah… so you've noticed" Pallet grinned again showing some of his teeth in the process. "Now…… let me rephrase that offer: Give me the box, or we'll take it from you" But Azal pushed Misty and Max back putting himself between the Guardians and the gang. "I'd like to see you try…… shrimp" to everyone's surprise, Azal dashed off from his position and rushed towards Ash with speed that would match against Chaucer's. He put his quarter staff behind him like a heavy bat and when he finally got into swinging range, he swung and……

Gasp!

That was probably the only word everyone gave out when the bat nearly touched Hsa's face. Apparently, the tip of the staff stopped just millimeters before impact. Azal struggled as hard as he possibly could, but no matter how much more strength he put, the staff just won't seem to move any further. "What in Mew's name?" the attacker hicked before suddenly being blasted off to the ground with an invisible force.

A blue aura began coursing its way through Ash's body. It resonated in such a majestic color anyone who saw it would already believe the kid to be a god. The councilors stepped back in fear of the king's anger. The Guardians were a bit frightened as well. The sight of their sovereign being infuriated was indeed a rare treat for their eyes.

"Ash!" May called out to get the boy's attention, "Don't you recognize us? We're your friends! It's me May, Max, Brock and everyone! We're here to save you!" the brown haired girl called out again and again, but nothing seemed to be able to snap the boy's attention away from his goal. "Ash, come on. Wake up!"

** (Unknown) **

"Wake up… come on now… wake up. You can't sleep forever…" came a calm voice, which sounded a lot like a female

"Ohh… my head" mumbled Ash as he slouched out of his sleeping position.

"Come on… wake up… you don't to miss breakfast now do you?" the voice said again with a calming loving tone. "We made you your favorites" a chuckle was followed by the phrase, "Hurry up, you don't want to be late now. Come on… everyone's waiting for you"

"Just five more minutes…" Ash mumbled as he kept his eyes closed. The voice suddenly became irritated to the boy's laziness, "Oh don't me that excuse. Come on, wake up… your majesty, please wake up. Your majesty…"

Your majesty?

"Oh come on Rosa, he's not gonna wake up like that" came another voice which sounded male to the boy's ears. "To wake a sleeping beauty, you must do this…" suddenly, Ash felt something hit his head like a mallet or something.

Ash quickly opened his eyes to the open space, letting his eyes adjust to the morning light. His mind was in a complete blur at the moment, like nothing made sense to him. Where was he? Who was he? And who just called him 'your majesty'? All these questioned rushed through his head like a bunch of arrows running through the field in a marathon or something. It must've happened when his head made contact with a hard object.

By the time the boy got onto his sitting position, he reopened his eyes and glared at the Yellow Lucario in front of him. "What the?" he muttered.

"Chaucer!" Rosa scorned him, "How dare you hit your king! I should have you hanged in the gallows outside the castle and skinned you of your flesh!" that really sounded gross for many ears. But the yellow Lucario simply laughed joyfully, "Oh come on Rosa. You know how hard it is to wake this boy up? It'll be supper before he even leaves the bed. You should be thanking me"

Rosa quickly clenched her fist and prepare to put her companion out of commission for a week or two, but before she could deliver the blow, another voice popped in behind them, "What's taking you two so long?" said the white Lucario, "His majesty should've been in the dining room ten minutes ago!"

"Sha-hear!" Rosa jolted from her position, "Chaucer just hit his majesty with a vase!" she pointed at the suspect who was whistling innocently on the corner. "We should hang him!" but then a green Lucario chuckled not far behind, "Now now you three, we shouldn't be giving his highness such a disturbing morning" he then turned to Chaucer, "Chaucer, why don't you go and tell the servants that the king will be having his breakfast in his room today. I believe his majesty is still exhausted from last night's work"

The yellow Lucario simply gave a 'hn' sound and walked out of the room with a polite bow to Ash.

Once the door closed, Rosa took a look at the boy who was starring at everything like he was a complete stranger to the place. "Your majesty… are you alright?" she said in a worried tone, "Here… let me look at your head" she quickly took a small look at the bump on the head and healed it using some sort of special power in her body. "There we go… good as new" she remarked as she stepped down from the bed.

By the time the pain subsided, Ash felt a row of memories were flooding into his heart like a whirlpool that had just ended. After a few seconds of silence, he remembered everything… "Y… yeah… thank you Rosa" the pink Lucario blushed as she bowed, "It is my duty to see you unharmed my lord. There's no need to show your gratitude" Hagard simply cracked a chuckle as he never got tired of seeing Rosa so modest.

By the time the laugh ended, Sha-hear and Hagard left the place to attend to their duties. A few minutes later, a Chancy came by with a tray of food in its paws. "Your majesty, your breakfast is here" the pink round Pokemon said with a smile.

The dish she laid on the table was indeed an exquisite one. Though it was just mainly basic food groups, it was more than enough to fill the boy's stomach with much happiness.

**(Back in reality)**

A moment had passed since May had tried to get the boy's attention with her constant plea for an audience. By the time she lost her breath, Hsa became irritated

"**I've had enough of this…"** he growled demonically. With a wave of his hands, all the Pokemons that the gang summoned out began to glow in a red aura. A few seconds after they began to glow, they suddenly felt their stamina sipping away from their bodies like water. **"You humans…… should just…… DISAPPEAR!!"** the moment he yelled the last word, Hsa charged out an attack so strong that it would've wiped half the mountain clean off from the face of the earth. May and the others shielded their eyes and prayed that their death would be swift. The councilors knew that they would not survive this attack so they quickly dropped on their knees and hoped that humanity would somehow survive this disaster.

Darkness ensued their visions as an explosion caught their ear's attention. They could feel the heat the attack gave out but as the seconds pass by, no one seemed to feel any pain at all. Like they were protected by some mystical barrier or some sort. When the attack ended, the Guardian's eyes nearly flew out their sockets when they saw the humans still standing like they weren't even harmed.

How could this be? The most devastating attack was stopped by just mere humans? Could it really be possible?

Their questions were soon answered, when a telepathic voice interrupted the battle.

"_It looks like we've made it just in time…"_ every life form on the surface hastily turned their heads to the source of the voice which was strangely originating above them. By the time their eyes made contact with the new intruder, their hearts sank like the Titanic itself.

"_We… have returned…"_ said Mewtwo… the strongest Pokemon in the world.


	39. The Attack of The Clones

**Chapter 39: Attack of The Clones**

The whole world would've shook in fear that night if news gets out of this. It didn't matter if they were humans or Pokemons, they would still cower in fear of the sight of the strongest Pokemon in the galaxy. Mewtwo…… the genetically enhanced Pokemon created by Team Rocket to become a weapon of mass destruction…… was there… and no it was not an illusion.

Misty and Brock were the only ones who could recognize such a powerful Pokemon, but the others who did not know its name simply shook in fear as they felt his psychic power course through its body.

"Wha… what Pokemon is that?" Sha-hear asked hoping that someone could give him the answer. But he never expected it come from a human, "Tha… that's Mewtwo" everyone turned their eyes to the future Pokemon breeder. "Mewtwo?" May replied as the name was kind of familiar to her. Richie quickly pulled out his Pokedex to see what information point-dexter can give.

"Pokemon unknown" it began, "Please head to the nearest Pokemon research facility so that we may begin to conduct a…" seeing that the info it gave was useless, Richie closed his Pokedex and continued to look at awe at the Pokemon.

"**Mewtwo…"** Hsa said. **"A Pokemon cloned from the DNA of a Mew. Created by man to serve their purpose"** he spoke as if he knew every inch of detail the psychic Pokemon.

"You know of him your majesty?" Hagard asked to which the Pallet replied for him, "The memories of his majesty's and the human boy must be merging with one another. Ash must've known Mewtwo for some time now" they all glared at the clone as it decended towards the surface below him. By the time his feet touched the ground, he glared at May who looked almost terrified by his presence. "_So… it appears my message wasn't able to reach him after all"_ he said to himself. He then glared at the Guardians and the king who stood between them.

"Stand aside abomination…" Rosa threatened, "Take one step near his majesty and I won't hesitate to put you in your place" but her threats sounded like child's play to the strongest Pokemon in the world. "No even you can stand up against this many Pokemons alone!"

"Who ever said I was alone?" Mewtwo replied, "I…… am never… alone" with a wave of his tail, a giant portal tore a rift through time and space opening a doorway to another timeline. The portal resonated in a rainbow like color filling the land with beauty and power. And from that portal, came an army of Pokemons varying from the cutest Vulpix, to the fierce Gyrados of the sea.

"You fool…" Pallet smirked, "You think you could really challenge our king with Pokemons? Hahahaha" but that boy's laugh soon ended when something wasn't supposed to happen. A C.Charizard unleashed a powerful flamethrower attack which would've hit him if Hsa didn't put up a barrier in front of them. "What's with these Pokemons?" Chaucer inquired; "I can't hear their voices coming through her heads" the Guardians quickly got into a battle stance and prepared for a fight. As if the councilors weren't enough, now they had to deal with a creature made by man.

"Children… I think it would be best if you stayed out of this" Furo told the gang which Noeh totally agreed, "Furo is right. This battle is going way beyond our league and your Pokemons are not in a condition to fight" he wasn't kidding. Hsa made sure that the Pokemons the gang called out were drained off all their energy thus making them unable to fight. With a reassuring glace from Loin, everyone recalled their Pokemons and began making their way towards the gate along with the box of memories along with them.

"They're getting away! Stop them!" Sha-hear ordered. Just as the Pokemon army began to move in, the clone Pokemons blocked their path with rage glowing in their eyes. When the Guardians saw this, they prepared themselves to fight against Mewtwo, but before they could leap into action, the king stood before them waving his hand as a gesture for them to stop. **"Go on and get the boy… I will deal with this creature"**

"But… your majesty" Rosa said worryingly. But before she had a chance to continue, Sha-hear placed one of his paws onto her shoulder and said, "Don't worry about him Rosa. He can take care of himself" at first, the pink Lucario didn't quite trust her partner's predicaments, but then she knew that if they did not recover the box, all their years in planning would ultimately go up in smoke. With a nod from the girl, the four original members of the Guardians leaped away, leaving Hsa to fight against the strongest Pokemon in the galaxy.

When the clones and the originals began to fight, the two factionist leaders rose from the ground, emanating a powerful aura around them. A battle between gods was about to happen.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

On the other side of the battlefield, the gang dashed away from center of the fight hoping that they would be able to escape along with the box that can destroy all of humanity. "Hurry up kids!" Noeh yelled out telling them to quicken their pace. "Come on! We're almost at the gate!" but then their escape rout was blocked off when Rosa's Flygon and Articuno appeared and began attacking them with their powerful beams.

"Look out!" Loin pulled Tracey down on his feet just before an ice beam could turn him into a human popsicle. "Thanks" the young sketcher appreciated the help, "Hey, we humans got to stick together, or else things would fall apart easily" Loin replied.

But then Azal took a look at the main gate as Flygon tore it to pieces with its hyper beam attack. The impact of the beam was so strong that the whole entrance was turned to rubble, "Well, there goes our ticket out of her" the councilor said to the others. "Hey Loin, do you have a plan C? One that might ACTUALLY work this time"

"Hey, I'm making this up as I go ok?" his companion replied in an annoyed tone. "Besides, I'm always open for suggestions right now" the councilors surrounded the gang not letting a single Pokemon, real or clone near them. With Mewtwo's appearance here, things just became even more complicated than anyone could believe.

Just as they were arguing to each other, Noeh spotted four small figures approaching from the battlefield, "Let's keep moving! We've wasted enough time here!" the four humans quickly got to their exhausted battle stance as they prepared to defend the holder of the box with their lives. Loin then turned to Max, "Quickly all of you! RUN!!" the gang had no idea why, but right now, it was probably in their best health to follow the man's orders and get out of there.

**(Back with Mewtwo and Hsa)**

The two leaders of the Pokemons clashed their powers against each other in a frightening show of strength, will and determination. The raging battle below them that were fought between clones and originals were nothing more but a show of numbers. The only true value in victory was the fight between these two heroes.

"**HYAAA!"** Hsa lodged a fire blast attack from his arm while shooting another hyper beam attack from his other arm. Mewtwo saw this and quickly created an invisible force field around his whole body to repel against the attack. Once the smoke decapitated, the psychic Pokemon unleashed one of his most deadly of combinations. He split himself into twelve pairs (24 in total) and began firing shadow balls all together leaving no opening. But the king wasn't fall for some trick, with a smirk on his face, Hsa vanished from sight and reappeared behind Mewtwo's double team formation faster than the Pokemon could even realize that he has been tricked.

With one flick of a finger, the ancient king let out an attack that looked like thunder shock ability from electric Pokemons. Mewtwo, unable to cope with using too much power at the same time quickly dodged it but only barely.

With the fight raging on to a whole new level, Hsa believed that this was gonna be one fight he would never forget.

**(Unknown)**

After finishing his breakfast, Ash decided to walk around the castle to familiarize himself with the surroundings. On his left side was Rosa who followed him on his every move, keeping herself at a close proximity distance like she was his bodyguard or something like that. Just as the two of them walked through a small hallway, Ash saw several Gardevoirs chatting about something in a corner. "Hmm?" once Ash turned his attention to the beautiful psychic Pokemons that acted like gossiping teenagers; he wondered what in the world they could be talking about.

Once the psychic Pokemons noticed Ash approaching them, they quickly let out a respectful bow and left the hallway with a giggle. "What was that all about?" Ash asked Rosa who gladly answered, "Those were the servants your highness. It seems like they were slacking off again. I'll have them replaced tomorrow" but Ash quickly waved his hand in defense, "What? No nonononononono, there's no need for that! They'll probably improve after awhile hehehehe"

Rosa gave out a questioning look with one brow raised, "If that is what you wish, so shall it be" she said politely with a bow. Then suddenly, Sha-hear appeared with a frown imprinted on his face. "Your majesty, there you are!" he said with a slightly raised voice, "I've been looking all over for you. Come, there are twelve audiences that you must attend to today"

"Audiences? About what?" Ash asked with a confused look on his face. "This is no time for jokes your highness" the white Lucario replied annoyingly, "Now please, follow me" seeing that the Pokemon was serious, Ash decided to follow him… for now.

After a few minutes in traveling around the corridors, the three of them finally arrived at the place where Ash would be astounded till his heart's content. He was in a throne room, actually HIS throne room. Four great pillars stood equally on the sides showing aside a banner of his empire. The boy's jaws would've below sea level if he wasn't familiar to the place. It was definitely the palace that he came across not long ago, but that memory seemed pretty feint right now.

At the center of the room stood a single comfy chair with soft pillows that could already make the one who sits in it fall in an instant sleep. At the sides of the chair stood Chaucer and Hagard all giving out their warm smiles to the boy. Near the side of the chair were two Enteis that looked like pets for the royal family. "This way your highness" gestured Sha-hear as he pointed to the throne. Ash was confused. Why did he have to sit in the throne? Its not like he was the king or anything, was he? Once he sat on the chair, the boy felt like he was sitting on the clouds themselves.

Once Sha-hear saw that the boy was comfortable on where he was sitting, he turned to the two Scyther guards, "Let the first audience in!" the main door swung open… letting a golden light shine through the room. And with it… came…

**(Back with Mewtwo and the others)**

The most powerful psychic Pokemon was having a hard time giving the old king the slip. Ever since he nearly got hit by that last attack, Mewtwo had to be careful or he could kiss his own future good bye.

"Argghhhhh!!" the Pokemon grunted as Hsa let out another direct hyper beam attack at him. Mewtwo was able to block it, but the more he used his shield, the weaker he becomes. His stamina and strength may be drastically higher than all the Pokemons in the world but it was NOT limitless like the king. Though he was sweating and panting for some air, Hsa still looked like he could take on two or three more of Mewtwos.

"Submit to your defeat Mewtwo" the king demanded, "You already know that you cannot win this fight. It is written in your destiny" the mere talk of destiny only made that Pokemon grew out a smirk, a smirk which was indeed rare to see even with his closest companions, "You talk of destiny as if you know it" he began, "I was one who followed destiny as well. I once believe that every life is bounded by this single river bringing all of them to one purpose alone. But now I realize…… that destiny is nothing more… BUT A SIMPLE GUIDE LINE!" he yelled the last part as he threw another shadow ball at his opponent, sending the boy off towards the castle crashing on the wall with a loud 'boom' sound letting out a smoke which was thick enough to blind someone.

With that last attack catching Hsa unexpectedly, Mewtwo knew that a normal human being wouldn't be able to withstand such a blast. But the battle with three Regices from the other time stream had taught him never to let your guard down even in victory. And that lessoned proved very useful when he sensed another lightning attack coming right at him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Darn… this way is blocked too!" said Furo as he gazed upon another exit that had turned to ruins. Ever since the fight began, the councilors used the momentum of the confusion to get the gang and Pandora's Box out of the island as fast as possible. But first they had to find a way out of the fortress. "We've gotta find another way out of here!" Loin suggested.

"But wait, what about Ash?" Duplica called their attention, "Aren't we supposed to get him?" but that only made Furo annoyed, "Haven't you been listening to anything we've said? Ash is gone! There's no way we can get him b…" but Loin silenced him by waving his hand up, "What Furo is trying to say is that, the Ash you remember…… no longer exists" the whole gang gasped in disbelief.

No… it couldn't be. Ash couldn't be gone. That boy made a promise to become a Pokemon Master, and he never goes back on his own word.

"I'm sorry…" Loin tried to apologize but right now he couldn't even imagine how everyone around him was feeling. "I know it is hard for all of you to believe what I'm saying, but it is the truth. When the constellation came together, Ash's existence was replaced by another being from another time. I do not know all the details, but we have to keep moving" as he looked upon the faces of the boy's friends. He knew that they were crushed.

But Richie refused… he refused to believe that his friend/rival was gone. He wasn't gonna believe it until he touched his corpse. "Well I don't believe it!" he yelled out, "I'm not going to believe that Ash is gone unless I see it with my own two eyes! Come on Sparky, we're going back!" with a quick jolt on his tired legs, the boy dashed off back to the battlefield with determination to bring back his friend.

"Wait! Come back here?! Are you insane? You're gonna get yourself killed!" Noeh yelled out but he warnings were only responded with Max tossing his the box of doom. "Wait for me Richie, I'm coming too!"

"Hey don't forget about me! I still have a score to settle with him!" barked Drew as he followed behind. It wasn't long till the whole gang ran off.

"This is crazy! You're all insane!" Furo was about to stop them but his progress was halted when Azal stepped forward, "Let them go Furo" he said calmly, "How can you say that Azal?"

"I understand how you feel Furo, but……… I understand them as well" he grew out a smirk as he looked at the gang as they charged blindly towards the battlefield to find their friend, "Besides…" he turned back, "I believe we have our own problems to deal with" the moment he finished his sentence, the four Lucarios of the king's elite force appeared out of thin air all together in a line formation.

As they saw the box in Loin's hands they all went through to their battle stances and prepared for a fight for humanity's existence.

"Looks like we'll be pretty busy just keeping these guys entertained" Azal chuckeld as he saw his old master, "Huh? Oh well whatdaya know, if it isn't my old master Chaucer. Hey Master, I brought you a gift" he quickly pulled out a small sack of strange treats from his coat and dangled it in front of the yellow Lucario. "I even brought your old favorite, fried salted banana on a stick" (I love those Asian fried bananas YUM!)

Chaucer's ear quickly perked up a bit as he heard his old tasty treat name said, "Why thank you Azal. It was very kind of you. I only wished we could've eaten them on better circumstances"

Quickly stuffing the treats into his bag of treats back into his pocket, Azal rejoined with his brothers in arms and prepared for combat (again)

"I will only ask this once, Loin" Sha-hear began with a tired tone at the back of his voice. It was obvious that the guy was tired and in a few moments he would probably faint due to exhaustion. But that little Pokemon was tougher than it actually looked. With his katar blades drawn and his face containing nothing but anger towards the councilors, Loin knew that something had to be done.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Mewtwo and Hsa once again exchange fire at each other not letting the other person/Pokemon get the better of him. But just when things were getting at an equal level, Rosa's Articuno came out from the smoke of battle and fired an ice beam which managed to catch Mewtwo's huge tail by the tip.

"_Grrrr!"_ Mewtwo growled as let out a psychic attack at the giant ice bird and flung it far away from the battlefield. Cracking the ice on its tail with the wall of the broken castle, the psychic Pokemon turned his face back to the king as they continued to battle for dear life. It was only a matter of time now, until one of them fell.

"**Very impressive Mewtwo"** the king began, **"No one has ever lasted this long against a fight with me"** he let out a smirk and slowly lowered down his combat stance which caught the Pokemon by surprise. _"You lower your arms…… why?"_

"**Because I'm curious"** the king said plainly, **"Why is it that you protect that which you hate the most? If the child's memory still serves, you tried to destroy humanity several years ago by creating an army of Pokemon clones"** Mewtwo stiffened a little to his gesture, but he had to submit to his own actions, _"Yes I have"_ the Pokemon admitted his guilt, **"Then why? Why do you protect that which you tried to destroy?"**

Mewtwo searched his minds for the answer but no logical one was able to pop in. _"That is a question, even I cannot answer"_ he said taking a few leaps back, _"I too was once like you. I too once hated the human race for desecrating the Pokemons. Turning them into slaves for their own sport, it sickened me"_ he paused for a moment to catch his breath, _"I built armies of Pokemons, constructed fortresses to materialize my dreams, battled countless oppressors who stood against me! I was invincible!"_

Hsa grew out an even bigger smirk than before as Mewtwo explained his old story. **"You are indeed powerful Mewtwo… that much I can say. So why not join me?"** the psychic Pokemon's eyes widened slightly as he didn't expect that offer to put down the table so fast. **"Think about it: You wanted to destroy the human race don't you? So why not take that chance again, and fight by my side. With your strength and my power, all humans will pay for their crimes"**

The offer was very tempting indeed. Join him and gain ultimate power over humanity, or continue to protect mankind and die in the process? A very tempting offer indeed and with very little options to give.

With the king still with his guard down, he knew that this was an opening he couldn't miss. Mewtwo waited for the right moment making Hsa think that he was considering his offer, and when the boy grew out a smirk, that was time for him to act "Never judge an entire race by a single individual!!" his emphasized that last word with a quick attack followed by another shadow ball from his paws.

A large explosion emanated from the impact causing several battles on the ground to pause before continuing.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Even the Guardians had to slip up their moves when the boom sound occurred. Though Sha-hear knew that the king would be alright, that didn't stop him from worrying about the boy's health. Rosa, Hagard and him were fighting against Loin and Noeh while Azal and Furo were reacquainted with their old master Chaucer.

While the white Lucario was busy gazing at the explosion, Noeh gladly took the opening and lay a kick on the guy's face making him stun back a few feet.

"Hey Noeh!" Loin called out, "I could use a stick right now!" since HIS quarter staff was cut in two, Loin had to rely on his fists, and Rosa wasn't exactly giving him an easy time. "Go find your own stick! I only have one arm!" replied his companion as he blocked another attack from Hagard. And he wasn't kidding either. Due to one of his arms were holding onto Pandora's Box, Noeh had to improvise with his stick as a second arm just defend himself from serious blows.

"Give it to me you traitor!" yelled the green Lucario as he leaped towards the one carrying the box. When Noeh thought that this wasn't getting anywhere, he threw the box towards his nearest companion, which was unfortunately Furo.

"Eh?" Furo gave out a questioning look as the box suddenly dropped onto his hands. "Now that's something you don't see everyday" but then his last remark ended when Chaucer came out and began attacking him with his iron fists of doom. "Whoa!" both Furo and Azal began tossing the box back and forth at each other making the whole thing look like a game. After Chaucer gave chase to them going back and forth between the throwers, his head began to feel a little woozy from the constant jumping and head spinning.

"Hey master!" Azal shouted, "Doesn't this remind you about the old times?" there was a small laugh between the three of them.

"Oh yeah!" Furo smiled and laughed as he took the box and slid back on the ground. "Just like that time back in the park hahahaha. When we stole your poem book hahahaah! Man you should've seen the look on your face"

"You kids always were a nuisance in class" Chaucer replied with a bit of humor in his voice. He had to admit, when thinking about it now, he actually believe that old prank to be quite funny. "It took me weeks just to find you two. So tell me… where is my poem book?" Azal began tapping his cloak until he reached his elbow area. He dug deep into the pocket and hastily pulled out a very very very worn out book. He quickly shuffled the pages and coughed sarcastically as he began reading one of the poems the old Pokemon wrote two million years ago. "Ahem…" Azal began, "The sun beats brighter than the all the stars at night… when the clouds… WHOA!" Chaucer didn't take them reading his private personal belongings quite well but he had to admit, they haven't really changed after all these years.

When Noeh saw this he gave out a small chuckle when he heard the last poem, "Pfffttt… and I thought Hagard's rhymes were terrible" Rosa let out a small giggle while the green Lucario gave out an annoyed stare, "Well excuse me! It's not like you could write anything better Shakespeare"

Silence…

"What's a Shakespeare?" Rosa asked which the two humans chuckled out. "Oh nothing" Hagard replied with asigh at the end, "Just a quote I learned from some humans"

**(Unknown)**

Ash was having one of the most interesting days of his life. When the first batch of audiences arrived, the boy was expecting some sort of political talk or complaints about something. But to his surprise, the first half dozen guests all brought him gifts. All things ranging from golden vases to a statue made in his name. He appreciated the first few gifts and all, but after receiving more and more…… the boy became easily bored.

"Well… that's the last of them" said Sha-hear as he closed his notebook. He then turned to Ash who looked like he could fall asleep at any moment, "Excellent work your majesty" the white Lucario began, "Usually you would fall asleep on the first row of guests. I guess this must be an improvement" no one really knew if the Pokemon was complementing him or degrading him in a way. "It is time for lunch now your excellence" said Rosa who pushed Sha-hear away with an evil glare. "What would you like?"

Ash quickly jolted from his seat and cheered, "Alright! I'll have a double cheese burger and soda!" if he was in the real world that would've been normal, but when he spoke up, the whole room went dead silence with only the sound of a cricket.

"Uh… what's a cheze burder?" Chaucer asked in a confused way. Ash himself was soon puzzled. He didn't even know what a double cheese burger was. "Uh… What did I just say?"

"Is that like some sort of foreign dish milord?" asked Hagard who was quite intrigued with the name of the food he mentioned, "Well we do have cheese. But this burger and soda… is something we do not know" Ash rubbed the back of his head as too didn't know what he was saying, "Eh hehehe sorry… I guess my mind's not what it used to be"

"And I know who I can blame" Rosa snorted with a glare at Chaucer who was now whistling innocently in the corner. Since she wasn't gonna get anything from the suspect, she turned her attention back to Ash, "Well anyway your highness. I shall have the servants cook something for you" the pink Lucrio quickly leaped towards the small group of Chanseys wearing aprons to give them the details of his meal. Man… being a king like that sure does rock!!!

As Ash stood up from his throne, he immediately began stretching his arms and legs. Sitting in that comfy chair for three straight hours was indeed very relaxing, yet at the same time it could actually put a guy to sleep. But as he stretched his legs up, the boy began to feel something… or someone creeping up behind him.

"Huh?" Ash looked back, but saw no one. He was quite certain that he felt a presence there. But when he turned his head back up front, a smiley face appeared out of nowhere which scared the hair off of him. "Whaa!?" Ash fell on his back as the small figure leaped out tackling him to the ground. Rosa and the other Guardians saw this and quickly came to his side with three Scyther guards with claws ready to tear out the attacker.

But when they saw who the intruder was, Sha-hear quickly gestured them to lower their weapons. "Pallet!" the white Lucario called out, "What are you doing in the palace? No one without authorization are allowed into the area!" but the kid ignored him and continued to bear hug Ash with his two tiny small arms, "Awww You're being mean Shahhy" Chaucer coughed out a giggle as he heard the funny nickname. "The king is done with work so let me play with him already!" Rosa gave out a sigh of relief. If the attacker had been an assassin she would never forgive herself. She was the king's bodyguard after all.

Ash gave out a laugh, "Hahahaha… Hey there Pallet, long time no see. When did you get here?" the two of them laughed hysterically, "Just this morning. I came here through Ho-oh's back. It was a lot of fun too" Pallet quickly got off Ash's stomach and sat right in front of him with a chibi face and sparkly eyes. "Come on, let's play already!"

"Ok ok ok, calm down. We'll go play after lunch ok?" with a simple nod from the little boy, Ash picked Pallet up from the ground and walked towards the dining room along with his four Guardians.

**(Back with Mewtwo and Hsa)**

The two main leaders of the war was now in pitch combat going at each other with everything they've got. From simple ember attacks to complex tactics using telekinesis and from simple tackle and smacks to painful back stabbing punches. After three hours of non-stop fighting, Mewtwo knew that he stood no chance against a person with such power. He had already consumed half of his energies blocking the attacks, but with only twenty five percent of his stamina remaining, he could only hope that a miracle happens…… and fast.

"**Very interesting…"** the king spoke out as he stopped fighting for a moment. Though the two of them had been fighting equally, giving the other guy the same results the boy looked as if he just began started working. Mewtwo on the other hand was taking any second he can get to catch up on his breathing. **"We've been fighting for over two hours now and yet you still choose to defy me"**

"_I've defied many masters before in my life. You are no different than any of them" _Mewtwo panted between some of the words.

Hsa slowly charged another hyperbeam attack on his arm after that last comment, he knew this blast would end the batlle. With two leaders fighting for supremacy and the survival for their own kind, the fact still remains that 'Two Suns cannot share the same sky' (Something my grandpa told me)

But before he let out that last blast to end all fights, a small thought popped into that tiny head of his. **"As much as I wish to destroy you Mewtwo…… it would be such a waste to see you perish. Especially by my own hands"** the king lowered his attack and began another 'peaceful negotiation'

"_If you attempting to persuade me to join your cause, then you are more of a fool than I thought"_

Hsa simply chuckled, **"Oh come now Mewtwo… be reasonable. Think of the possabilities!"** he gestured with his hands bearing fists. **"Besides…"** he grinned, **"We wouldn't want your family hurt now… would you?"** the psychic Pokemon's eyes widened as he glared down on the battlefield below.

The clones were utterly defeated by the originals. Even though they were genetically enchaced by Mewtwo's cloning device, their numbers were pretty small compared to the army the Guardians assembled. With a single wave of the king's hand, the Pokemon army ceased their attack and surrounded the clones that were tightened together like a meatball in a cup of rice. They were now hostages to the negotiation.

"**So… are you having a change of heart?"** the king grinned even wider than before.

Mewtwo gritted his teeth as he glared menacingly at the so called 'king' of Pokemons. What was his choice going to be? Serve a new master and save his kind? Or witness the destruction of his one and only family? A tough choice…… but it is a choice that he must decide… and quick too.

"_You… are just the same as all of the other humans in this world!"_ he yelled in a private telepathic channel, _"Abusing the powers of the Pokemons to fufill your own selfish needs"_ but the king didn't even seemed bothered with his taunts. He was holding all the cards and it was up for Mewtwo to pick one. But the strongest Pokemon in the entire galaxy wasn't just gonna drop and roll over like a dog. So instead of picking out a card, he made his own.

Thrusting some reseve powers into his flying capabilities, Mewtwo dashed off towards his small band of loyal companions and aided them using many of his combination skills and abilities. First, he throw out a few hyper beam shots to get the enemy off his family to give them some breathing room, after that he creates a barrier to protect the others from harm. At least momentarily. And finally… he throws a boulder the size of a small car towards Hsa to put the kid in his place. But the king simply yawned at his attempts to put the crown down failed miserably. The boy simply dodged the boulder and exerting no efforts at all.

With much of his powers drained with that last move, just a flick from a finger would almost be enough to take Mewtwo down. **"A worthy effort… but futile"** said the king as he removed the barrier with one wave of his hands. **"You have only but delayed the inevitable. But… you can... change your destiny Mewtwo. Join me… serve me as your new master and together… the world… will be ours"** he gazed upon each of the clones as they looked back in a weakened condition. **"And when you do… there will be a place for you and your family to live in my… new… Empire"**

Mewtwo tried to lift himself up on his knee, but he was just too weak to even lift a finger. Seeing that their master was in trouble, the clones rushed to his side and prepared to defend him with their own lives. Even in death they will serve Mewtwo, until the end.

"_I never once thought there would ever be a master for me old king"_ the psychic Pokemon began as he was able to stand on his feet. _"I traveled through time and space and find no one worthy of my powers. Because I am my own master!"_ he yelled that last part, throwing another shadow ball attack. But Hsa just smacked it away destroying some part of the castle that was left undamaged. _"But now… after all these times… it seems there is but one whom I deemed worthy"_ the psychic Pokemon glared into the cloudless dark sky thinking of the boy who saved his life a few years ago.

The images of the days when he first attempted to destroy the world flashed before his eyes. Then followed by that were images of the time when he and the clones were about to be captured by Team Rocket. After all these times… Mewtwo still wondered. If that boy did not show up, what would he be doing now?

Questions… questions… questions…

"_And that one……"_ Mewtwo continued, _"Is not you!"_

Hsa's grin suddenly turned into a massive frown faster than a monkey can swing in a tree. If Mewtwo had joined his side, conquering the world would be as easy as taking candy from a baby, but now he digressed. **"I see…"** was the boy's reply. **"If that is your final answer… then I cannot stop you"** with a snap of his fingers the Pokemon army readied themselves for one final attack. One that would end this battle once and for all. But Mewtwo wasn't gonna let him make the first move. Putting his last amount of stamina back onto his body, the genetically altered Pokemon pushed himself to the limit and tackeled the king and pushing him right through the walls of the castle.

Both their bodies collided with cold hard rock making them both flinch with a slight hint of pain. But Mewtwo wasn't done yet. He was ready to bring this kid out of the planet's atmosphere and into the great wide space and beyond just so he might have a chance of beating him.

After going through the castle walls, Hsa pulled out some strength and gave that Pokemon a focus punch right on the chin sending him down for the count. **"You disappoint me Mewtwo"** the boy said readjusting his messed up shirt. **"To think that you would resort of some cheap tactics hehehehe… You amuse me even more"**

Even as Mewtwo was already down, the king couldn't help but to degrade the pathethic creature even more. _"Ash…"_ he spoke softly letting the word echo through his mind like a yell in a canyon mountain.

**(Unknown)**

"Huh?" Ash turned his head around as some muttered out a word behind his back. "Is something wrong you majesty?" asked Rosa who took the boy's concern very seriously. "No… I thought I heard someone behind me a minute ago"

"You're probably imagining things again" Pallet chuckled as he stuffed another piece of fruit into his mouth. "Hmm… maybe" just as the boy was going to check through the window, Pallet grabbed his hand and annoyingly pulled him away, "Come on Hsa, let's go play already!"

Ash gave out a laugh, "Haha Alright alright, hold your Horsea Pallet. We're going hahahha" while the two of them towed away to play in the fields, Rosa quickly jumped off from her seating position and followed them. Seeing this action, Sha-hear could give out a sigh on how a king like him could act so childish. "I don't like this one bit" he said with his usual frown. But Hagard pat hit shoulders and gave him a rewarding smile, "Now now captain. Don't exert yourself too much"

"I'm not, Hagard" he growled, "I only wish that the king would act more mature than this. He's taking his job… like its some kind of joke" but the green Lucario only laughed at the guy's insecurity, "Well… what do you expect from a ten year old boy? He may be smart and powerful but the fact remains that he is still a child" he tapped his shoulders giving him a reassuring grin, "Don't worry. In a few more years he'll be the king we can all be prouid of"

As they both nodded, a sudden rumble on the table caught their attention. Apparently Chaucer was eating the leftovers left by the king. "What? I'm hungry…"

**(The Pokemon Garden)**

As Pallet continued to pull his friend to the garden, Rosa was having a hard time keeping up with them, "Your majesty!" she called out, "Your majesty, please wait! Running in the hall is extreamely dangerous" but the two kids couldn't hear her. Her warnings were simply drowned away by the their laughs and the sounds of their footsteps. The two of them were running so fast that some of the castle staffs that were ACTUALLY WORKING had to dodge the away by clinging onto walls and hiding behind doors.

"I'll race ya to the bird's nest!" shouted Pallet as he was now ten paces ahead of Ash. "Oh I'm not gonna lose that easily" Ash countered as he hastened his pace. A few seconds later, the two of arrived at the bird's nest where hundreds of bird type Pokemons were going around doing their morning chores. Some were feeding their Youngs, some were chatting, and few were still sleeping while the rest were just hanging and flying.

As the kids chase each other through the nest playing a little game of tag, they suddenly spotted two Pidgeots sitting around the hanger gazing at the forest below. They immediately jumped onto them and with a quick 'hut hut' sound, they found themselves soaring through sky like angels without wings.

"Your majesty!" Rosa called out again, but she was already too late. They were already too far for them to hear her. Seeing that they were ignoring all her warnings, she immediately whistled to get one of the other Pidgeot's attention and quickly saddled herself on top of the big bird. "Hut hut!" she shouted. And with that, she continued to chase them like a nanny taking care of two annoying babies, "Your majesty! Please wait for me!"

But Ash was having too much fun to stop and wait for her. With his unusual talent of controlling Pokemons, the boy began to do stunts only a suicidal would want to try.

While they soared through the clouds faster than your average human being, Ash began to feel… somewhat strange. Like this place is just too perfect for his nature. Everything he touched, everthing he smelled, saw, hear, they were just… too perfect. Was this is a dream, or reality? He could not tell…

But as the white soft cotton clouds came upon his skin, the boy knew that this was a dream. He knew… yet for some reason, he could not admit it.

By the time they touched the soft green earth below, Ash would've been astounded by the sight that lay before him.

Thousands upon millions of Pokemons lay before him all awed by his very presence. The older Pokemons bowed to him like a god, while the younglings tackled him like a friend. Both Ash and Pallet laughed. This was paradise…… what else could you have called it?

**(Back in reality)**

Noeh gave out one last punch to Rosa, sending the girl to a pile of old barrels near one of the trees in the garden. The councilors fought time and time again, but it seemed like things were now starting to look up. If they could keep the box from the king and his lackeys, they might have a chance to save mankind, they might have a chance to destroy Pandoras box…… if they could hold on for just a bit longer…… they could actually win…

But that slight glimmer of hope began to fade when Furo reported the bad news, "We got trouble. The rebel Pokemons (clones) are cornered and that 'Mewtwo' seemed to have lost" great… just when things were starting to look up, this guy had to ruin everything.

"Then we have no choice" Loin stated, "We must destroy the box now or risk humanity's end"

But Azal gasped to his plan, "But if we destroy the box, we'll be taking the whole island with us!" the other councilors jerked their heads as they didn't know that the box would actually match an atomic bomb. But no one was mosre scared than Noeh, since he was the one carrying the darn thing. The man quivered as the box he held now looked more like his end. "Are you telling me, that I've been carrying a bomb this whole time!?"

"There's no other choice Noeh! Destroy it and everything around us will perish! Hurry!" Loin barked out the order out of complete desperation. Noeh looked unsure at first, but knowing that this was for a greater good, he quickly put the box down and grabbed the largest object he could find. Searching his surroundings, the man picked out a sharp edge rock and began slamming against the box viciously.

Bang

Bang!

BANG!!

He slammed the top of the box where it was most vulnerable, but even thought the box was as light as a puppy, its weight seriously masked its hard surfaced skin. "Loin, how do break it?!" Noeh panicked as he was already out of ideas. "Try the lock!" he replied as he kept Sha-hear at bay, "If you can't break the box then break the lock! It will keep them from opening it!"

Noeh quickly grabbed a smaller rock and began slamming the lock of the box with even more strength. But as the councilors kept on with the fighting, a strange shadow loomed over them making the night even darker than before. Both the councilors and the Guardians looked up and by the time they were able to identify what was falling above them, their eyes widened considerably with shock.

Rayquasa, the great green dragon of the North Pole was falling down upon them. Taking no time into consideration, the humans and the Guardians leaped off from their battleground and joined in with the some of the clones that were not hostile towards them.

Though the majority of Mewtwo's forces were trapped at the center of the battlefield, several smaller groups of his family still faught even thought they know that they had no chance to win. Even if one of the enemy should fall unconscious, the king would simply use his powers to revitalize them, bringing them back to full strength.

Loin was the first to recover from the shock, "Oh… my aching head" when his eyes were able to focus, he caught sight of Noeh, who was also just getting up from the crash, "Noeh! Noeh, where's the box?"

Tha man was barely able to recover when he already found himself being questioned, "I… I left it…" but then he was interrupted when a familiar cold voice came in, "Looking for something?" the councilors turned their heads and saw Sha-hear, carrying the box with his paws.

"No…"

"**Thank you Sha-hear… you have been most loyal"** the king grinned and slowly picked the boy into his hands with his telekinetic abilities (show off!) With the box in his hands and the key in the other, the two objects collided, sending out a shockwave of destruction all across the island.

The Anger… Has Been… Unleashed…

… Pandoras box… has been opened…

With the the final lock unchained from the keyhole, the lid of the box opened violently, sending a blue majestic light towards the darkened sky. When the clouds loomed over the land, every Pokemon (discluding the clones) began to feel a great amount of power surging in within them. Their bodies began to send out an aura of anger. Their eyes turned from the innocent color to blood slit red. This was it……… this was the time……

This… was the beginning of the end.

**(Ash's dreamscape)**

Screams of anger sounded at the back of our hero's mind. Though it was loud and clear, the boy chose to ignore it as his perfect world came to manifest. "Hey your majesty!" Pallet called out to his attention, "Look what I found!" opening his hands in front of the boy's face, Ash grew out a smile so wide that his jaws would've been permanently stucked like that for all eternity. Pallet was carrying a bundle of oddly shaped leaves that looked like Pokemons in some perspective.

"Wow Pallet, did you make all of these?" Ash asked as he carefully picked out the ones he liked, "They're awesome!"

"Poor artistic talent… but well made nonetheless" said Rosa as she looked at the leaves from behind. Pallet gave out a frown to her comment but Ash simply let out a smile. He quickly took three of the Pokemon leaves and approached the pink Lucario with a generous thought in mind. With one swift move, the boy knelt down onto Rosa's paw and was able to make a bracelet out of the leaves leaving one of them to dangle around freely at the bottom. "W… what are you doing sire?" Rosa asked with a slight blush coming from her cheeks.

When Ash was done, he flashed out his trademark smile and said, "It may not be made out of gold. But it's the thought that counts" Rosa blushed even redder than before if that was even possible for a Pokemon. She quickly turned her face around and made some lame excuse, "I… I need to go… wash my face" and with that she dashed off to the pond, hoping to get some privacy done.

Ash felt satisfied with her reaction and decided to play some more with his friend. But as they went around the garden chasing each other, the scream that has been ringing at the back of the boy's head finally caught up to him. "Ughhh!" he held his head as it gave him a severe aching on the back of his neck. "What was that?"

"What's wrong your majesty?" Pallet tilted his head slightly in confusion of his friend's strange behavior. Ash looked at his two pouting little eyes and began to wonder… what was he doing here? "Hey Pallet" the boy asked, "Where are we?" it was probably a half statement half question rather than one of the other. Ash already knew the answer; he just needed someone to reconfirm him. Pallet chuckled slightly while holding back a laugh, "Now that's a silly question" the little half Pokemon/human giggled, "We're in the Pokemon garden of course. You made this place yourself. Remember?"

Ash looked around trying to feed his mind with all the details of the place. But the more he looked at the landscape, the more unfamiliar it became. He knew how many leaves there were in the trees, he knew how many Goldeens were in the pond, and he knew where the roads were…… he knew everything. But at the same time…… he remembers nothing of it.

The sounds of the bird chirping became frighteningly strange. It sounded sweet and peaceful at first, but after listening to it closely, Ash couldn't recognize them anymore.

The boy sat down and began to think what has been happening this morning. Ok… before he came here he had lunch with his friends. Before that he attended several audiences who came bearing gifts from all over the land. And before that… he was sleeping in his bed. But what happened before that? He never remembered going to bed or what he did yesterday.

The more he thought of it the more painful the screams became.

**(Back in the real world)**

Defeat…

That was probably the only word that rang through the heads of every being that still opposed the king of Pokemons. It would be a common word if they all said together.

But even with the box opened, both armies of the old empire and of the clones lay completely exhausted on the ground. None were able to lift a single finger, save the two leaders that still had the will to fight. One was fighting for his empire and the other was fighting for his purpose. Both have good morals but which one is stronger?

"**It is over Mewtwo!"** said the king as the uncontrollable power surged through his body like a flood. If you think he was powerful then, how much stronger can he get after that shock? **"You had your chance to survive. But now your kind shall be the first to taste extinction!"** he prepared another attack, but Mewtwo was still far from finish. Using his recover ability to heal some of his minor wounds, the psychic Pokemon charged up a barrier so powerful that it could've withstood against a nuclear bomb.

"_Grrrrraaaahhhhh…"_ Mewtwo groaned as he felt the barrier began to crack. His powers were waning, but if he could hold on just a little bit longer, he would at least be able to save his family from the blast. The intense heat of the attack burned through the barrier like cheese melting in an oven. After a few seconds of powers colliding in an awesome might, Mewtwo finally gave in.

His shield was destroyed…

The beam that Hsa unleashed smacked right upon the Pokemon's body, sending it towards the gound with a loud 'crash' making a crater the size of a bulldozer. The clones would've rushed to their master's side immediately when he touched ground, but with the enemy still looming close to them, they were given very little choice.

Once the smoke had cleared off from Mewtwo, the old king of the ancient empire glided down to him to deliver the finishing blow. "It is so sad… to see one so powerful be destroyed" the boy began, "But if that creature refused to bow down to defeat… then he is a fool"

"_Go on… finish me" _Mewtwo pleaded to end his life, _"If this is my fate… then I shall not flee from it"_

Hsa nodded and placed his arm just a few meters away from the Pokemon.** "Fate and destiny are two words of the same meaning" **but just when he was about to finish this war once and for all, a group of figures appeared out of the dark coming in-between the two leaders. Who in their right minds would interfere with an execution?

"Stop it Ash!" shouted Richie as he blocked the boy's path. "This isn't like you!"

The whole gang stood there right before him. Richie, Misty, Brock, Todd, Tracey, May, Max, Drew, Dawn, Anabel, Duplica…… they were all there and they were all ready to die.

Hsa looked a bit confused at first since he never expexted them to rise up against him. He looked at all their faces and was puzzled by the expression they were giving. Some were sad, some were hopeful, some were worried but none contained fear or anger.

"Come on Ash, don't you remember us?" Anabel pleaded, "We're your friends. We were supposed to be competing in the Valmarian league" the king turned to her but his face only gave a confused answer, **"I do not have any 'human' friends. The only friends I ever had were the Pokemons. You are nothing but nuisance to me!"**

"That's not true!" came Max who barked back with tears overflowing in his eyes, "We first met you back in the Hoenn region, remember? You were supposed to teach me how to become a great trainer just like you! You promised that we will battle each other once I get my first Pokemon!" the little boy wasn't even trying to hold his tears anymore. He just let it all out making the little drops go to the soft snow on the ground.

"**I made no such promise!"** the king replied harshly.

"Come on Ash!" this time, it was Brock's turn to get him to remember, "Don't you remember all the good times we had together? Remember my lazy boy stew?" Has looked at him with an irritating face, but when he looked at the squinty eyed man's face, a sudden jolt of memory struck upon his head like he was hit by one of Misty's magical mallet. **"Ugh…"**

"Then what about the promise, that you would never hurt a Pokemon?!" Dawn yelled getting the boy's attention.

More and more the friends of the young Pokemon trainer tried to remind him of who he truly was. Even though it may look like a desperate move, the gang simply had to do something when their backs are finally at a corner. As they kept reminiscing about the past, the only that the boy needed was a little sight of a certain little yellow friend. "Pikapi!" Pikachu had tears coming on the lower part of his eyes. The mere sight of his master being a puppet for another soul was just too much for a little guy to handle. "Pika-chu!"

And then…… it hit him

**(Ash's dreamscape)**

'Pika-chu!'

That single phrase repeated over and over again in the boy's mind like a tape recorder gone broken. But as Ash and Pallet continued to play around the field, the young trainer halted his feet and gazed upon the sky as the clouds shifted their shapes continuously. "Pikachu…?" he mumbled out as he tried to find the source of that voice. His eyes darted from left to right gazing at every Pokemon in the garden. There were Rhyhorns, Aipoms, Charmanders, Poliwhirls, and so many more others that he had already seen. But there were no Pikachus.

'Pikapi!'

And when that finaly phrase came through his ears and mind, a flood of memories immediately unblocked itself from its prison, filling the boy's mind with the history and present of everything he had done for the past fourteen years.

The Pokemon league, the Orange cup, the thrill of battle, the crowd cheering his name, everything! He remembered. "No……" his eyes darted again as the world around him began to crumble. When the Pokemons saw this, they immediately began to flee hoping to find their sanctuaries before everything ends. Pallet heard this and quickly grabbed his friend's hand, "Your majesty, come on. Let's get out of here! This place is gonna fall soon!" but Ash knew that this was all just an illusion. Everything he's dones, touched, smelled, heard…… were all a lie created in his mind. And if his memories serve…… then hewould probably wake up when everything around him… disappears.

"Chu…" he called the boy's name that he previously made for him a long time ago. "It's ok…… everything will be just ok……" as the trees of the garden crumbled before his very sight, Ash held the boy in his arms and hugged him like a true father would. The water in the lake vanished as if it evaporated into the atmosphere by the intense heat, earth cracked and began to split apart as multiple earthquakes roared out at the same time.

It was a horrible sight to see… but Ash was glad…… glad to see that this horrible nightmare…… was soon about to end.

But such fate was not one to be for our young hero.

As the land crushed down to the endless darkness, Ash found himself in the seams of the abyss. A place where both sides of memories connect, and where he… would literally give the king… a piece of his mind!

**(Back in reality)**

Both the coucilors and the Guardians couldn't believe what they were witnessing. Hsa clutched his head and fell on his knees as a burst of memories flooded his mind. Both memories of the king and the boy were merging together as one. Since they share one body… it is only right that they sshare one mind.

"**NO! I will not be deceived by you humans again!"** Hsa burst out in open anger as he tried to regain control of the boy's body. But the more he struggled, the harder the pain became. Without any hesitation, Has charged out another attack which would've decimated the whole gang, but the councilors came to their aid just in the nick of time itself. "Damn… if this keeps up than we'll lose for sure!" said Azal as he drained the last of his energies on making a power barrier. "Hey Loin, we really could use one of your ideas right now!"

"Give me a moment to think will you?" was his frightening reply, "My brain needs some time to think right now…"

"Well, time is something we don't have!"

Seeing the councilors argue amongs themselves only made the whole gang confused on this whole chalada. Were they with them or against them? None could tell.

"_Do not harm the boy…"_ all heads suddenly turned to Mewtwo as he finally came out of his unconscious state. _"That… is not the king… That… is Ash…"_

"What are you talking about?" Furo inquired as the barrier slowly began to weaken, _"The boy we are fighting is an illusion conjured by psychic powers"_ the Pokemon began, _"I felt it when I was fighting him. Right now his mind is being controlled by another force that is much greater than I could even match"_

"Controlled?" Brock gasped, "Then that means…"

"_Yes……"_ Mewtwo faintly replied, _"You can clothe him in a king's robe, replace his memories with another… change his appearance and his name…… but the fact shall always remain…… he is still Ash…"_

"That explains why the Pokeball didn't affect him!" Loin got the plot and began conjuring answers on his own, "The boy was never replaced at all! They just changed him!" he then tured to the psychic Pokemon. "Where is the psychic power originating from?" Mewtwo took a moment and closed his eyes to find out who was the mastermind behind this dastardly work. There were many strings that were attached together seeing that there were more than a thousand psychic Pokemons surrounding them. But after awhile, he noticed the strongest one was not his… but another.

With his eyes opened, Mewtwo turned to the direction of Pallet who after all these times, stood harmlessly along the sidelines observing the fight as it raged on for hours.

"The shepered boy?" Noeh inquired raising a brow of disbelief. Pallet/Chu shivered in fear as the whole gang turned their heads to him with death glowing in their eyes. _"Yes… he is the one controlling the king"_ Mewtwo confirmed the situation for them.

And with that one reassuring phrase from Mewtwo, Richie clenched his fist and prepared to give the kid a wild time of his life. But it looks like Max beat the kid to it. The little boy charged out of the perimiters of the barrier as towards Pallet with the speed of a human…

"Max!" May shouted as she persued her brother through the dangerous field. Going alone through the battlefield with no protection was like begging for someone to kill him. The gang saw this and hastily followed behind, but Max seemed to have grown faster after his travels with Ash. "Max, come back! It's too dangerous out there!" Tracey warned him but the boy refused to listen. He was too obsessed on getting Ash back that everything and everyone around him seemed like nothing.

"You give him back!!" the kid shouted as he made his way towards the castle steps. "YOU GIVE ME BACK MY BROTHER!!!!" suddenly, out of nowhere, Sha-hear appeared out of the blues and plunged his katar blades at the boy.

**(Seams of the mind and dream)**

Ash had made it through out of his mind and onto the seams that connected the two souls together. The area around him was shrouded in darkness, but along the shrouds of shadow stood one single road that had two paths. If he walked back now… he would be forever trapped in a world of dreams conjured by false memories…… but if he moved forward… he would probably go against the mind of a being greater than the gods themselves.

"W… where am I now?" his gaze darted from left to right, top to bottom and the other way around as well. He didn't know where he was nor did he have any idea what he was doing. All he knew that he had to save his friends from something.

But just before the boy could move any further, a silent voice echoed behind him jerking his head away from the road. _"Ash"_ the boy once again darted his gaze and quickly realized who that voice belonged to. "Mewtwo!? What are you doing here?" his question was soon answered when the psychic Pokemon revealed himself in front of his face. _"There is not much time for explaination Ash"_ Mewtwo replied with a slight grunt telling the boy that he was injured, _"Your friends are in great peril"_

"My friends?" Ash questioned, but then the thought hit him, "What's happening? What's going on?!"

"_First things first Ash. You must get out of here and reclaim your body"_

"My body?"

"_Yes… we are currently speaking in the seams of memories. Right now your body is being is being manipulated by a powerful psychic energy and if he is not stopped then I'm afraid it will be doom for all of us. I cannot break the bonds from the outside, but you… you can break the bonds from the inside"_

Ash nodded, "What should I do?" Mewtwo seemed a little surprise by the boy's reaction. He was expecting him to be very confused with the situation (heck even I would be if I was in his position!) Taking a small breather Mewtwo continued to explain, _"Your mind is currently mixed with the memories of another soul. If we wait any longer, your memories will be completely erased and the other life shall take over"_ he then pointed at the small dim light at one end of the road, _"Take this path… it will lead you to a boy trapped in a crystal. He will be able to help you……… But remember this Ash…… No matter what happens: No one can ever control your mind"_ and with that, Mewtwo vanished into the air leaving behind several sparkling glitters in his wake.

If being confused was a crime then Ash would've been arrested for at least fifty times already. But instead of pondering for answers, the boy simply shuffled his imaginary hat and dashed off towards the light hoping that he would get there in time to get some real answers.

As he quickened his pace, the land around him began to change… like someone was redecorating the place with a single thought. But the boy simply ignored the changes. He kept his head straight and his visions strong.

And by the time he made it to the end of the road… the land soon became…… a nightmare.

A horrible… horrible nightmare.

Withered trees scattered along the grassland a plague. The air around the boy was stuffy and humid. The skies were painted in the colors of dirt…… and not a single sign of life could be seen beyond the horizon. But this small hell hole wasn't gonna keep Ash from saving his friends (Not to mention the whole world!)

With no thought of turning back, Ash quickly made his way towards the center of the 'Death Garden' until finally he came across one place where there seemed to be life.

Amidst the darkness of this dream a single flicker of hope yet remain to flood across the shadows. In truth, darkness and light cannot destroy each other completely. It is merely impossible. But now that we think of it… we are in a world filled with limitless possibilities.

-When a being is surrounded by life… then there is no such thing as impossibility…-

-Johnathan Doyle- (My science teacher)

"Whoa!!!" Ash gasped out loud as he suddenly slipped upon a small pot hole on the ground. By the time he recovered, he was finally able to grasped the whole view of the center area of the garden. A crystal the size of a large statue was standing right before him. But it wasn't the crystal that caught his eye… it was who was inside that crystal that claimed his attention.

It was Hsa who was trapped in there and he was sleeping…

The king was trapped in his own dream like a cat that would never want to wake up ever again. Clothed in his old king's-wear, and put in a relaxing position, the boy would almost look like sleeping beauty in a standing stance.

"Is that… me?" of course Ash was slightly confused since the king did look similar to him in almost every way. After a moment of taking the image into his small head, Ash began banging on the crystal to see if he could get the king's attention. "Hey! Can you hear me in there?! Hey!" he banged harder and harder, until he suddenly saw Hsa's eyelids flinching. Seeing the boy moving after years of being in slumber brought some calm into Ash's mind.

"**Who is it…?"** the king said weakly like he had not been speaking for a long time, **"Who tries to disturb my slumber" **after a minute had past, Hsa finally opened up his eyes and gazed onto the intruder who dared to disturb his dream. **"You…?"** he recognized Ash almost immediately, **"What are you doing in my mind? You're not supposed to be here…"** every word he spoke almost sounded like they had no life in them. Wait… correction…… they had no life in them at all.

"I'm Ash and I'm here my friend told me that you can help me!" the boy said in a demanding tone

"**Help you? Help you with what?"** he said in a cold dark tone. "My friends are in trouble and you're the only one who can help me"

**"Your friends? You mean Brock, Misty, May, Duplica, Richie, Dawn?"**

"You know them?" Ash visibly raised a brow of amazement, **"I can read your mind as clear as the suin rising from the west. And to answer your next question: Yes, they are indeed in dire need of help"** a foggy screen suddenly appeared next to Ash showing him the Pokemon army surrounding the clones and the councilors. "Brock! Richie! Dawn!" he yelled hoping to get a reply, but sadly, none of them could hear him.

Seeing that what Mewtwo said was true, Ash quickly turned his attention back to the king, "Come on you gotta help me!" his voice almost sounded like it was begging. His eyes glittered with determination **"No…"** Hsa replied bluntly and without emotions.

Ash was a little surprised, but for some reason, he knew that he wouldn't agree. "Why not?!" he snapped, he paused as he looked at the changing expression on Ash's face, **"I believe you've already experienced my memories and I believe you already know the answer. No matter what you say, I will not come out"**

Ash began to get pissed with the king's cold attitude. If he didn't want to help him then he was gonna have to do something about it, "Why? Why won't you help me?!"

"**Because I have no intention of helping anyone"** he then closed his eyes, **"Now… let me sleep. It has been a very long day"** but Ash wasn't done. In a state of desperation, he did an almost desperate act. He began banging the crystal which echoed in an annoying. "Hey, listen to me! You gotta help. You're my only hope!" after the first few minutes the king ignored his rambling, but when he realized that the boy wasn't gonna stop, he began to use his psychic powers and levitated Ash from the ground.

Ash floated like a balloon in hot air. And with one motion of Hsa's eyes, the boy was dropped about ten feet away from the crystal with a loud crashing sound. Ash groaned in pain even though he was still in the dream world. But he wasn't gonna give up just yet!

"If you're not coming out! Then I guess I'll just have to drag you out of there!" Ash quickly grabbed the strongest looking object he could find which he regrettably knew that it was a rock and began slamming it against the crystal. Even though the sleeping place of the king was as hard as titanium (if you can think of a stronger metal then tell me thx) Ash didn't stop. He was just too hard headed to even consider defeat.

**(Back in the real world)**

Max was shock… he almost felt like his whole world just flashed before his eyes when his sight layed upon the two blades that were merely inches away from his neck. Luckily for him, Noeh had his hands free and was able to block Sha-hear before he could do any damage at all. "Harming a child… that's not something you would do Sha-hear" he taunted the white Lucario as his staff held his blades in a tight grip-to-grip deadlock. The two old friends starred at each other as a frown crept on their faces.

Taking this into consideration, Max continued to make his way towards Pallet as his friends followed suit.

"Alright… I've got a plan!" Loin called out to his comrade's attention. "We stall the Guardians and the king until they can do something about Pallet!" but Noeh only gave him a questioning glare, "That's a pretty bleak plan, don't ya think?"

"Hey, you try thinking of a plan under pressure"

But as the councilors fought against the Guardians, Pallet was on his own. "Stay away from me!" the boy yelled out, threatening them with his super powered tattooed arm. But Max wasn't afraid of him… oh no… he was actually more afraid of losing Ash than of losing his own precious life. Though the rest of the gang were held back by the remaining elite Chosens, Max was able to slipped through thanks to his small tiny body size. "Come back here!" he shouted as he chased him through the steps.

If the gods could look at them now, it would almost seem like a game of cat and mouse.

Max refused to give up the track, he even swore that if he makes it through the day, he was gonna work on getting his body fit and ready.

Pallet ran… and ran again. He didn't know where to go or where to hide. He just needed to get away from the mad boy who looked like he was ready to tear him apart. He then climbed onto one of the arches pillars but soon found out that it was probably the biggest mistake of his life. Though Max would have a hard time getting up to his position, the boy also had no where left to run.

But the little Mr. Maple was a persistant little brat, he probably got that trait from Ash seeing that the young hero always seemed persistant in giving up. By the time he made it up the arch, Pallet tried to jump across the pillar to another arch, but Max wasn't gonna let him go that easily, "Oh no you don't!" he plunged his whole body forward, tackling both him and Pallet into the supply room below.

They both landed safely onto some flour packs, but they still had to deal with some minor pain issue. "Owww my head…" Max groaned in pain as he clutched his head with his hand. But that pain was soon turned to anger when he saw Pallet was making a break for it. "Hyaaa!" with a leap that would match an expert swimmer, the young soon to be trainer took down Pallet with one small tackle. They were tossing and turning around like two kids having a fight in a playground.

"Get back here!!" Max held the kid in a headlock position, but Pallet countered by biting his arm, forcing him to let go. Then Max tried to retaliate by testing his own fangs as well. By the end of the fight, the two of them would look like they had wrinkles all over them.

**(Back in dream world)**

Ash continued banging the crystal with the rock he picked up until it was chipped down to a small stone. When the stone was no more he would just pick up another one and continue bashing non-stop. He must've inherited his persistence from somewhere in his family.

But as the king watched his pathetic attempt to break through the barrier, he learned that he wasn't gonna go back to sleep unless he did something about this boy. **"Why are you doing this?"** he said suddenly which caught Ash with a little surprise, **"You know perfectly well that you cannot destroy my barrier, yet you keep persisting that is hope"** if Ash heard him clearly enough, he would actually begin to think that he was talking to Mewtwo all over again. **"Just give up…"**

"No!" Ash yelled raising his voice slightly, "I've never given up before and I'm not gonna start now. Especially when my friends need me the most! I'm gonna save them no matter what it takes!"

"**Not even you life?"** the king asked raising a brow of respect for the boy's dignity.

"You bet!" Ash replied immediately like he had already made up his mind. Hsa looked at him for a moment with eyes nearly as dead as the graveyard itself. The boy's energetic aura was like it was made by years of experience. It radiated an invisible glow of determination and spirit. No matter how you look at it, that aura alone gave out a positive reaction to anyone who encountered it.

"**Very well then…"** Ash raised a confused glance at the king who spoke with a little emotion now, **"Then how about you and I make a deal?"**

"A deal?"

"**Yes…… if you can touch me head with your finger… then I will help you"** he then turned his gaze to an empty space beside him and with just a mere thought, a sand hour glass appeared counting down. **"However…… you must do it before the sands on this hourglass runs out"** when Ash was about to ask why, a sudden pain clicked upon his brain like it was melting. **"If you asking why, then that it your answer. Every second you spend here takes another chuck of your memory out of your mind. In appoximitely one hour, you will forget your friends your family and eventually…… you will forget who you really are"** Ash froze… he sure didn't expect that coming. **"So… do you accept the terms?"** the king grew out a small grin that would've been a close match to Pallet's.

It was a fool's bet no doubt about it. But Ash couldn't risk losing an opportunity like this. Instead of backing down, he accepted the challenge. "You're on!"

**(Back in the real world)**

The truce treaty soon ended (if there were any at all) as soon as the first Pokemon fired an attack in the midst of the silence. The Guardians pounded against the councilors once again showing off attack moves like never before. Mewtwo and his clones were engaging their oppoenents but it seemed like none of them could win. The Pokemon army that were supposed to be nothing more but a group of legionares turned into hard fighting monsters. The clones could barely even keep up any more and not to mention that they were separated into different groups.

The gang on the other hand were running away with their tails between their legs. They didn't want to battle since they already knew that they would just be a hindrance. But Max Maple was a totally different story. The young nine year old boy was wrestling Pallet/Chu to the ground like kids in a playground. They were biting, punching, tackling and even headlocking each other till one of them submitted to the other.

"Richie, look out!" Brock pulled the young trainer out of the way as two Blastoises hurled against each other like two turtles fighting for the last fruit pie. "Thanks Brock" the boy replied along with Sparky and Pikachu, "Don't stop breathing now, because I don't think this is over" said Dawn as she pointed the other side of the ditch they were hiding.

Amidst all the fighting going on, the stray shots that had been going around were able to create a path which was wide enough for the whole gang to pass through unnoticed. By the time they were able to reach the other end of the recently (accidentally) made tunnel, they stopped mid way to catch a breather.

With some of the truth, if not the whole truth, was given to them, they could finally ease their brain for some much needed break. Having one guy with all the answers really did ease the pain a little. But right now they had to find a way to get to Pallet and get him OR make him release Ash from his mind control grip.

But before any of them could even speak, the rumble above began to make them a bit worried. With the battle intensity increasing drastically, it would only be a few minutes before things started to get ugly… and I mean really ugly.

"So what do we do now?" May asked the gang hoping that one of them could come up with an idea. "Well first things first…" Brock replied holding one hand on his chin, "Since that boy Pallet is controlling Ash, that means he must be using some kind of psychic ability"

"If we could some how disrupt the link between them…" Drew muttered as he did the same poise as the squinty eyed man, "May be we can bring Ash back" And just when they were all thinking deeply with utter silence, Anabel cocked up an idea with a lightbulb on her head, "I got it!" all eyes turned to the Salon Battle Maiden as she explained what she was gonna do, "Do you guys still remember what professor Birch and professor Ivy taught us about P-wave?"

"You mean the psychic wave?" Todd inquired

"Yes that's right" Anabel nodded in reply, "If I remember correctly. P-wave is an unstable force that is invisible to the human eye. If we can disrupt that link with another psychic wave, it will break the power, canceling both P-waves altogether"

"So you're saying is that we have to use our psychic Pokemons to disrupt the link?" Misty reconfirmed. With a nod from Anabel and with the agreement from the other team members, the gang got right to work. Anabel quickly called out her, Abra, Alakazam, Espeon, and Metagross and since she was the only one with a lot of psychic Pokemons, the others had to locate the strongest P-wave out there with a P-wave detector that Tracey was able to get from Birch back when he was researching the ruins.

**(With Max and Pallet)**

Max and Pallet were at each other's neck, (literally) as they struggled for one to surrender. Max's eyeglass lenses were slightly cracked while the 'shepered boy' as Loin came to call him, had a small lump on his cheek telling others that Max had really whooped him up pretty good.

Just when they about to rip each other to pieces, Max showed his fangs and quickly took another bite off Pallet's arm making him squeal like a little frightened puppy. Taking that pain into a mental note, the young boy had just about enough of this silly fight. With one charge of his arm, the boy fired out something that looked similar to a fireblast attack.

The supply warehouse burned within minutes lighting everything on fire from simple bread to burnable wheat. However Max was still far from being defeated. Seeing that he was still cold due to the snow around him, the fire seemed almost like heaven on earth. The young Maple quickly took off his winter coat and thought of a great idea.

With one slick move, the boy jumped out from the fire and covered Pallet with his coat thus blinding him and immobilizing him at the same time. "I gotcha now!" he snorted.

**(Back in Hsa's dreamscape)**

The king of Pokemons glared in amazement as Ash continued to pound the crystal with all of his might. But when the boy blasted the last rock in his hands, Ash fell to the ground completely exhausted, **"Are you giving up now?"** Hsa spoke as he taunted the boy into surrendering. But this only fueled Ash's determination to beat him, "No way!" he snapped back. "Not while there's still time!"

Ash glaced around the floor trying to find the next hardest object that he could pound the crystal barrier with. But seeing that there was nothing left but dust, he had to improvise. With one move, Ash removed his jacket and with a stunt that would shock the king to some point of insanity, the Pokemon trainer began to pound the crystal with his own shoulders ignoring the pain and the possibility that he could break his bones.

"**Why are you doing this?"** the king asked suddenly hoping to get the kid's attention. **"You know clearly that you cannot break through so why do you keep trying?"**

"Because… because there's someone important waiting for me…" he replied softly, "And that's why I'm gonna do whatever it takes to take you arghh!" just as he was speaking, a sudden jolt of pain pierced through his head like a needle digging its roots to the brain.

"**Your memories are slipping away Ash"** Hsa spoke like it was nothing to worry about, "In approximately… ten minutes, you will soon remember nothing" his voice ran even colder if that was even humanly possible for someone of his caliber.

Ash crouched on a begging position while his head eerked with pain. It was as if he was experiencing that whole situation again back in Goldenrod city, but this time it was much much worst. His head had a thumping sound like there was an army of soldiers stomping on his skull. The boy gritted his teeth hoping that it would somehow ease the pain a slight bit, but not matter what he tried, nothing seemed to work.

As the strength drained away from his body and the light dimmed from his eyes, Ash clinged onto his jacket hoping for some sort of an idea to pop into his mind. He really wanted to help his friends, he really tried…… but it seemed like this was the end for Ash. For the first time in a long run… the boy felt helpless…… like a broken shield that was meant to protect everyone from danger. He was doomed… his friends were doomed…… the whole world was doomed.

"_Hey Ash, come on it's time to wake up"_

Both the king and Ash turned their heads to the voice that suddenly appeared from nowhere. When Ash wiped away the defeated tears from his eyes he realized that it was……

"Brock?" Ash sobbed

"_Come on Ash, your next gym battle is waiting"_ but it wasn't Brock entirely. It was merely a transparent figure of the squinty eyed man.

"Brock… how did you get…" but before the boy could finish his sentence, Brock suddenly vanished.

"_Hey there Ash, are you ready? We have another match coming up soon"_ Ash turned his head again to meet the face of his old friend Richie, "Richie?!" Ash gasped trying to reach out for him, but again the figure vanished into the darkness leaving nothing but a memory behind. "No wait!" Ash tried to follow, but there was no trail left to lead.

"_Hey there now. You're not giving up are you?"_ again another figure appeared from the darkness, _"That's not the Ash I used to know"_ red bandana, red shirt, yup… that was definitely May.

"May!" Ash walked to her but disappeared soon when she was able to reach out to her shoulders. As more and more faces appeared, Ash began to feel the warmth that he thought he had lost. The aching pain in his heart was soon replaced with joy and laughter as the faces of his friends began to manifest themselves around the crystal prison. It was as if everyone wanted to help him. Faces of comrades, friends, families and everyone that the boy had reached out to had come to that one particular moment.

It was then, the king found himself in a very awkward position. Though his face remained as cold as ever, he began to feel somewhat… vulnerable.

"_Ash…"_ the boy in question turned around to face his mother whose image was one he would not soon forget. "Mom?" the boy replied holding some tears in his eyes. The image of his mother smiled back at him as she spoke in a calm and caring tone, "Don't forget Ash…… the only one who can decide what happens to you… is yourself" (I think she said that during the French version in the Johto series or was it Spanish? Anyway who cares?) and with her words, Ash had finally awoken. His eyes sharpened with more determination than the gods could ever believe. His heart filled with outstanding courage and his soul once again filled with the will to fight.

Oh yes… now this IS Ash Ketchum!

As the final grain of sand fell towards the bottom of the hourglass the king then knew that his time was up. "Your time is up Ash…… your mind is now… mine"

But Ash flatly refused to give up, "Well you forgot something mister…" he began slowly as he stood up with a face that would've frightened the grim reaper himself, "THIS…… IS MY MIND!!!!!"

**(Back with the gang)**

Brock lifted his head along with Tracey and Misty as they brought along the P-wave detector back to the surface. With Anabel's Pokemons out and ready, they probably only had one chance to disrupt the psychic link between Pallet and Ash's body.

"Alright guys. Remember: we only have one shot at this so let's make it count!" Tracey cheered as they tinkered with the device. "We'll have to search for the strongest source of psychic power so don't mess it up!"

"We got it!" Brock shouted as the device was finally activated. After that, he went back in to tell the others. "The P-wave detector is ready. Are you set Anabel?" the Salon Battle Maiden simply replied with a nod, "Ready when you are" with all of her psychic Pokemons out and ready, Anabel and the others braced themselves for one last chance to save their friend. The moment the link is disrupted, Richie, Drew and Duplica will rush in and grab Ash and then they'll all make a break for it. It didn't matter to them who won this war. As long as they got what they came for they could care less.

**(With the councilors and the Guardians)**

This was indeed the battle to end all battles. With everyone fighting on every side, the war seemed to have escalated to drstic measures. The Pokemons were practically pulling each others hair sticking out of their noses and it seemed like the councilors and the Guardians were the only ones who were taking this fight seriously. Discluding Mewtwo and the king of course.

"Oooffff!!" Loin was punched on the face sending him five feet away from the palace grounds. With the box of memories opened, the four Lucarios were now ten times stronger than they were before. Sha-hear even felt like he could take on on Mewtwo on his own. "Had enough?" the white Lucario smirked to which Loin on returned with a smile, "I'm just getting started" his action proved much less for his words. When he was about to stand up, his knees gave way to fatigue causing him to collapse.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Azal and Furo were fighting like there was no tomorrow against their old master Chaucer. Even though it was a two on one fight, they still couldn't beat their old mentor. "It looks like the both of you improved" the master commented them on their abilities, "The last time we met, you were barely able to lay a finger on me"

"Hey… time can do that to you master" Furo countered laying his staff on his shoulders. "Besides… you know that Azal and I never paid attention to your lectures hehehe" the two of them gave out a chuckle which was only replied with the old Pokemon's 'angry eyes' "True… none of you were good students. And getting you to sit down would probably take a miracle. But I've grown fond of you two. For a moment there, I even entertained the thought of actually making you two my own children"

"Oh don't go soft on us now old man" Azal smirked as he threw out another punch which Chaucer managed to dodge skillfully. But when things were turning to be nothing more but a friendly fight between them, the yellow Lucario's smile suddenly turned to a deep scorned frown. "But to fight the two of you makes me feel like teaching again" his eyes suddenly sharpened like knives begging for something to stab. In an instant, Chaucer vanished, catching the two of his ex-students by surprise.

Before Azal and Furo knew what hit them, they were already on their backs with their bodies soaring with pain.

When they looked up to see the Guardian, he was just smirking back at them with a hateful glare, "Class dismiss" he remarked before taking a bunch of fried bananas out of his pocket, "Oh… and thanks for the snack"

**(With Mewtwo and the king)**

Mewtwo was no longer holding anything back. When he was able to contact Ash's subconscious, he knew that he had to give it his all to give the boy enough time to get back his body. With the two leaders exchanging fires with different kinds of attacks it was hard to tell who would come out victorious. Having these two fight each other in the midst of a raging war was almost like seeing two gods fighting for supremacy over the heavens.

Just when the psychic Pokemon looked down to see the battlefield, his heart sank as many of his friend lay defeated on the ground. He knew that the battle below them was just afor show. It didn't matter who won down there. If either him or Hsa loses, the world will either go to a new age of eternal peace or fall to a cycle of chaos.

But as his mind was clouded with stressful thoughts, a small lighting attack brought him out of his trance. "Gahhh!" he squirmed painfully as he stiffened with the effects of the paralysis. With him unable to move, the Pokemon king took his time to charge up one super powered hyper beam.

BOOM!!!

The blast was so devastating that it rendered Mewtwo completely immobile, sending him to the group for the third time. Coincidentally for him, he also seemed to have bumped onto Noeh, who was battling Hagard in a battle of wits.

By the time the smoke cleared, Mewtwo was defeated.

**(Back in Hsa's dreamscape)**

Ash and Hsa were starring eye to eye like two raging Groudons preparing to wrestle in a lava pool. If this was a starring contest, they would've broken the record for not blinking at all.

Ash felt his spirit returning to him. His determination, his will power… everything. It was like he was born all over again! "Ok…" he muttered while clenching his fist into ball. "Since this is my mind, I can do whatever I want, and everything here is bended to my will just like his. If I concentrate enough… I might just be able to do this!" and then… with a simple flip of his hat, Ash thrust his palm into the crystal prison and to the king's surprise… it actually went through.

The crystal was no longer solid like the way it used to be. It now felt like it was more like jelly, and Hsa was in it. In a matter of seconds, Ash held up his breath and began to sink himself into the crystal. It wasn't long till his whole body was completely absorb by the blue stone.

With only a few feets away from the king, Ash pushed himself harder through the jelly extending his arms to the maximum. But the pressure of the crystal was seriously slowing him down. With all the stickyness and after movement shock, it seemed like this was gonna take a little longer than he had hoped. And the king wasn't gonna make it any easier. Using all of his focus to take the boy away, this fight now comes all out in a battle of imagination!

But with renewed vigor born from a desperate boy whose heart soared like a million suns, Ash did not stop. He mustered out the strength from the deepest pits of his stomach and brought it out giving no time for his challenger to decipher his moves. His mind was filled with so much rage he could strangle the boy into last year!

"Almost there…… just a little more…!" since his body was slowing down considerably to the effects of the 'jelly' crystal he decided to extend his arm even further. "Just a little bit… more!"

"**NO!!"** the king shouted as he focused all of his energies onto stopping him. It was like they were playing a game of tug of war, except it was much more different. As Ash finger closed onto his forehead, Hsa, was practically powerless to stop him. With all of Ash's friends and families watching him from every corner of the Death Garden, their presence brought the boy the stamina he never knew he had.

"Why. Won't. You. Just_. Quit it!!!!"_

**(Back in the real world with the gang)**

Just when the battle was taking a turn for the worst, Tracey's P-wave detector began to act up. "Whoa! Look at that! The psychic wave is off the scale!" the Pokemon watcher quickly ran down to the rest of the gang who were ready to bust out of there with the speed of chickens, "Anabel, it's right on top of you! Go for it!"

"Right on it!" she replied, "Alakazam, Metagross, Espeon, let's do it! Psychic!" and with her command, the three Pokemons began focusing their energies on the largest psychic link above them. Hopefully it would be strong enough to sever it for at least one or two minutes.

But as the Pokemons gave their end of the bargain, it was now up to the rest of the gang to grab Ash the moment he touches the ground. If Anabel's predicament was right in some ways, the boy will fall unconscious when the link breaks apart. But as reality goes…… no plan goes exactly the way people want it.

'Oh… sometimes lad… plans go astray'

-John Silver- (From Treasure Planet)

Just when things were finally starting to look up, Misty spotted one of the most horrible sight ever. Mewtwo was on the ground near the entrance to the tunnel the gang discovered. And what was hovering over him was none other than Hsa himself. "Any final word?" the king offered to the psychic Pokemon as it struggled to get back up. But Mewtwo was just too exhausted to fight anymore. He was empty and there was no way he could possibly get up unless someone gave him the strength. Heck, he was even too tired to even speak. "Then I guess this is goodbye" Hsa slowly raised his mighty godlike arm to the Pokemon's face ready to end this battle once and for all.

But just seconds when he thought victory was his, a single human figure stood in his way with a yell, "No!" it was Misty who blocked his path. "I won't let you hurt him!" both people and Pokemons were now thinking that this girl was either stupid, ignorant or just plain brave. To stand up against the Pokemon king in the flesh was like standing up against the gods themselves.

**"Go away human…" **the king began, **"This fight is not for you"** but when Misty raised her head to gaze at the boy face to face, the god-king's eyes widened with horror and fear.

**(Back inside Hsa's dreamscape)**

Cracks…

That was the sound of the crystal prison as its solid form began to crack at the edges. Hsa opened up his eyes slowly thinking that he was able beat Ash in his own game. But to his surprise… he felt something on the tip of his bangs.

It was Ash's finger…

Though the boy didn't exactly touch a part of his body, he was still able to touch his hair which was sorta, kinda part of his body.

The king then slowly turned his gaze onto the crack at the end of his prison as it extended more and more, making random shapes of somesort. By the time the crack finally reached the top, the whole giant crystal broke… setting the boy and the king free.

Now… the turning point of the war… begins here…


	40. The Fall of The Empire

**Chapter 40: The Fall Of The Empire**

"**Freya…"**

That was the voice of the king who had finally been set free from his crystelic prison. Shards of the blue stone littered on the ground making the ground glitter with a certain shine of beauty. Ash gasped in for air as his body was still not used in being the dream world. With his subconscious body slowly recovering from the fall, he gazed back at the king who still had a frown on his face.

Ash really wanted to speak, but the demand for air seemed to have forbade his lunges to even conjure up a word. By the time he managed to get up, the land around him began to change. It was as if the whole world was brimming back to life. Grasses were growing in an alarming rate, popping several flowers along the way. Trees rooted from the earth blooming with leaves and fruits. The sun broke through the dark sky sending it warm touch back onto the surface. And the flow of the wind blowing through his hair felt very refreshing.

If this is how things felt in a dream, no one would wanna leave, that much was true.

As the landscape finished its last touches with the flow of a small river, Hsa turned to the boy who had beaten him in his own game. He wasn't really sure if he wanted to compliment him on a game well played or choke him for defeating him.

"**Do you see this land Ash?"** he began with his face still deprived from emotions, **"This is the land where I used to live. A land where Pokemons and humans lived side by side, hand in hand to make the world a better place"** he looked at the ground saddened by the return of his painful memories. Who wouldn't be sad seeing something so precious being taken away? **"But now all of that is nothing more but a mere shed of a memory. The ties between man and Pokemons had been severed and this is the price we all must pay"**

"Well that's where you're wrong" Ash said suddenly, catching the king off guard. "Sure Pokemons and humans might not be the same like that time two million years ago, but that doesn't mean we can't all work together again. If we give them enough time, I belive… no… I know that we can bring the good old times again. It might happen tomorrow or may be next year or may be another two million years, but if just hold on to what we have right now… I think we can make this dream here…" he gestured to the surrounding landscape which the Hsa unintentionally made for himself, "… a reality" he paused for a moment before looking back at the king, "But if we just sit back and do nothing… then I doubt anything will change"

Though the king might not know it, he was actually quite moved by Ash's words. It was true that 'time' could heal all wounds, but even though the wounds may be healed, the scar would always remain.

"**But how can you… a single boy… hope to accomplish that?"** he asked plainly trying to see what his answer would be.

Ash was taken back by the question and quickly went into thinking mode, but of course, thinking for an answer was too much work for a boy his age. "Well… ahehehehe… to be honest with you… I have no idea" he gave out a fake smile which made the king chuckle for a moment. It almost felt like this entire conversation had been nothing but a joke to him. **"Pokemons working side by side with humans…… once more… hehe… I like that…"** but then his eyes widened when Ash extended his arm for a peaceful shake. "So…… will you help me?" the boy flashed out his trade mark smiles showing no signs of dimples on his cheeks.

The king was reluctant to take his hand at first, but seeing that the human had beaten his challenge, it was only right to keep his end of the bargain. **"Sure…"** he returned the handshake, **"I always keep my promises"**

And the last thing Ash saw in that strange world was a bright flash of light, blinding him into submission.

**(Back in the real world)**

Misty closed her eyes and waited for the impending doom that supposed to come from her best friend. It might not exactly be ironic, but somehow deep inside, she was kinda praying that she would live through this. But after a minute of silence she slowly began to open her eyes to see what had become of her fate.

Ok… body... check

Hair and face… check

Legs and arms… check

Ok… with all of her body parts still intact, the orange haired girl sighed with relief. She really thought for a moment she would be seeing St. Nickolas (that's Santa Clause in case you're wondering) in a matter of seconds. She touched herself hoping that this wasn't a dream of somesort, and when she finally realized that she wasn't dead, she let out a great scream of joy run through her mind.

But her little break was suddenly interrupted when Ash's body suddenly flung down to her with no life at all. The worst case scenario flashed through her mind as she put the boy down to feel his pulse. Ash had a steady beat much to her relieve, but their was still no reaction coming out of him.

**(Back with Richie and the others)**

Anabel knelt on the ground as her mind ached with pain. She may have the ability to talk to Pokemons with ease but focusing her entire brain on one particular link wasn't exactly something she would get used too very easily. But even with that throbbing pain on her head, she still refused to stop. She could see the link in front of her eyes, but the problem was on how to break it. Metagross, Alakazam and Espeon didn't have a problem on focusing since they were psychic Pokemons and were born with the talent in the first place.

"Anabel, may be you should rest a little" Dawn said worryingly as she noticed the painful expression on the Frontier Brain's face. "No…" was her reply, "I can go on… just a little bit more…" she closed her eyes again and continued to focus on that link. If the gang was lucky, they might just be able to get out of there without a scratch. But that would probably be at least one in a million chances.

**(With Max and Pallet)**

"Ouch!" that was Max groaning in pain as he fell to the ground after being nudged by Pallet's incredible strength. The two of them had been fighting for over an hour now and if this keeps up, they might really hurt it other. But this pain was nothing compared to the ache of losing a brother. The boy was becoming more and more like Ash everyday. With his increasing knack of persistence, Max shoved away his broken glasses and clenched his teeth with groaning anger. Geeze… talk about being a kid.

But when Pallet caught sight of the angry boy, he was fled the scene causing Max to chase after him. "Come back here!" he shouted.

Pallet did all in his knowledge to get the enraged nine year old kid off his back. He tumbled down old batches of empty crates and created mini-avalanches to bar his path but nothing seemed to work. He could've easily taken the boy down with one of his special powers from his hand, but with the deranged boy so close, he considered that he might just hurt himself along the process. "Stay away from me!" he warned, but he should've known that Max wouldn't listen.

By the time Max was in tackling distance, he took the liberty of putting all of his energy on this one last push to get the boy into submission. The both of them were now pinned along a wall and to Max's advantage, he was in a position to negotiate (AKA: Threaten) "Let my brother go NOW!" he emphasized the 'now' clearly stating that he was beyond pissed. And to say the least, Pallet was scared. Max may look cute and harmless at most times, but when he's angry…… oh well let's just say I wouldn't want to be the guy he's angry at.

The nerdy boy had his hair messed up from the fight, some parts of his clothes were torn and their some cuts and bruises on his arms and legs. If he walked into school in that condition, I wouldn't be surprised if the girls were all over him.

**(Back with Misty and Mewtwo)**

"Come on Ash… wake up" Misty was nudging her friend as he layed there unconscious like he had been hit in the head or something. Although he was breathing normaly he showed no signs of waking up. "Come on… come on… don't you die on me Ash!" she shook him harder hoping to get some sort of response. But sadly, the boy's body remained the same. "Ash… please…" the girl barely knew she was crying until Mewtwo came by with his limped body. _"Do not cry young human"_ he spoke to her telepathically. "Mewtwo?" Misty was a bit surprised at first as she never really got that close to the most powerful Pokemon before.

"_Everything will be alright"_ he began; _"Right now… we must do what ever in our powers to support him"_

"But what can we do?"

"_The only thing we can do now… is wait……"_ the was probably a simple thing to do, but with all the chaos happening around, waiting will probably be the last thing anyone would do. _"The psychic link between the real world and the dream world is very fragile. One wrong move could spell disaster for the boy"_

But just as they were about to take Ash to a safer location, a small pink figure stepped out of the darkness with flames of anger burning in its eyes. "Let… him… go" it was Rosa, one of the Guardians of the old empire… and by looks on her face, she didn't seem like she came by to have a simple normal everyday chat. Misty and Mewtwo were a bit startled by the female Pokemon's presence, but when Rosa stepped closer, Misty grabbed Ash by his neck and held him tightly like a treasure she would never dare to let go unless you kill her.

When the pink Lucario saw how the human girl was holding Ash/Has in a strong hug, she gritted her teeth like wood in a saw mill, "I won't ask again… Let go… of him!" her voice turned a little demonic sending chills down Misty's spines, but still the girl refused to back down. If one of them was gonna take Ash, then one of them will have to fall.

But when Misty was preparing to defend herself, Mewtwo stepped up front standing between her and the pink Lucario. _"Leave this to me. You take Ash someplace safe"_

"But…" Misty was about to refused when the psychic Pokemon interrupted her

"_This is repayment for saving my life…… now go!!"_ and with that he charged at Rosa using his tail as his primary weapon. But with his strength diminished, he posed a much lesser threat to the Guardians than before. His attacks were weaker and inacurate, his movements were slower and easy to predict and if he keeps this up, he might just die of exhaustion.

As the two of them traded fireballs and lightning bolts against each other, Misty decided to follow his advice and carry Ash to safety back with the others who were still hiding in the tunnels. That place was probably the safest area in the entire fortress grounds. Though the main keep was probably a safer place, they still didn't trust the stone marbled walls that could collapse at them at any moment. After such an intense fighting between two sides, the support beams that held the castle together seemed to have weakened. After all… there was never a castle on this world that could practically hold off an invasion of this caliber.

"Misty!" Brock yelled out when he saw the red head coming at his direction. Just when the girl thought she was home free, BOOM! Two Charizards came crashing down from the sky ripping each others necks out. Followed by that were three armored Weaviles and a C.Blastoise who seemed to be holding off fine on its own. But that was just the tip of the iceberg compared to the battle raging at the courtyard. Every spec of grass that was fertilized and cared by grass type Pokemons were burnt to a crisp leaving nothing but an endless trail of fire behind.

"Oh no!" Brock gasped as Misty was caught in the crossfire between the two armies.

In an instant before anyone else could react, Dawn dashed out from her hiding spot and quickly made her way towards the two who were in dire need of help. She didn't know what she could do to help, but she couldn't just stay behind and watch her two friends get blasted to bits.

"Dawn?" Misty gasped when the Shinou girl came to her rescue. "Don't worry" the Pokemon coordinator replied with a smirk, "I'll get us out of here! Piplup, Buizel, Buneary, I choose you!" in an instant, three Pokemons appeared ready to help out their master. "Alright team, we have to get Ash and Misty out of here, so we'll have to plow out way through! Piplup, use whirlpool! Buizel use water gun! Buneary, use ice beam let's go!" and with that small chain of command, the three Pokemons began tearing through the small mass of enemies as they tried to approach the injured king.

"How much longer Anabel?" Drew directed his attention to the girl who seemed to have a hard time standing up. "Not… long… now…" when her condition became obvious, Brock quickly grabbed her as she knelt down in pain. "Anabel? Hey, what's wrong?"

"Just give me a few more minutes!" she snapped back

**(With Loin and the Guardians)**

With Azal and Furo down for the count, only Loin and Noeh remained to battle it out for the finish. The two councilors had their back pressed against each other with their stance clearly stating that they were ready to make a stand. Noeh still had his trusty quarterstaff and Loin had…… nothing. Well discluding his hands of course.

"Well well well… this sure is interesting" Sha-hear humored with a smirk on his lips. Chaucer had to agree, "Two humans against three Guardians? I hardly call that a fair fight" but their smirks short lived when Loin spoke up, "You know what? They're right Noeh. Perhaps we should fight with our eyes closed" Noeh simply let out a small chuckle which irritated their opponents. But Hagard had to admit, it was quite funny.

"Enough talk" the white Lucario barked, "It will bring my soul much joy hanging your heads outside my room in a coffin!"

…

…

"Uh… ok… did you get that?" asked Noeh

"You got me. The captain always did always like to talk before he thought… hehehehe"

**(Back with Mewtwo and Rosa)**

Mewtwo shoved another shadow ball attack right into the pink Lucario's gut stunning her for a few seconds. But her willpower refused to go down. Forcing away the momentum, Rosa quickly counter attacked with a kick on the chin which sent Mewtwo a few feets away. "Had enough yet!?" Rosa asked in a demanding tone. It was more of a demand of his surrender rather than a request to yield. Both of them were panting heavily but neither side refused to back down. Both believed that it was in their right to win.

"_Do not attempt to persuade me Guardian"_ Mewtwo began, _"My intetions are clear. I am here to save the boy who is destined for great things to come. And I swear that he will not be your tool for world conquest! Now on your guard!"_ he then charged up clashing his tail against her fists.

It was a common knowledge that psychic Pokemons were weak in melee combat, but Mewtwo was pretty much the opposite of the natural order, well… it was more like he wasn't even part of the natural order.

After clashing their fists together for a few rounds Rosa decided to charge one of her favorite moves: Metal claw! She doved her palm against Mewtwo's shoulders making him flinched by the second of the impact, but then the psychic Pokemon countered with another iron tail, sending her on another sky trip. As the fight continued even longer than one could imagine, the pink Lucario decided that she had enough. After dishing all those attacks and enduring large amount of punishment, Rosa put her hands together for a blow that will ultimately change the war.

Mewtwo braced himself for what she going to dish out, but when he realized what was coming out of her mouth, his eyes visibly widened slightly. She was going to use hyper beam, a common attack which is determined by experience and inner power. And if Rosa has two million years of power stored in her, het hyper beam would be more devastating than your normal hyper beam.

Seeing that this was going to be one heck of a blow to avoid, Mewtwo decided to go on the defense. Using his psychic abilities to conjure up a barrier to protect himself, the psychic Pokemon hoped that it would be enough to handle the blast.

He waited and waited and waited…

"Dissapear from existence!" and with that, Rosa unleashed all of her fury, her sadness, her hatred, her jealously into one blow. And when the beam made contact with the psychic shield, Mewtwo managed to put enough power to deflect it. He gave out a smirk, but that soon died down when he realized his own mistake.

The beam that he was able to deflect… was heading right straight towards Dawn and Misty who were still dragging Ash through the battlefield.

Right at that very moment, before the beam smashed against the girls… time itself seemed to have slowed. Rosa's eyes were filled with fear and disbelief. Due to her blind anger she unleashed an attack so devastating, that it might as well wipe this mountain off the map of the world.

But Dawn and Misty's reaction were not that different from the pink Guardian. With the beam heading straight towards them, the two girls huddled towards Ash hoping that they would at least give him a chance to survive.

Little did they realize that a soul seemed to have split from the boy's body.

**(Back with the rest of the gang)**

Just milliseconds before the beam dove in and unleashed its burning hatred, a loud crack could be heard coming from Anabel's head. "I got it!!!" she yelled before submitting to her tired body and falling on the ground with loud crash sound.

**(Back with Dawn and Misty)**

When the hyper beam attack finally exploded in front of their faces, Misty knew that she had died. Because the explosion came, she didn't even feel a thing. And when you don't feel a thing… that means you must be dead… right?

WRONG!!!!!

When the two of them finally gathered up the courage to open up their eyes, their next reaction was 'shock' just a few feet in front of them was a familiar figure that anyone in the distance could recognize easily. The boy ws holding barrier twice as large as Mewtwo, with tattoo markings all over his body (except for the the face) his figure was slim but at the same time, well built.

Yup… it was definitely Ash.

But how was it possible? The boy that they were looking at was still right on their arms unless of course if he knew how to split himself.

But just when could react to everything that has been happening, the two of them began to feel Ash's body twitch slightly. This was more than enough to get all of their attention. Soon after his body began to move, the boy that they thought was dead… was finally coming back. His silver lining hair began to change back in its original dark raven color, the tattoo marks that were embedded on his face vanished with a slight glow and his trade mark smile returned to his face as he slept peacefully on the ground.

Ash Ketchum… was back

"Ash!" the whole gang rushed to the boy's side immediately after the final changes were finished. Brock and Tracey huddled against him just to see if they could get a reaction out of him. Drew and May had to carry Anaberl as she was too tired to walk on her own.

Once everyone came around him, they all gave out a smile as his face became visible to their eyes. His face looked so peaceful as he slept like a baby in a rocking cradle. The whole gang gave out a sigh of relief as they knew he was gonna be alright. Ash was no longer in mortal danger and in a matter of minutes; he'll probably say something like 'I'm hungry' it was probably tradition for them.

But as they gaze upon their favorite role model, their bodies stiffened as Ash's eyes began to twitch. Those black colored eyes that were as deep as the night itself darted left and right on each of the faces that were glaring back at him. Was this real or was this another dream? As the wind flowed through his hair messing up the strains… he knew that even nightmares wouldn't be able to mimic such a perfect moment.

"Hey guys…" he said weakly at them. Tears began to flow through each and everyone's eyes as they finally heard the boy's true voice. It wasn't the demonic tone like the king gave out. His voice was sweet kind, gentle and reassuring to everyone who heard it. "What's up…?" the boy continued. But what happened next… came to his surprise.

"Ash!!!" everyone around him gave out their own hugs as tears continued to flow through their eyes. Even the boys couldn't help but cuddle him like he was their own family. Ash choked on a little laugh himself as he never felt so much love before in his life other than his mother.

"We thought we lost you!" said Richie with a smile. Brock wiped out a single drop of water from his eye as he in turn held the young trainer with all his might, "I don't really hug guys, but I'll just make an exception for you Ash baahahahaaha!"

"Hey… you won't get rid of me that easily" the boy joked which was followed by a slight sneeze. "And I think I caught the cold haaa haaa HAAACHOO!!" the gang let out a small laugh. But that laugh soon came to an end when the king of the empire came into their line of sight.

The boy was an actual twin of our hero. From the general poise, to the weight, the size down to the little Zs right below his eyes. If you dyed the boy's hair a little and put in him in the exact same clothing as Ash and place them both in the same room… it would practically be impossible to notice the difference.

"**Thank you… Ash…"** he said finally giving out a small smile on his lips. It wasn't a big smile, but a smile nonetheless. After a moment, the old king quickly swallowed in his surroundings, which made him pity the Pokemon race. **"I think this fight has gone long enough"** with a single motion of his hand, all the Pokemons in the vicinity suddenly stopped fighting and were quickly teleported to their own sides.

"Wow… what power" said Todd in amazement.

When both armies were about to battle it out again, Hsa decided that it was time for him to split this up. With a single incantation word and a motion of his fingers, a huge barrier appeared out of the blues dividing the two sides, from fighting each other.

"Your majesty!" the king turned his attention to a voice that appeared from behind. Once his eyes caught the pink colors, he already knew who it was. "Are you alright!?" said Ros as she leaped down towards the ground with a worried and frightful expression on her face.

"**Ah Rosa… it is good to see you again"** it wasn't long till the rest of the Guardians appeared. **"Sha-hear, Hagard, Chaucer…… you guys haven't aged at all"** he smiled at them making them all look confuse for the moment. The king then felt a little strange when he began to see those odd looks from his loyal subjects. **"What's wrong? Is there something on my face?"**

"Other than your strange markings, not really" the gang soon turned their heads to Loin with Noeh by his side carrying Azal and Furo on his shoulders. But before the king could reply, the four Lucarios suddenly stepped in blocking their path dropping back into their combat stances. "Not another step Loin…" Sha-hear growled gritting his teeth in the process. But then his eyes widened when Has placed his hand on his shoulders.

"**That's enough captain…"** he began, **"I doubt they mean us any harm"** he then turned to look at Loin who seemed to be smiling as well. When Loin was sure that this was no illusion, the four councilors suddenly dropped their weapons and bowed on their knees paying their respects to the king. "Your excellency…" Noeh stated as he let go of the two companions on his shoulders.

When the Pokemon army sensed the king in their presence, they all bowed down with their heads touching the ground. Those unable simply lowered their heads in respect, but other than all that, no heads among the Pokemons were higher than the king's.

"**I am Hsa, king of all Pokemons and humans!"** the boy declared. **"This senseless fighting that has been waged for millenias has gone on for too long! For many years we have lost our families, our friends, and our love ones!"** the clones perked up from their position as they listened to his speech, **"For many years, we have been manipulated by our own hatred, jealously and greed! And for this we have payed the price!"** the gang finally pulled up Ash onto his feet as they listened to him, **"We have begun a cycle of senseless destruction! A cycle that can be broken!"**

The councilors smiled as they were ready to pledge their full support to their king.

"**I do not know how any of you feel, but I do know that if this war continues…… then there will be no happiness to anyone. We will go on this path until we see its end"** he paused for a moment to catch up on his breathing, **"But it is not too late. We can still undo what has been done here and change the course of history!"** his clenched his fist and opened his eyes to the world.

"**I ask you now… Pokemons of the world: Lay down your arms…"** the Pokemons looked confused at unsure at what to do. Could this really be their old king? Some had doubts and some had concerns, but when both sides seemed to be having an uneasy decision, Sha-hear, the captain of the Guardians threw down his weapons and armor on the floor making a loud 'clang' sound. With a nod from the white Lucario, Hagard, Chaucer, Rosa and the the councilors laid down their arms leaving themselves unarmed for battle.

With this example from their high commands, the Pokemon army began removing their weapons and armors and throwing them to the ground leaving those metallic tools of doom collect dust for all eternity. Peace was now being restored.

But when things were starting to calm down a bit… a sudden scream caught their attention.

"NOOOOOOOO!!!!!" they all turned their heads to Pallet as his face visibly changed from a happy-go-lucky child to a monsterous beast, ready to tear the world apart. "You ruined everything!!!" he cursed out the word and hastily made his way towards the castle. Though the exterior of the castle looked like a messy pile of stones, the interior section of the place were still left intact without that much damage.

Apparently, Max was knocked to the ground with his body covered in a heavy pile of snow.

"Chu/Pallet?" Ash and Hsa said his two different names in unison.

"Max!" May, yelled out as she went to her little brother who seemed to have lost his glasses. "Max, are you alright? Say something!"

"I don't want to go to school today mom. I'm too sleepy" the boy replied groogly as his sister shook him like a wild pinyata. When they found out that the boy was just sleeping after exhausting himself, the whole gang let out a sigh of relief.

**(Inside the castle keep) (Pallet's POV)**

"_How could they? How dare they!?"_ these were the questions that were running through my head as I ran through the steps of the castle main parapet staircase. I planned every inch of this operation from the very beginning to the climax of today. I had the overwhelming advantage over my opponents, I had the army, the king and the gods on my side… so why!? WHY!? This was not supposed to happen!!!

"Arrrgghhhh!" I screamed to the top of my lunges in the hallways as my voice echoed through the night. It would only be a matter of minutes before the Guardians come up here and interrogate me. I knew defeat was coming and I could care less. But what could I do? I no longer have any Pokemons on my side and I doubt any of the chosens would listen to me not after seeing their king. Right now I felt like a lone king in a chess game surrounded on all sides by enemies.

A lone king……

After thinking that thought an idea popped into my head! My grin grew on my lips as I realized that just because you lost… doesn't mean that your enemy won. Yes… I still have that…… I still have my last trump card…

**(Back outside)**

As the Pokemons, the clones and the humans worked together to heal the damage that had been inflicted upon them, the councilors decided to explain the situation to the confused Guardians. To much of their surprise, the four Lucarios seemed to have expected something like that. They never really trusted Pallet, and having him control the king was something that he would do as a desperate measure.

"So we were nothing more but expendable pawns after all" Hagard stated as he felt shame cover his entire body. How could he not have seen through the boy's ruse? Maybe he did see it… and perhaps he just refused to acknowledge it.

"**Do not blame yourselves Guardians"** the king smiled lifting some of their shame away. **"You only did what you thought was best for the Pokemons and for the empire. There was no way you could've seen the plot"** he then turne to Ash who seemed to be pampered by Duplica, Dawn and Brock. The boy's body wasn't built for a long term battle and a fight with Mewtwo was probably the last thing to cross his mind.

After placing one last bandage on the boy's arm, Brock decided to make a wooden cane just in case Ash needs help walking.

Although things appeared to be calming down a bit, none of them felt easy walking around the area at all. A few minutes ago, these two forces were choking on each other's necks but now…… after the king clarified things up, they were practically acting like they were best buddies.

Just when Hsa was about to walk up to the hero that persuaded him to stop running from life, he suddenly noticed Rosa starring at his face with a unexplainable expression on her face. When he looked back at her, the pink Lucario jerked her head away trying not to let him notice the blush on her cheeks. The king let out a small giggle.

"Hey there…" Ash began as he finally able to stand up on his own. Although his legs were a bit wobbily, he was good enough to walk. As the two look alike starred at each other eye to eye, the king extended his arm for a respectful shake. Ash looked unsure at first, but then he thought that it was no harm shaking the hands of a god. Sure, he could destroy the world with a snap of a finger, but Ash wasn't afraid. He had already beaten the king in his own game so there was nothing to worry about. Right?

"**Thank you Ash…" **the king began, **"If it were not for you. I would still be trapped in your mind right about now" **they both exchanged laughs as they turned to the stars. There was a bit of light coming from the east, which means a new day was coming.

And indeed… a new day was surely coming.

But before anyone could let out a jubilant cry of victory to the morning sun, the earth began to shake as a terrible sound echoed from the castle keep. "What in the blazes?!" Furo shouted as dropped his bag of snacks on the ground. "Aww man! That was my last one!" but everyone was too occupied to hear him complain. When all eyes turned to the castle, something began to sprout out from the altar room at the top of the keep.

They were black objects… millions of them. They almost looked like song notes from a music book.

But when their appearance became clearer, Ash, Misty and Brock recognized them right away. "The Unowns!" the three of them said in unison. (If any of you are wondering what these objects are, see Pokemon Movie: Spell of The Unowns) In a matter of seconds the whole castle was covered in those objects and before anyone knew what was happening, a bright light came from the sky, sending a nother vibration to the ground.

"That spell…" Hagard tried to confirm the situation, "Oh… no… Pallet is trying to use the Box of Memories power!!"

"A blast that size could wipe out half the world!" Rosa gasped in disbelief. She could not help but blame herself for being part of this rediculious campaign. When another beam struck the castle, every Pokemon in the area began to panic. **"Pallet…"** the king muttered even though he was under a great amount of stress. **"Loin!"** he called out to the councilor which he perked up immediately after his name was called, **"Get the Pokemons out of here now! Get them out of the island as far away as possible!"**

"At once your majesty!" he replied. Loin then turned to his other companions, "Noeh, Furo, Azal, follow me! We need to get everyone out of here now!" and with that, the councilors began the evacuation.

"**Guardians, to me!"** the king ordered which immediately followed by the four Lucarios. "What will you have us do?" Sha-hear asked in a servant tone, **"We're going to stop him. No matter what the cost!"** with a nod from all of them, the king and his Guardians made their way to the castle, but only to be stopped by Ash.

"I'm coming with you" he said seriously. The king and his guards were a bit surprised at first but then Sha-hear decided to speak up, "Don't be a fool. You no longer have the powers of the king. How can you, a simple human possibly…" he sentence was halted when Hsa raised his hand to shut him up. **"If the boy wishes to go then he will. We'll need all the help we can get"**

But then another voice came in from behind, "If Ash is going then I'm going to" said Dawn with a stern face. "Me too" followed May and Max (who just recently woke up) "Hey, you don't expect to go anywhere without me now would you?" said Brock who was then followed by Duplica, Richie and the others.

"You're all insane!" the white Lucario groaned.

But Hsa simply laughed, **"Well… the more the merrier I guess" **but his laugh soon ended when another beam struck the palace.

"Curses… at this rate, the weapon will explode before we even reach the top floor" Hagard groaned.

Rosa cursed under her breath, "If only we had some sort of defense against these things!" But then an idea snapped at the green Lucario at the same time, "That's it!" he shouted, "The castle defense system!" everyone turned their attention to the brain of the group as he explained what he had planned, "You see… the castle is protected by a defense system which can only be activated by the four towers surrounding the palace! If we could activate the switches, the 'Unowns' will have to take a longer route for them to finish the job. This should buy us enough time to reach the top floor and stop Pallet from doing anymore damage"

"Alright then" Ash began, "It would be best if we split up" the king nodded in agreement, **"Agreed… Hagard, Chaucer, you two take the first two towers at the eastern part of the keep"**

"And I'll take care of the one on the south" Dawn volunteered punching herself on her stomach.

"And I guess I'll have to take the one on the north side" Richie stated with a smirk. Ash looked unsure at first but then knew that his friends could handle any situation. So moving a simple switch shouldn't be a problem. "Ok guys" Ash began, "But when you're done, I want you guys to meet us at the top floor ok?" with a nod from the gang, the entire platoon split up, heading towards different directions along the castle hallways.

**(Back outside)**

"Come on now everyone. Single file, single file. There's no need to panic" Azal calmed the Pokemons down as they slowly made their way towards the exit. Mewtwo was also guiding his family out, but what worried him the most was the fact that several heroes were stil attempting to do the impossible. Even if they could evacuate from the island safely, if those heroes fail, then you can kiss half of the world good bye. _"What would Mew be doing at this situation"_ he wondered as the stars began to change their course.

**(Castle keep southern tower)**

Dawn was able to break down the door leading into the tower. Since the place was now practically abandoned, she didn't need to bother keeping a low profile when they first snuck into the place. "Ok… now where's that switch that he was talking about?" she asked herself as she roamed the small tower. By the time she made it to the top, a switch came into her line of sight. "Ah there it is" she cheered. "Now all I need to do is… pull… this… thing!" though she may have found the switch, she seemed to have forgotten that she was not that physically strong.

"Hah! Stupid switch! Why… won't… you… budge!?" she tried harder and harder and harder, but no matter how much effort she put into that thing, the switch just wouldn't seem to move.

"Alright right then smarty pants! If that's how you want to play it then let's bring it on! Come out everyone!" she quickly summoned all of her Pokemons to help. "Come on guys! We need to pull this switch! The whole world's counting on us!" (Buiza!) (Buneary!) (Piplup pi!) (Pochi pochi pochi [That's Pachirisu in case you're wondering) and with all of them working together, the switch began to budge little by little.

"That's it guys! Let's keep going!" and by the time the switch was finally turned. The mechanism that it was attached to suddenly became active. Rusted pieces of machinery began movng as if the whole castle itself was alive. And by the time all switches were pulled, the whole castle was sealed off from the inside.

**(Back with Hsa and the others)**

A loud clang could be heard echoing in the dark. Doors slam and creeks tightened like they were being pressed together. "Ah… it looks like they've activated the castle defense system" Sha-hear noticed this with his high sensitive ears. **"We should keep moving. The faster we get to the top, the faster this whole matter can end peacefully"** they all nodded to the king's suggestion and quickened their pace to the top. With most of the entrance sealed air tight, it was only a matter of time before the gang figured out that they too… were locked in as well.

"Quickly, this way! If we follow this stair case we can reach the top in no time!" Rosa pointed to the large stairs which they decided to follow. But just when they were about to reach the top, a chunk of stone suddenly came at them destroying the stairs along the way. When Ash saw this, he immediately pushed Brock and the others away before it made impact.

"Whoa! That was a close one!" Drew stated as he shook fear on how close death was. Even though Ash was able to save them from death's door, the small debris seemed to have separated them both. While Ash was with his counterpart king and the two Guardians, the rest of his group were on the other side of the parapet. "Hey… are you guys alright!?" he shouted.

"We're fine Ash. Don't worry about us!" Brock replied, "Just go on without us. We'll try and find another way to the top!" and with both of them nodded they went their separate ways. Right now, saving the world takes top priority over everything they've been doing.

By the time they made it to the destroyed door of the altar room, Rosa and Sha-hear went into a combat stance, preparing for a fight. If Pallet could control the king so easily, they could not allow to let their guard down especially for a traitor like him.

**"Rosa, Sha-hear, spread out and search the area"** the king ordered whichwas replied with a nod from both of them, **"He's close… I can feel him"**

"And right you are…" everyone quickly glared at the figure that suddenly appeared out of the blues. **"Pallet…"** the king muttered under his breath as he couldn't begin to understand why the boy whom he considered a friend would do something so terrible. But before the king could begin a negotiation talk, Sha-hear beat him to it. "Pallet! I am placing you under arrest for treason against the Empire! Stop the spell now and we might lessen your sentence!" the king knew that the boy wouldn't obey to the demand, but some of part of him hoped that the boy still had some sense left in him. Instead, Pallet replied with a laugh, "Don't make me laugh!" he began, "This world is better off destroyed than to live a life of slow and painful torture!"

But then suddenly, Rosa decided to make a surprise attack from above with a shadow claw attack. Pallet saw this and easily blocked it with a barrier. Having taken that into account, the once shy and helpless boy seemed to have turned into a monster. "Nice try Rosa… but futile" he smirked irritatingly, "In a matter of moments, the Unowns will carry the power of the stars and unleashed them on every corner of the world! If this world will deny me of my goals than I shall take the world along with it!"

"**Pallet!"** the king shouted, **"Enough of this! Can't you see me? I'm right here! Isn't that what you wanted? To bring me back?"**

"And what?!" he countered, "You will probably just leave me again just like that time you did two million years ago!" a single drop of tear slid down his eye as he remembered the painful memories of his past, "You promised me…… you said you would come back………" tears began to gradually fall from his eyes at this point. "We pinky swear…" the king was a bit taken back by the moment, "I waited for you…… for so long… I've been waiting. Everyday, you've been busy with work. Everyday, you spend less and less time with me. But now that you're here… you'll probably just leave me again!" Ash stood back slightly as he felt like his role here was no longer important, "It's always 'them' first! It always has been 'them!'."

While the boy was too busy remembering the old times, Sha-hear decided to plop a small attack on the rear. And to his surprise, Ash was there too, readying himself to lounge at the boy when the moment strikes in. "And that's why……" Pallet continued, "If I can't have you… then no one can!!!!!!" with a burst of his awesome powers, Sha-hear and Ash flew across the room like they were just hit by a cannon ball or something landing on the ground with a defining 'thump' sound.

"Nice try Ash, but sadly… it didn't work" with a snap of the little shepherd's fingers, the Unown obeyed his every command. A few seconds later, Ash and the Guardians found themselves wrapped under the small mysterious Pokemons. "Ah hey! Let me go!" Ash shook and shoved but nothing seemed to work. The Pokemons seemed to be connected to tight.

But while the others were chained by the Unowns, Hsa seemed to have grown an immunity against such feeble attack. He simply walked past the mysterious creatures as they tried to get close to him, but for some strange reason, they seemed to be afraid of him.

"**Enough Pallet… you've gone too far this time"** the king spoke in a dark demonic voice.

"But aren't you happy your majesty?" the boy replied with a smirk. "When I destroy everything, you won't have to worry about running an empire anymore. You don't need to worry about peace or war. You don't even have to think about waking up early in the morning just to greet your subjects. It will just be you… and me… and no one else" Pallet's eyes grew dark as if he was being possessed by his own hatred. "We can play in the Pokemon garden all day long and no one will ever disturb us. It will be just like you dreamed!"

"**But dreams turn to end Pallet… you can't run away from reality forever!"** the king knew that there was no way that he could stop the boy. He had already gone mad with this long term plan and was about to make things even worst for the both of them. **"Please… Pallet, I beg of you. Stop this before it's too late. You can still make things right again!"**

"And I am going to set things right!" the boy snapped back at him, "When the world is no more. The bonds between man and Pokemons will break and the world will plunge into a state utter chaos!"

"**And what do you hope to accomplish then?! We'll be blown right along with it!"**

"I'd rather die than live a life of emptiness!"

But just when Pallet was about to activate the box of memories, Hsa gave out a threat in hopes to end this matter peacefully, **"Don't do this Pallet!"** he warned, **"Don't make me… hurt you!"** he held out his godly hand and prepared him to fire upon one of his closest friend. "Are you going to attack me?" the boy said with his back turned to the king. As the moments passed, Hsa made no attempt in attacking. He just stood there with his arm pointing at the boy. And if you look close enough, you would actually see the king's hand shaking in fear.

"I thought not…" Pallet then resumed in casting the spell of ultimate destruction, but just when he thought that the king was bluffing…

BOOM!

But then Pallet's eyes widened in horror as a bolt of lightning struck out of and nearly striking him on the shoulder.

"**I may not be able to hurt you Pallet"** the king began, **"But as long as I am king, I will protect my lands from any threat…… even if it comes from you"** the two of them began powering up their arms and readied themselves for a battle. As both their eyes connected with an invisible force, a single chain of though popped into Hsa's head: How did it come down to this? Was this fate's idea of a joke? Two best of friends old once again stand together not as comrades…… but as enemies. Was this truly the ultimate destiny for him? Was it truly meant to be?

No one could possibly answer the questions that rang in his mind. But as the king shove away the thoughts and focused on the battle that was soon to come…… he didn't realize that Ash was planning something himself as well. He didn't come all the way up here just to see the greatest event of the world flash before his eyes. He was a player, not a watcher.

"Grrrr! Why won't this thing come off!?" Ash cursed as he struggled to break free from his bonds of Unown. "Don't waste your strength" said Rosa as she calmly sat down on the marbled floor. "These Pokemons only obey those who posses the power of the gods. To break it by pure strength would be futile.

"We may as well sit back and wait for now" Sha-hear added in retreat to his exhaustion. Sleeping for two million years and fighting for hours can really wear out the body.

"The power huh?" Ash thought for a moment before an idea popped into his head, "Wait a minute! If I'm right, I might still have some of Hsa's power in me" he began concentrating all of his focus onto his arm which strangely began to glow. But without the tattoos to guide the flow of energy, the Unowns quickly backed down and withdrew back into the darkness. "Ha! I knew I still had it in me!" he cheered before removing the others small components off his jacket.

"Impossible…" Sha-hear muttered with a bit of disbelief, "How…?" but before he could even ask, Ash came by and cut him loose from his binds, "You can ask questions later! Right now 'he' needs our help!" with a mere motion of his hand, the two Lucarios quickly jolted from their seats and made their way towards the two who were fighting on the altar pedestal.

Apparently Hsa and Pallet were on equal footings. With the box giving the boy unlimited amount of energy and Hsa, being the ultimate living creature on the planet, they were pretty much just about ready to rip the world to pieces.

Ash was about to go and interrupt their little fight but the pink Lucario blocked his way. "No Ash, if you go in there, you might get hurt!" she warned him, "This is no longer our battle to interfere" but the boy really needed to do something to help! Every moment that passes by dooms the world closer to its destruction and he wasn't just gonna sit back and relax and let the old king do all the work. "I got it!" the boy cheered out which caught the Guardians attention. When Ash's eyes made contact with the box of memories, he immediately concocted a plan.

"You guys said that this box is the key on destroying the world right?" Sha-hear nodded to the boy's statement, "Well if we can some how close it. We might just be able to stop it!"

The white Lucario thought for a moment before agreeing, "It might just work. But what can we do? None of us can contain such a power"

"We just need to close it some how……"

It was then Rosa spoke up, "What if we put our powers together? If the three of us can at least silence the box for just a moment, it would give our king enough time to find a way to close it permanently!"

"It's worth a shot!" said Ash as they all prepared themselves.

**(Back downstairs a few floors below the altar room)**

Brock and the others were just about to reach another pair of stairs when Dawn and Richie suddenly bump onto them. "Whaa look out!" the squinty eyed boy squealed as he stopped dead center which led the others to crumble on him like a pair of dominos. "Brock, is that you?" Dawn asked as her Pokemons began yelling something intelligible. "Hmm? What's wrong Piplup?" when the blue haired coordinator saw her little penguin Pokemon pointing at the end of the hallway, she realized that Hagard and Chaucer were there waiting for them.

"What are you still doing here?" the yellow Lucario groaned, "Where is his majesty and the others?"

"We got separated on the stairs" Brock answered, "Are there any other way to get to the top floor?" Hagard thought for a moment before remembering the emergency escape route, "There's an emergency staircase at the back of this hall. It'll take longer, but it's the only way left"

"Then let's hurry" Tracey suggested which they all complied to do. But just when they were about to reach the center of the hallway, a Golem appeared out of nowhere and suddenly began attacking them. "Whoa! What was that?!" Todd squealed as he dodged the rock Pokemon's attack.

"Be careful!" Hagard warned, "These Pokemons are illusions created by the Unowns. They're invincible as long as the Unowns remain active"

"Then how are we gonna defeat it?" asked Richie.

"We'll have to find another way around it. Chaucer, cover our backs!"

"I got it…" just when the Golem was about to strike again, Chaucer launched a counter kick which sent it flying to the ground, but it wasn't enough to hurt it. "Hurry up you humans! Move it!" he barked out.

As the unified group moved together in a single file, more and more fake Pokemons began to appear out of the blues, making them take a lot of twists and turns before finally making to the smaller parapet. Along the way, Chaucer had to deal with some of the hindrance by knocking them out of the way or just simply pushing them. But since they're invincible, they couldn't really stand a chance in fighting them all at once.

"Alright, everyone up this way, NOW!" the green Lucario ordered to the letter.

**(Back with Hsa and Pallet)**

The two main characters of the war were now battling one another for supremacy over the world. One wants to save the world and the other wants to destroy it. Both had their reasons, but neither had the answers. **"Stop this Pallet! Why won't you listen?! Your plan will doom not just you and me, but the whole world!"**

"You always did talk too much Hsa! I can't imagine how you could've been king!" Pallet cursed back at him clearly forgetting his place. "I'm doing this for the both of us! Now stop getting in my way!!" as the two of them traded one attack after another, the altar room suddenly changed from a holy ground to battle zone between two friends. It was a frightening thought for anyone.

Lightning bolts, flame thrower, hyper beam, it didn't matter. As long as it could hurt the other guy, they could care less on what they used. They connected their fire power against each other over and over again till even the slightest bit of bacteria was wiped out from the surface of the room. But just as their battle had reached a stalemate, Pallet began to feel something strange going with his strength. His powers were slowly diminishing as if someone or something was denying him of his energy. The moment the thought came to him, Rosa unleashed a flurry of shadow balls which smashed against the boy sending him right towards the other side of the room.

"H… how??" he muttered under his gritted teeth. It wasn't till then when the young shepherd realized that the Guardians were free of their bonds, and to make matters even worst for him, the box of memories which he had intentionally unleashed was some how being suppressed by Ash and Sha-hear. "The box of memories!" he shouted.

"Not so tough without your magic now, are you?" Rosa smirked as she got into her battle stance. It was over... and all of them knew it. Without Pallet's source of power he was now just a boy who couldn't defend himself.

**"It's over Pallet…..." **said the king as he moved in, **"You are beaten. There is nothing more you can do now"** Pallet knew that he was right. But deep in his heart… he just couldn't accept it. He was close… so close, but with the combined aid of both Pokemons and humans working against him was just too much. With his army lost, and the Guardians against him, he turned his hope to this last… which had also seemed to have ended in failure.

With the last flicker of hope gone from his body, the shepherd boy fell onto his knees like a lifeless doll with its strings broken. He couldn't take it anymore. Over and over he had suffered defeat by those who opposed him. And whenever he tried to stand up and fight again, it would always seem like someone would just beat him down and put him back in his place.

"Why……" Pallet sobbed under his own breath, "Why is it? Why can't I win? All I ever wanted was you… I don't need anything else…… I don't need the Pokemons or the humans…… I just want you!" he snapped at the last part as tear flicked down his eyes, **"The world doesn't revolve around you Pallet"** the king boldly spoke at his statement.

"I don't care about the world!" the boy snapped with anger, "I just don't understand why! Why must the world have everything and I get nothing?! Why does the world get to have you… and I don't?" Hsa seemed to pity the boy now instead of being angry at him now. For one to be living in isolation for so long must've weakened the boy both mentally and physically. "You're all I ever wanted…… just you…" tears were now flowing through the boy's cheeks like two streams of river. How long had this boy been holding back? How long did he gathered up all this sadness within him? Those were questions… not even the king himself could possibly answer. "I don't need anything..."

But as the boy continued to cry alone at the center of the room, the king thought back of the time when he first came to be king. He understood the boy's pain because he too... had no parents. No one to go to when problems arise. No one to talk too guide you when you're lost. And no shoulder to cry on when your heart was broken. After pouring all of his love into his arms, Hsa knelt down on the shepherd boy's height and hugged him tightly like he used to, back in the old days. Pallet's eyes widened with shock and fear, but once he was able to cope on what was happening his tears seemed to have magically dried up. It was a warm hug given only to those who would consider themselves as family. It gave the feeling of not being alone and sharing all of your burdens. (I had that hug before when I was 15. Trust me, it felt great) In the end, there were no other humans who were part Pokemons now… are there?

When Hsa broke the hug, he flashed out an 'Ash-like' smile at the boy, **"If that's how you feel Pallet, then I guess it's time that you became a part of that world"** he remarked at him. **"You always told yourself that you were different from everyone else. But in fact you're just the same. We all feel hurt at times and may be on special occasion we feel happy. But no matter how different we look, we are still one. I learned that lesson the hard way"** he giggled slightly, **"You always thought of yourself being alone, but in truth you're not.** (pause) **Now don't cry anymore…… ok?"** but Pallet could not contain his tears. In fact, those two streams of river seemed to have grown into big flash waterfalls. He pounded on the king's chest making him flinch back a few times before sobbing down quietly on himself.

"But why?" Pallet sobbed under the king's hug, **"If only I knew the answer Pallet… if only I knew…… I'm sorry for leaving you alone… for so long…"** usually a king's apology should never be shown in public, but for this occasion, I think anyone would make an exception.

As things finally began to settle down and with the winds changing its path, everything seemed to be but a distant memory now. Things were calming down and the world itself might just be saved. But that idea soon ended when a sudden rumble began occur around the palace. Hsa, Rosa and Pallet turned their heads around only to see Ash and Sha-hear being tossed away to the center of the room with a bright shining light. **"Oh no… the spell!"** the old king panicked as he quickly made his way towards the box. He first analyzed the situation and quickly held out his arm in hopes of stopping the power from being unleashed. But as he tried to stop it with his godly strength, his power backfired and jolted his arm with an electric surge. **"Ahhh! I can't stop it! The countdown has already begun!"**

That was definitely not something they wanted to hear.

"Isn't there something else we can do?" asked Ash who was still hoping for the best. But sadly, the king had run out of ideas. With so much power radiating from such a small object, it was only a matter of time before the whole world goes 'poof!' into thin air.

"There's one thing we can do!" Pallet yelled out catching everyone's attention. "I can try to divert the power into one single blow. Instead of destroying the whole world, it will only destroy the castle" with a quick turning of the box's mechanism, the power began to focus into a single spot. It was strange on how something so beautiful can be so destructive. I guess when things blow up; they must always blow up in style.

"The device is set… let's go!" and with Pallet's suggestion, they all dashed out of the room hoping that they would make it out in time. But just when they were about to make it out of there, they all remembered that the main parapet was out of order.

"We'll have to take the emergency escape route" Rosa suggested as she pressed a loose brick on the wall revealing a smaller staircase, but in doing so, she also revealed the rest of the gang who seemed to have just made it all the way up there.

"Ash!" Todd and Tracey yelled in unison. But the boy didn't have the time to explain, "No time to explain, everyone RUN!!!" with Ash's command, the whole gang and the Guardians rushed down the stairs without a clue why they even bother to come up in the first place.

As they made their way down, the entire castle began to rumble as if the earth itself was splitting apart. The roof shook as if something from the outside was pounding the marbled stones with a hammer. Small debris from the walls began to fall smashing the ground with its combined force of weight and gravity. This were but a few signs that were telling the gang that if they didn't hurry up… they might never see day light ever again. "Come on everyone, follow me!" Sha-hear took the lead and slowly made their through the detours.

The Unowns that were still patrolling the area were going out of control as were now unable to move around freely as they thought. And just when the white Lucario thought that they were just about to make it, a door suddenly shuts on them. "Blast!!" he cursed, "The castle's defense systems are locking us in! We have to move fast if we are to make it out of here alive! Qucikly, this way!" as the gang picked up their pace, more and more doors began to close locking them in and driving them deeper into the castle.

Chaucer was amazed on how the humans were able to keep up with their speed. Ever since Ash came back into their lives, their formation and command links seemed to be more organized than before. They were practically forming a line formation in which to keep up with the king and Pallet who were still a few paces in front of them. If they were in a military academy, he wouldn't be surprised if they all passed with flying colors.

But then a sudden door clanging shook the yellow Lucario off his thoughts. The whole group halted on their tracks looking at the door that just closed it on them. "Blast it all!" Sha-hear cursed yet again, "That was our last way out!" he slammed the door with his paws but it barely even made a dent.

"**Stay back!"** the king ordered to which the Guardians reluctantly complied. Hsa held out his hand in front of the steel barred reinforced door and made a quick incantation. With a simple push of his power, the door suddenly began to crack and soon broke down like it had rusted after a few million years. **"Let's go!"** with the blockade gone, the gang quickly continued their march out of the place.

No one really knew how long they had been running or feel how sore their legs were, but until they reach the safety of the outside, they could possibly care less about any of that.

"We must hurry!" Hagard warned, "The castle is closing on us as we speak!" when the group looked back, they could see a massive amount of door began close over one another. It would be a sight to see if an army would be able to breach this castle in the past.

"I think we're gonna make it!" Misty declared as the entrance of the castle became clear in front of them. They all gave out a smile which declared their victory, but those smiles didn't last very long when main gate began to close in on them. **"Hurry!"** the king ordered. But with the entrance closing in fast, it would take a miracle for even one of them to slip under it.

But miracles do happen when you believed in them… because when the gate was about to be fully closed, two paws appeared from the other side of the gate and quickly pulled it up with an inhumane strength. _"Hurry! I don't know how long I can keep this up!"_ it was Mewtwo, the psychic Pokemon who aided them.

With the gate holding firmly with Mewtwo's help, the gang quickly made their way out hoping that this nightmare would somehow finally end. When the last life form was out Mewtwo dropped the gate and let it close, sealing the castle off completely to all invaders. To most of the gang, it almost looked like the amusement part closed up just as they left, except that they weren't amused at all. They were mostly terrified by the thought of even going back in there.

Just as they got themselves a good distance between them and the castle, the huge light erupted from the altar room opening a tiny black-hole in the rift of the world. As the hole grew bigger, it began to suck everything into its unknown vortex destroying the entire castle and the mountain in the process. When the space anomaly finally reached its limit. BOOOOOOMMMMM!!!! A gigantic explosion occurred, sending out large portion of debris to every side of the fortress.

**(Somewhere along the seas)**

The councilors, clones and the Pokemon army were standing on top of several Whaillord that were floating above the surface of the ocean a few miles off the coast of Fort Gregro Island. They did not know how long they had to stay until it was safe to get back again. The sun was already rising but not enough for them to see it yet. The clones were worried about their leader, Mewtwo while the other Pokemons were worried about the Guardians and their king.

The four councilors on the other hand however were more anxious to know if the world was gonna live or be turned to dust.

But then… without any warning whatsoever, a bright light suddenly erupted, causing everyone to shield their eyes from it. The shockwave the blast gave out was so immense that even the strongest Pokemon had to cower in fear. As the councilors looked up… they could only imagine what will happen after this great big flash……

Was it the end of the world or simply a sign for a new beginning?

So let it be known…… how the war of man and Pokemon… ended…

With no sides claiming victory… only one… will rule all…

And that one…… is still here…


	41. Good Bye King Hello World!

**Chapter 41: Good Bye King, Hello World!**

Smoke rises from the deep… blotting the sun with its ink like message. Piles upon piles of stones and marbles littered on the ground like they had been spitted from the mouth of a monster… Fort Gregro…… was no more. Its destruction was so horrible that it could be seen miles away into the distant planets beyond the stars. What was meant to be a implosion that turned the world into a blackhole was now converted into an explosion that would almost rival that of an atomic bomb.

But as the councilors returned to the island shores, they were amazed to see that the mountain itself was still intact. Most of the forest that surrounded the mountain barrier had already been burnt to a crispt leaving nothing but a few speck of dust in its wake. "Do you think they're ok?" asked Azal who seemed to be the most worried among all of his companions. After he explained the whole story to Ash's gang, he seemed to have grown familiar with the humans of today. "Well we won't find out by just standing here" Noeh smirked.

"If I knew… I would already tell you" Loin replied with a horrid expression on his face. "Come on… if they're alive, then we'll find them" the clones quickly departed from the back of the Whailord the moment it touched the soils of the island. They thought that if a human could survive that kind of a blast, then why wouldn't their master?

But as they reached the entrance of the fortress, they weren't surprised to see the state of the gate as it is. The whole doorway was practically leveled down to a pile of rubble the size of a small hill. But no matter how strong it was, the Pokemon army wasn't gonna let some small hunk of stones stop from reaching their goal.

**(Inside the fortress)**

Ash and the gang hid their heads as the loud explosion occurred. An 'boom' that size was clear enough for them to take shelter, but with all the debris falling, they had to rely on lady luck alone. After twenty minutes had past and nothing seemed to have happened, the gang opened up their eyes to see Pallet, Hsa, Mewtwo and the Guardians holding up some kind of barrier just right above their heads.

"**Is everyone alright?"** asked the king who was putting most of his energy on the barrier. When the first cataclysmic disaster had passed by, he knew that if he didn't open up the shield soon, neither he nor any of them will have enough air to breathe. With a reassuring nod from the gang, Has turned to his Guardians, **"Alright then…… Guardians, Push!"** with a large jolt of energy flowing through their bodies, the pile of rubble that they were trapped in suddenly burst away with a great force, landing several meters away from their position.

Once everyone was able to stand on their own two feet, they were awed by sight that had taken place before their eyes. The castle that once stood at the center of the mountain was now nothing more but a center of a desolate waste land. The lush green fields that were supposed to be the most fertile area on the island were now drained of life. No one knew what had happened… did the world get destroyed? Or was this just some horrible nightmare?

"Whoa… it looked like a bomb dropped here" said Richie as he dusted himself. He wasn't far from the truth though. With that kind of implosion followed by an explosion, it was easy to describe it as a bomb site. "I can see what you mean" Brock replied holding his backpack up high, "It almost look like the end of the world or something"

But as they took in the view from their ground level, Sha-hear approached his king with a slight smile on his face, "It worked your majesty! Only half the island was destroyed but the rest of the world is safe!" the king let out a huge sigh of relief. For a moment there, he actually thought that the whole world was obliterated. Heck… he even entertained the idea that Ash and the gang will become the next Adams and Eves of the world! (hehehehehehe)

"**That's good to know…"** Hsa said finally letting a smile come across his lips. Having that kind of a death defying experience really brought out the old him again. Being adventurous, daring and cool looking. It was as if the old times never really did go away.

"_The implosion of the blast seemed to have destroyed itself"_ Mewtwo explained to them, _"By having the power consume itself, it is almost like extinguishing fire with fire"_ with a satisfied nod from the gang one thing now only rung in their heads.

What are we gonna do now?

But as they all tried to recouperate from the blast, a sudden voice perked up their attention. (PIKACHU!!!!) it was C.Pikachu, who was yelling from the other side of the destroyed gate along with C.Charizard and C.Meowth and the rest of clone family. When they all came to their master's side, the clones let out a loud cry of joy as they hugged Mewtwo tightly within their grasp. The psychic Pokemon never had such a feeling in his life. In fact… he was actually blushing if you could call it that way.

When the gang saw how the clones reacted, they all felt the urge to do the same thing. So without any warning whatsoever, everyone came down tumbling against Ash, pinning the boy to the ground with a loud thud. Once again, two families were now… complete.

**(Somewhere along the skies of Rustboro city)**

Professor Samuel Oak was reading a book he bought at the air port to keep himself entertained while the plane was still in flight. Delia on the other hand was knitting a pair of mitten to keep herself busy. The professor felt sad for the woman. For many days, Delia had barely gotten any sleep and now she was knitting some mittens just to keep her mind off her son. The old man really wanted to comfort her, but nothing seemed to be working. He tried some jokes and games, heck he even tried using one of his haikus to cheer her up, but it all ended in failure.

But then suddenly, a small jolt came across the mother's mind. It wasn't bad or anything, more of the opposite. Within that jolt, it seemed like all of her worries seemed to have shut down. Her 'Ash's in trouble sense' also went down, causing her fatigue to finally kick in.

She slowly put down her knitting tools and gazed at the professor who seemed rather surprise with her expression.

A smile…

Her genuine heart warming smile which could make a man's day worth living. The professor smiled back at her, relieved that she was back to her old self. "It's good to see you relaxed Delia" the woman nodded but then quickly lost to the fatigue that had built up in her body. Samuel quickly caught her with his arms before she fell, dropping his book in the process. "Whoa! Delia, are you alright?" he asked worryingly.

"So… sleepy…zzzzzz" and with that last comment, the woman began snoring as she snuggled closer to the professor's chest. Samuel would've been calling a nurse by now, but seeing that the woman was having a good time on his chest, he decided to let her stay there… for now.

"Oh… don't they look cute together?" Samuel perked up his head only to be caught in a quick blinding camera flash. The old man rubbed his eyes for a moment and suddenly figured out that the voice that came out belonged to the Jennies who were grinning ear to ear at the picture. Samuel smiled back softly as he didn't know if they were keeping that picture for themselves or use it to blackmail him in the future.

**(Valmarian city) (2 weeks before the competition)**

Emma was taking a stroll around the down town district early in the morning chewing gum along the way. With Gary's gang growing in power everyday, only a few remnants of trainers proved to be a threat. The Bail Outs and their so called 'Elite Five' were the only opposing gang to go against them. Almost everyday there would be a battle in the dark alleys and side way street corners. If one would look at this city now, they would probably call it a warzone. Smaller gang factions from all across the city were battling out for supremacy and the local police force were having a tough time just keeping the place in order.

"Man… what a boring day" the girl sighed as she spit out her gum and chewed on a new one. "No battles, no fights…… just your typical boring day" little did she know that her day… was just about to get more interesting. Because when she was walking along one of her short cuts, a sudden voice caught her ear's attention. "Hmm?" she looked around the alley to find out where the voices were coming from. "What the?" Keeping her element of surprise, the girl toned down her foot steps and slowly made her way towards the old sewer entrance.

Apparently there was a shady deal going down and having curiousity take over her actions she decided to take a quick peek. But when she saw Red… she could've swore she nearly gasped. It seemed like one Gary's crew member seemed to be talking with someone.

"_What is that guy up to?" _Emma thought as she quickly took another look. She then noticed that Red was handing his aquiantance a Pokeball. _"A Pokeball?"_ she wondered.

"So… do we have a deal?" said Red with a slightly evil grin on his face. When the other guy observed the condition of the Pokeball, he quickly tucked it into his pocket and shook Red's hand. "Of course……… I always keep my promises" the voice was definitely male, but with a small sounding of a female essence. And with that, the stranger departed, deeper into the sewers, vanishing in darkness. If you don't call that suspicious that I don't know what is anymore.

"Hmm… suspicious…" Emma quickly withdrew to a corner and resurfaced back on the road hoping to get this information to Havic and her boss.

Little did she knew that Red…… had noticed her presence.

"Now go little girl… go and deliver my message to everyone…" that was the last remark Red gave before following the stranger into the sewers.

The Valmarian league… just got a whole lot more confusing than anyone could ever imagine. Who is Red and what is he up to? What are his motives behind the Valmarian league? And what sinister plot is he planning for Gary this time?

-Never take a man who betrays his master, less he betrays you as well-

-Old Persian translated saying

**(Back on Fort Gregro island)**

Fort Gregro was supposed to be an impenetrable fortress… a well supplied impenetrable fortress, but if you look at the state now, any tourist would probably say 'What fort?' or something similar to that, and with good reasons too. What remained of the fortress was probably just a pile of uncarved stones and pieces of bricks. The landscape was totally desolated into nothingness leaving nothing but ashes in its wake.

Since the inside of the mountainsides were inhabitable by any sorts of life, the Pokemons and the humans had to set camp outside the fortress to keep themselves cool. There was more than enough room for everybody, heck even the clones made their own camp near the beach. But while the Pokemons go about their business, Ash and his gang were busy patching the young boy up. He had more bruises than anyone else on the block and Max would probably come in second with the most wounds on his body. Luckily, Brock was able to fix his spare pair of glasses and gave it to the little guy so that he could see again.

The little boy was so happy to see Ash again that he hugged him like a tight teddy bear that he would never ever let go.

"Ok Max, you can let go now" May called her little brother's attention. "No…" he replied bluntly shrugging her sister off, but that was probably a dumb move to make. "Max! Come on! I still need to treat Ash's wounds now move it!" she then began pulling the boy away but it seemed like Max put super glue on his hands or something. "COME ON YOU LITTLE TWERP!! LET HIM GO!" with the strength of superwoman, May pulled the boy off and put him next to her Blaziken, "Blaziken, please keep an eye on him" (Blazi!) the humanoid fire-bird replied. Max pouted annoyingly and went along to keep himself quiet.

The gang abrupted with laughter after that event, it seemed like those two were probably the source of good entertainment around here.

But as the moment went on with the morning sun finally rising over the waters, the gang couldn't help but smile as the dawn of a new beginning approached them. It was an amazing feeling to have when things finally start to go your way, and with the war ended, it seemed like nothing could ever go wrong again.

"It looks like things are finally turning out the way it supposed to be" said Loin who appeared from behind with the rest of the councilors. "I looks like you and your friends saved the world once again" he gestured to Ash who have been bandaged from head to toe. The fight with Mewtwo must've really done a lot of damage to him. "You…" Ash replied plainly surprised of the man's presence.

"Well with the war over, I think it's time for us to take a little break" Azal suggested with a smirk. Furo agreed whole heartedly as well. After fighting a war that has been waged for two million years can really tire a man out. But before the two of them could take another step further, a pair of paws suddenly grabbed their ears pulling together.

"And where do you think you two are going?" said Chaucer who had an evil smirk on his lips, "I hope you're not planning to skip class again…"

"No nononononon of course not master!" Furo squealed like a little kitten as his ear started to reddened slightly, "Oweeee! My ear!"

"Good then!" the yellow Lucario replied, "Now come with me you two. Just because we haven't met for two million years, doesn't mean I have to stop teaching you. Now come along, we have a lot of catching up to do"

The two troublemakers simply looked at each other, "Yes master…" they said boringly.

Again, the humans laughed at this sight. Who would've thought that the councilors could actually be ordered around by their own enemies? But when things were starting to cool down a bit, Ash suddenly noticed a few figures coming their way. He knew the first two figures were Pallet and Hsa since they were the only humans who weren't accounted in their ranks. Thought they may be part Pokemon, they still looked human on the outside. The other three figures were definitely Rosa, Hagard and Sha-hear.

"**Hello again, Ash, Misty, Brock, Richie, May, Max, Dawn, Anabel, Duplica, Todd, Tracey, Drew, and councilors"** the king spoke all of their names in sequence. **"I see that you're all looking better"** some of them nodded in return while the others just smiled and go about their business.

"Most of us are ok, but Ash will have to rest for a moment before he can move again" Brock explained their situation to him. "It might take a couple of weeks but I think he'll manage"

The king raise a questionable brow, **"Really? Wouldn't you all be missing the Valmarian league by then?"** silence soon followed after that sentence. The gang were so busy helping Ash that they completely forgot about the match they were supposed to be in. With the awkward silence continuing to no end, the whole gang finally let out an abrupt yell which could be heard throughout the island.

"WHAAAAATTTTT!!!!"

"Oh man! I totally forgot about the competition!" Richie held his head in panic.

"What day is it? I lost track of time!" Dawn screamed as she tried to get her Pokedex to tell the time, but sadly it seemed to have run out of batteries.

"What if we're late for our registration!?" May squealed as she tried to find a watch, "We'll have to wait for another five years then!! AHHH!!"

While the rest of the gang were in full panic mode, Brock suddenly pull out a watch from his backpack which luckily also seemed to tell the date. He first compared it to the calendar on his head and then quickly whistled to get the gang's attention. "Actually guys, we still have two weeks to make it there. If we can make ourselves a boat then I think we can make it there in a couple of days" the gang's temper suddenly returned back to its normal level as they realized that they still had plenty of time. "That's a relief" Drew sighed.

"**Then allow the Pokemons to be of assistance"** the king motioned to them with a smile. With a snap of his fingers, three Venusaurs approached them with a smile on their faces. **"Alright troops. Do you mind building a small boat for them?"** (Venusaur!) the three large grass Pokemons quickly replied and immediately got to work. Quickly utilizing their razor leaf to cut down the trees and having their vine whips move them, these guys could practically build an armada in a matter of days! **"They say that they'll have your boat ready in an hour. So why don't you guys relax for a bit"**

"Wow… thanks a lot Hs… I mean your majesty" Ash nearly slipped when he remembered that he was talking to royalty. The gang still couldn't get used to seeing two Ashes. Though they may look a bit different, they were practically twins in a sense. **"Don't mention it"** the king replied, **"Besides, it's the least I could do after what I did to your body"**

"It's not as bad as it looks" Ash smiled embarrassed by his own wounds. "Besides, I believe everyone in the world deserves a second chance in life. We all make mistakes right?" the two of them laughed slightly giving the area around them a good atmosphere. But then while everyone was still having a blast, Ash noticed that Pallet seemed to be hiding behind Hsa's back. The boy was probably Max's height but at least an inch taller for sure. "Hey… is that Chu back there?" when Pallet noticed Ash starring at him, he quickly hid his face in embarrassment.

Hsa laughed, **"You'll have to forgive him. I don't think he's gotten over our little incident"** the king then turned to his little friend, **"Come on Pallet. I think you have something to say to these nice people" **he nudged the boy forward as he continued to smile. Pallet/Chu would've died of embarrassment if he wasn't so quizzled at the moment. He began twitching his thumb and some could already see the blush of shyness on his cheeks. Who knew that the boy who threatened the world would look so adorably cute?

All eyes were now focused on him as his thumb increased its pace on twitching. "I umm…" he began slowly as if every word, "I uhhh…" with a quick bow of the head, he spoke faster a tape recorder put on a fast forward, "I'mreallysorryabouteverything I hopeyoucanforgiveme!" and with that he turned around and hid back behind Hsa with a blush growing even redder.

"Hehehe… Don't worry about it Chu" Ash smiled back in return, "Like I said: We all mistakes once in awhile"

"For you it's probably three times a day" Misty mumbled loud enough for them to hear it, but just barely. Ash gave her a snare.

"What did you say!?" Ash snapped back. But the red head simply gave out an innocent look, "Oh nothing… nothing at all" and before anyone even knew it, the two of them were already bickering just like old times. It was amazing how these people were able to cope with this kind of situations. One moment they were running for dear life and then now… they were here, chilling out like nothing had happened. Sha-hear even gave the nick name of 'Odd-ones' as that title suited them well.

As the old king looked around the land, he began to think that the old days actually can be brought back. It will require time… perhaps even a thousand life times. But as long as there are people like the ones he see here…… then he had no doubt in his heart that it can come true.

Pokemons and humans, working side by side once again… not as different races… but as equals.

"Alright you two, break it up, break it up" Brock came by to stop the two teens as they were ready to choke on each other's throats. The king and his subordinates laughed. Never before had they seen such a childish act before in their lives. It actually brought out the old youth back in them. "Geeze… for once I thought we could use a little peace and quiet"

But when things finally calmed down, Hsa approached our young hero and extended his arm for a shake, **"Ash Ketchum…… thank you…… I wish you well on your journey"** Ash was reluctant to take it at first, but then he knew that the guy meant no harm, "You too… I'll come and visit you and Chu whenever I can"

But the king chuckled back in reply, **"Heh… sorry Ash, but I won't be here when you come back" **this caught the attention of everyone who were in the vicinity, even the Guardians. "Why is that?" Ash asked. The king slowly turned his gaze towards the sun rise and nodded to himself, **"Times are changing Ash. You alone are proof enough that not even the strongest of us can battle against time. Even my very presence here defies all laws of nature. I must go back to the afterlife… and set things right"**

"But your majesty!" Sha-hear begged, "What will become of us?"

"**We all write our own destiny Sha-hear" **the king replied immediately with a smile, **"I think it's high time that you start writing your own"** Mewtwo would've chuckled if he heard that from him.

As a deathly silence came over them, Hsa slowly made a gentle motion with his hand and created a portal. **"My time on this realm has long expired…… the new generation of today shall rule the world"** as he set foot into the portal he turned around and gestured to Pallet who wasn't looking back at him. The young shephered could not look at this sight. He knew that he was gonna leave from the very beginning, but he just wouldn't admit it. Some how deep inside, he just wished that he would just leave already. **"Are you coming Pallet?"** the boy's eyes widened as small tear drops fell from them. Was it true? Was he really inviting him to the other side?

Pallet/Chu looked confused at first, but knew immediately that this wasn't a joke. "M… me?" he stuttered which was replied with a nod, **"It gets pretty lonely back there. Do you mind keeping me company?"** Pallet spent no time thinking at all. The moment the king gave the offer, he snatched with the speed of lightning and held his friend in a tight hug. **"Ouch… I guess I'll take that as a yes"** with a nod from the little boy, the two of began walking together towards the

"But your majesty!" Sha-hear called out again, "What about us? The empire?"

Hsa thought for a moment putting his hand onto his chin, **"Hmmm… you have a point. An empire does need a king to rule it"** and then a thought hit him, **"Ah I go it!"** he snapped his fingers and quickly pointed towards Ash, **"Ash Ketchum, by the power invested in me, I here by declare you as the new Pokemon king!"** the boy in question looked puzzled

Silence followed…

"WHATTTT!!!" everyone shouted all at once.

"Your majesty, you can't be serious!" Sha-hear snapped.

"**Oh I'm quite serious"** was his royal reply, "**I think Ash would make an excellent king"** he then noticed that the boy who was recently promoted was starring at him with a puzzled face, **"Oh don't think too much about it Ash. Don't expect to be shooting things out of your arm again"**

"So what does Ash need to do when he's king?" Max asked coming along with May's Blaziken behind him. **"Nothing…"** Hsa replied boldly, **"It's only a title, nothing more… nothing less"** when the portal fully opened to its maximum size, he knew that they had very little time left, **"Come on Pallet, it's time"** but as they were able to take two steps in, Pallet suddenly remembered something.

"Oh wait a minute!" he quickly dashed off towards Ash who was still standing at the same spot for nearly ten minutes now. "Ash… let's make a promise!" he quickly held out his pinky, "Let's promise to meet each other again" the young Pokemon trainer was a little surprise to see that kind of attitude coming from Pallet/Chu, but he never broke a promise before, so why should he start now. "Sure…" he returned the pinky swear and gave the boy one last hug before letting him depart to the other side.

When they finished, Pallet returned to the king's side with smiles on both of their faces. With the two of them together, they knew they can overcome any obstacle they come across. Besides, one of them is already a god, what more could you ask? As the two ancient ones stepped through the portal as it slowly closes down on them, they turned around to give one final wave to the mortal world. **"Hey Sha-hear, take care of everyone ok!"** with one final farewell from the king, the portal closed up with one big flash leaving nothing behind but an empty space and thousands of lives hanging in the balance.

An awkward silence came upon the mortals who were watching this unimaginable scene. Both parties, humans and Pokemons awaited anxiously for the next move to make…… but apparently…… none seemed to have an idea on what to do next.

"They're gone…" said Max as the flash ended. "Just like that…"

Another silence came but not as long as the first one.

"That is so like his majesty" Hagard inquired getting the attention of the gang, "The moment work arises, he bails at the last possible moment! Tch! He never changed at all" Chaucer laughed, "Well… that's our king alright…… always the lazy one"

**(Time skip) (Three hours later)**

After the king's little disappearing act before his subjects, Ash and the gang decided that it was high-time they left as well. With all the Pokemons deciding to make this little island their home, Ash and his friends all swore to never reveal the location of the island no matter what the cost. With Pokemons both rare and common living at the same place, it was practically a poacher's paradise hunting ground.

"Well… I guess it's time we left guys" Ash said earning several nods and 'yeah' sounds from his gang. The boat that the Pokemons provided them was more or less of something they expected. Some of them were expecting a raft of some sort, but who would've guess that the Pokemons would be able to build a small sailing boat for the whole gang? It was an old model made entirely out of wood that was for sure, but it was sturdy enough for all of them to sit around quite comfortably.

"_Ash…"_ the boy in question jerked his head towards the voice and noticed Mewtwo and his clones looking at him. After a few hours of healing and rest, Mewtwo was able to fully recover from the battle between him and the old king. "Mewtwo?" Ash reconfirmed his suspicion.

The psychic Pokemon slowly approached the boy with his head hovering over his body. It was no mystery that the Pokemon was taller than Ash, heck the boy even had to look directly up to get a clear shot of his face. When they came together face to face, Ash could already feel the amazing power built within the Pokemon's body. It was like a magnet that was pulling and pushing at the same time. "Thank you Mewtwo" Ash bowed his head in respect of the Pokemon, "Thank you for saving me back there… and…" but he was cut off when Mewtwo raised his paw, silencing him temporarily.

"_No Ash, it is we who should be thanking you" _the boy was caught by complete surprise of this. Even Pikachu was giving out a quizzled eye on what the psychic Pokemon meant. _"I only played the part of the messenger; you were the one who did the work. It was your friends that broke the link between your mind and the kings. It was your strength that aided us. If you did not break the bonds there…… Then none of us here would be left standing before you"_ he smiled at Ash… a RARE smile, one that would not be seen by many, _"Ash Ketchum…… we owe you and your companions our lives… once again"_ the whole clone army slowly lowered their heads, some even touching the ground.

Ash and the others were speechless. Nothing like this has ever happened to them before, but heck it felt real good! (I wonder how it would feel like to be worshipped)

"Uh…… you're welcome… I guess" Tracey rubbed his head completely oblivious on what was happening.

"_As a token of this"_ Mewtwo continued, _"I wish to present you with a gift…" _slowly the most powerful Pokemon in the galaxy picked out a Pokeball from C.Meowth and handed it to the boy with a gentle nudge. It was a Pokeball like none they have ever seen before. Instead of being painted with red and white, this Pokeball was painted with purple and dark purple and at the opening of the Pokeball was a small symbol of an 'X' "A pokeball?" Ash inquired as he inflated it with a press of a button.

"_Not an ordinary Pokeball Ash"_ Mewtwo explained, _"This Pokeball was specially designed to entrap me by a scientist from the future. It cannot hold any other Pokemon"_

"So… why give it to me?" Ash looked a bit puzzled by this and was now even more confused than before. _"That's because… I wish to be a Pokemon"_ Mewtwo replied coldly. And with a move that would give the gods a heart attack, Mewtwo dropped onto his knees and lower his head, _"I here by present myself to you… Ash Ketchum. Use that Pokeball on me and I shall serve you as my master for all eternity"_ the clones all gasped in shock on what the psychic Pokemon had said. Was this true? Was the strongest Pokemon in the galaxy really going to give up his freedom to a mere child?

The gang were also at shock. If Ash did accept Mewtwo's gift, then there was not a doubt in their minds that he would be the greatest Pokemon trainer in the world. With that kind of power, he would be unstoppable. The boy would not need any strategy nor tactics. With Mewtwo alone, he could win the Valmarian league without even taking a breather. But they had no voice in his actions. They could only wait… and watch on how this event unfolds itself.

"Pika pika pikachu!?" (Master, why?) asked C.Pikachu

"_This is my choice my friends. If I am to become a Pokemon, then I must first experience how it is like to be a Pokemon"_ some of the clones were already protesting about this insane idea. Few were already even thinking that if their master goes, then they'll go with him as well. "I am ready Ash" Mewtwo continued as he prepared to be sucked into the Pokeball.

Ash was the most shocked after all of this. First the king left and now a choice of power? Why did he have to burden all of these decisions? Having no conscious over his body, Ash slowly lifted the purple Pokeball and aimed it at Mewtwo. His mind was now in a major conflict over his heart. He had two choices:

He accepts the gift and become the greatest Pokemon Master the world has ever known

Refuse the gift and hope for the best

Hmm tough choice…

But just when the boy was about to do the unthinkable, Ash lowered his hand and dropped the Pokeball to the ground making Mewtwo's eyes widened with great confusion. "No…" the boy said plainly as he hid his eyes behind his hair. "I can't accept it"

Mewtwo was greatly confused by this act. He was quite sure that Ash would've accepted his gift. He understood that human intuition would gladly take power whenever it is offered, especially when it was free. _"But why?"_ the Pokemon asked raising his voice slightly, _"Are you denying me now? Are you too going to deny my existence on this world?! Are you going to deny my very own destiny!!!!" _a wide powerful aura flared over the psychic Pokemon's body as could not take rejection anymore. Slowly he charged up a shadow ball in his hands and prepared to obliterate the boy. _"WHY!?"_

Just when Mewtwo was about to throw the attack, Ash snapped at him, "Because it's not right!" he roared so loud that it would've made a Charizard's roar sound like a mouse squeaking. _"What isn't right!? You're a human, but your actions make no sense!"_ Mewtwo was now openly yelling at him, _"I am offering you power and yet you refuse! WHY?!"_

"Because I don't need your power!"

Shock… that was probably the only word for that moment. The psychic Pokemon suddenly dropped his attack and resumed a stance with his mouth slightly open and his eyes widened.

For all this time, Mewtwo had been a demand from many evil factions around the world. If he offered himself to Team Rocket, Magma, Aqua or even the Team Hunter J, they would accept him in a heart beat. But now…… here is a boy who rejected his power… saying that he does not need them.

_"Is this my fate then?"_ Mewtwo inqured, _"Am I to be forever a being that will never be needed?"_ the psychic Pokemon finally submitted to a great defeat. Without anyone to accept his powers, he was now completely… nothing.

But then his eyes widened again when Ash reached for his shoulder, "You may have been rejected by a lot of people and Pokemons Mewtwo. But there are a lot of guys who will still like you just the way you are"

_"Who?" _the Pokemon asked with a lifeless tone, _"Who could possibly accept a worthless being like me?"_ Ash only smiled in response, "Well… you can start by looking behind you" when Mewtwo did what he was told, his eyes made contact with his clone army as they all starred back at him with a worried look imprinted on their faces. "These Pokemons Mewtwo, accepted you a long time ago when you became their leader. They're your family… why else would they have followed you all the way here?" he nudged the psychic Pokemon to the crowd of his clones as they exchange several stares at each other.

Mewtwo did not know how to react at that very moment, he had a family with him, but he always looked at himself as a different being. He always saw himself as an alien compared to them, which was no surprise seeing that he was the only one of his kind.

As clones continued to look at their master with hopeful faces, Mewtwo felt an unimaginable urge to do something. He could see it in their eyes. The signs of acceptance, the will to help… everything. But then his thoughts were suddenly interrupted when C.Pikachu came to his feet. He lowered his body to face the little cloned mouse as it let out a soft squeak, _"My… family?"_ with those words, C.Pikachu leaped off the ground and hugged Mewtwo with its tiny little paws (pika! Pikachu!). Mewtwo was slightly embarrassed by the little ones actions but not soon later, he found himself surrounded by all of his clones. _"H… how could I have been so blind?"_

"You see Mewtwo?" Ash continued, "There are a lot of guys who like you…… by just being who you are" Mewtwo could not believe it himself. For years he had been looking for his destiny, his fate…… his rightful place in the world. But until now he had not realized… that it has always been with him…… right under his nose.

While the clones were all busy licking and hugging their master to death, Ash felt a slight hint of pride coming from his chest and yet at the same time, he felt a slight pang of disappointment as well. It would've been nice to have the greatest Pokemon in the galaxy by his side, but I guess his conscious got the best of him.

But as things finally began to die down a bit, a sudden voice popped in from the back of the forest which caught the gang a little by surprise, "Your majesty?" it was Sha-hear who spoke, along side with Chaucer and Hagard. Surprisingly for all of them, Rosa was not around anywhere to be seen. "Are you leaving already?" the white Lucario asked. "Sha-hear? What are you doing here?" Ash asked a little surprised to see the Guardians or any Pokemons at all. He thought that they would be too depressed to see him anymore.

"Don't look so surprised." Sha-hear replied, "I am merely here to pay my respects. Besides… it would be rude of us if we did not see you off" just when he let out a small smirk come out of his lips, a horde of Pokemons suddenly appeared from all around. From the air, ground, to the very depths of the sea itself. It looked as if the whole island itself came to see Ash and his friends off. All Pokemons, both common and rare were there to see the young king and to pay their last respects before he sets off to the new horizon.

"Whoa…!" the whole gang said in unison as they were awed by the appearance of every Pokemon known to mankind. "This is… amazing…!" Todd began taking photos of every Pokemon he could set his eyes on. "Come on guys, smile for me, smile for me!"

"I don't believe it…" Brock's jaw nearly dropped to the ground as several Gardevoirs appeared from the woods carrying several baskets of fruits and vegetables. "Your journey will be long I believe" said Sha-hear as he pointed to the baskets, "Take them… they will serve as your rations until you reach your destination" Brock quickly loaded the supplies onto the ship with the help of Drew and Richie. With a large amount of provisions stacked up on their boat, they were certain to make it to Valmarian city.

"… thanks Sha-hear" Ash showed his gratitude with a slight bow.

"There's no need for your gratitude your majesty… I am merely following my own duties" Sha-hear replied in a very professional tone. "Now… hurry up and leave… or you'll miss your competition" with a nod from the boy, Ash and the rest of the gang made their way to the inside of the boat which was incredibly detailed. But just when Ash was about to board in, he caught sight of Mewtwo who was still being pilled up with his newl found family, "Oh that reminds me. What are you gonna do now Mewtwo?" the boy asked.

"_Me?"_ Mewtwo replied with a smile on his face, _"I decided that it was time I made a life of my own here. I think that living here… might prove beneficial"_

"Great!" Ash smiled back, "Is that ok with you guys?" he motioned to the three Guardians who simply smirked. "If his majesty wishes it, then it shall be done" Sha-hear replied crossing his arms err… I mean paws together.

With Richie taking the wheel (since he's the only one who knows how to drive a boat) and the gang ready to shove off, they soon found themselves sailing across the ocean, using the wind as their bearing. And with the island furthering away from the distance, they all turned their gaze to their primary target, the Valmarian isle, where their dreams will finally become a reality.

With all the Pokemons waving goodbye at their new king, the Guardians soon found themselves at a very awkward position. Having lost their king and the battle, they began to even wonder… 'what did we gain from all of this?'

But now was not the time for weakness. They had to remain strong and vigilant as an example to their comrades in arms. With their heads held high and their will regained, the Guardians turn their focus on rebuilding the fortress. For who knows? Maybe it might come of use one of these days.

"Ash…… hehehehe" Hagard chuckled with the boy's name.

"What's so funny?" Sha-hear asked.

But the green Lucario simply smiled in reply, "Nothing…… I just remembered a saying when I was still in the academy"

-The fire burns through the leaves, consuming all in its path

-When the fire is extinguish only the 'ash' remains in its wake

-And through those ashes are born with new life

-Expanding beyond the reaches of the gods

---From my grandfather---

"Ash… the one that remains after the fire. Pretty ironic don't you think?" the three of them chuckled slightly holding their laughter within.

"Hey…" Chaucer spoke up which caught their attention, "Has anyone seen Rosa?"

Oh no…

**(Valmarian city slums)**

Brendan was traversing through the rough 'jungle' part of the city with nothing but the shirt on his back and the Pokeballs on his belt. The guy may look like a creep, but he's managed to hold himself against all of his opponents so far. With the Valmarian league coming closer with each passing second, many of the rivalring factions have gone into a state of private wars. The slums were the best place to knock opponents out of the competition, since it was practically isolated from the rest of the city, local gang thugs and wanabes battle it out to see on who was the better trainer.

But as our silver haired trainer swung through the old factory pipe lines, he suddenly caught notice of a small battle just right below him. It seemed like Havic was battling one of the Bail Out gang members who was dumb enough to challenge him.

Ever since Gary managed to win the unofficial tournament at the city gym, the boy and his elite gang members were soon known as the 'Crew' A small band of trainers which rivaled the Elite Five by a long shot. Gary was definitely the leader along with Havic as his second best followed by his personal bodyguard Jaques, the Dark Queen Emma, the techno-nature geek Steve, the mysterious trainer Red, and of course… him.

Brendan's thought were soon interrupted when the last of the challenger's Pokemons fell to the ground. When victory was clear, Havic decided to split. It wasn't like him to accept normal idiotic challenges, but that didn't stop him from becoming a bully.

When both trainers were out of sight, Brendan decided that it was high time he left as well. Staying at one place too long wasn't good for him. But just when he was about to make a grand exit through the rooftops, he noticed a familiar figure standing under the sewer line. It was definitely Claire, one of the Elite Five trainers of the Bail Out gang. She was talking to someone, but the guy was probably just another goon.

"Alright… you got the plan? Now go!" the girl sighed as her minion dashed away with the information stored in his head. But then she quickly noticed another presence within the vicinity, "You can stop hiding now. I can sense you a mile away" she said outloud which echoed through the small slum area. Brendan was quite impressed that she was able to detect him. Most guys never even saw him coming before it was too late.

Seeing that his cover was blown, the silver haired trainer decided to jump off the pipes and landed right in front of the girl who seemed worthy of a battle. "Hey… I know you" Claire inquired pointing a finger at him, "You're one of Gary's 'Crew' aren't you? I heard a lot about you guys" the smirk on her lips was as seducing as her voice, but Brendan did not fall for such lame tricks. He was stern and strong and not so easily manipulated but some cheap tricks.

"You know me…" Brendan confirmed his suspicions.

"The whole city knows about you guys" Claire countered as she blew away several strain of hair falling on her face. "So what do I owe of this kind visit?"

Brendan paused for a moment before speaking, "Nothing much… just passing through and I thought I should say hi……… 'Hi' hehe" he was either mocking her or just being plain stupid. But Claire didn't have time for a battle, she just nodded and left to the opposite direction. "I got one question…" Brendan spoke up finally getting the girl's attention. "What is it? Make it quick" she replied knowingly annoyed by the guy.

"How much do you know about… Red…?"

**(Somewhere along the ocean) (Two hours later) (1 week 6 days and 16 hours before the Valmarian League)**

As the gang finally settled into their new boat, they decided to have a little snack before catching up with some of their snooze. Having all that fighting and all, really built up an appetite both physically and mentally as well. "Hey Brock, what's there to eat, I'm starving…" Ash groaned from his mouth and also from his stomach. The squinty eyed man quickly search through his backpack to see what they had left, "Well aside from the fruit the Pokemon gave us. We have two cans of sausages and bag of mushrooms. What do you got Tracey" he turned to the Pokemon watcher as he too searched his backpack.

"Sorry, but it looks like I'm empty" Tracey gave out a small sweat drop.

"I got some crackers and some instant noodles" said Drew as he opened a can of soda, "All we need now is water"

After a few minutes of passing each other's snack around, they all finally settled down at the back of the boat to have a well deserved meal, "Alright everyone, let's dig in!" Ash prompted first, laying his mouth onto the plate before anyone else. As this little fiasco finally ended, everything finally seemed like to be returning to normal.

As they all garbled down their own food and chatted about random topics that came up, the event that happened last night seemed to be nothing more but a simple nightmare to all of them. It was as if the whole thing never even happened.

But alast, their little party reunion had to end when something began to gather at the end of the boat.

"Hey… is there a fog coming or something?" Anabel immediately noticed the increasing thickness of the mist that seemed to have gathered out of nowhere.

"Oh no!" Tracey stammered as he recalled something, "I know this place! This is the Mist Valley! A valley that's located near the isle of Valmarian. It was the first defense against invaders during the old times when pirates roamed the waters. I read about this during my studies with professor Birch" he seemed proud to have known this information, but that info didn't really help them on getting out of there.

As they all thought that the day couldn't get any worst, this little thing had to happen. The seas became stadily rougher by the moment, which prompted Richie to return to the bridge to regain control of the boat. The winds blew harder and harder but not hard enough to blow them away, it was just strong enough to make the ship go 60 kph.

"Everyone, grab hold of something!" Ash ordered out which the gang quickly thought wise to follow.

After five minutes of crossing the vast ocean with a blind eye, everyone began to wish that this horrible chain of events would finally stop! And heck did their wish come true. Because just when they all wished together, the ship suddenly stopped as it hit a large solid object in front of them. It was a jet boat like none they have ever seen before.

The tags on the boat were as beautiful as sea itself and the paint stripes on the rear gave it that cool chill out look. The boat was as solid as tin itself, but way harder than one could imagine. "Whoa… is that a boat?" Duplica brought herself out of her daze as she got up to see the boat. Hopefully to them, it wouldn't be a haunted boat.

With the winds picking up even faster than before, Richie decided to see if anyone was inside the jet boat/yacht, "Hello!" he yelled, "Is anyone in there?!" the others quickly followed his example and began yelling for help. With the thunder clouds picking up just above them, they knew that the wooden ship they were on wouldn't stand a chance against the rough seas. "Can anybody help us in there!?" Misty yelled out that last part to the top of her voice.

Just when they thought that the boat was abandoned, a rusty old sailor appeared on deck with a lamp on his hand, "What in the blazes is going on?" the voice of that old man sounded very familiar to everyone. But they didn't have time to remember his name, they just needed his help.

"Hey mister!" Richie called out, "You got to help us! There's a storm coming here!" but when the man put the lamp closer to his face, the whole gang woke up in a slight gasp, "Richie? Is that you miboy!?" it was Arthur, his dad.

"Dad?" Richie inquired with a questioning look on his face, "What in sand hills are you doing out here?!" the old sea dog snapped as the wind picked up the pace, "No time to talk! You can explain everything later! Come on in everyone! I got plenty of space down in the lower deck! Go go go go go go!"

As the first few groups managed to board the S.S Jennifer with relative ease, the sails on the wooden ship began to crack, signaling the remaining crew that they had to abandon the ship fast. Brock and Tracey gathered up their provisions and were the first to get in. Followed by Max and Anabel then Richie and Misty. May, Max and Todd came in next followed by Drew who nearly slipped off the edge of the boat.

But just when it was Duplica's turn to climb aboard, a strong gush of wind blew her off balance, making her slip off the balcony. "Wha… wha……! WHA!!!!" but Ash was quick to act on his feet. Even with an injured arm, the boy was able to the girl hold on to it while he crossed the boat with Dawn right behind him. "You ok Duplica?" Ash asked the imitator worryingly. But before the emerald haired girl could reply, Arthur thought of it to be better if they didn't linger outside the ship's hull.

"Alright you two, we can talk later! Now everybody inside the hull NOW!" he nudged the gang by the side and pushed them all into the hull where it was warm and safe.

**(Thirty minutes later)**

After settling in with his guests, Arthur decided to brew some hot coco to keep the gang warm. Luckily for them, his ship was crossing the sea to deliver a shipment of clams to a nearby town and so he was well supplied for a long trip. He had enough blankets to share with everyone and with the food Brock brought in, he probably had enough provisions to go on a whole month vacation.

"Building a boat made entirely out of wood is an amazing feat boys" the old sea dog explained to them, "But traveling the sea with one at this time of year isn't exactly the best choice" he then handed Drew a cup of hot coco to keep him from the from the freezing chills. "Thanks a lot Arthur, you really saved our necks back there" Misty thanked him as she took another sip from her mug. She then shared a tiny sip with her Togepi as it squeaked with happiness with the warm liquid running through its body.

"No need to thank me young lady" Arthur replied holding his hand up, "I merely pass through here by chance. My radio picked up an S.O.S last night coming from the ocean. Apparently the captain of the ship was named Drake. He told me that you guys were around here so I decided to look around"

"Wait a minute!" Ash inquired, "So what happened to Drake and his men?" Arthur smiled back in return, "The local authorities picked up his ship a couple of hours ago. Ever since then, I've been looking for you guys. Well at least the worst part is over, I'll go get something to keep you guys entertained. Enjoy your stay" and with that, the old sailor left the room, to begin preparing the ship to cast off.

"So dad" Richie called his attention, "How were you able to get Jennifer fixed?"

The old smiled, "That's easy! I remembered that I got this little girl with an insurance policy! With all the money I have, I was able to bring this baby back and better than ever! Hehehehe HA!"

As the gang went into a momentary silence, they could still hear the sound of the wind crashing against the surface of the boat while the rough waves clashed on the edge of the boat. When the engine began to rumble down below deck, they knew immediately that they were moving.

With all of that crazy, death defying adventure behind our heroes, Ash seemed to have just realized on how tired he was. Without a wink sleep since the last two nights, the boy quickly fell onto the ground and began to drowse back to dream land. Hopefully this time, he would have a nice dream for once.

When the gang caught sight of their idol trainer sleeping like a baby at center floor of the room, they couldn't help but bring out a smile to their faces as they too were also tired from lack of sleep. May quickly pulled out a small pillow from the couch and slept right next to Ash on the floor. "Hey May, what ya doing?" Max asked rubbing his eyes as they were close to coming to a complete close. "I think I'll sleep next to Ash on the floor. You can have the couch Max" the older sister recommended to him. But Max wasn't buying it. He could care less on where he slept, heck he wouldn't mind even sleeping with Ash in the coldest of all nights.

When May finally tucked herself next to the boy of her dream and not to mention her mentor, Max decided let out a sigh as he stood up from the couch. Taking one pillow in one hand and a blanket in the other, Max went on the other side of Ash and slept faster before anyone could say I.

Seeing such love for the boy, Dawn and Duplica couldn't help but do the same. They all took one pillow from each other their side and quickly found a comfortable spot near Ash. Weather it was near his face or his foot, as long as they could stay close to him, it didn't matter. They would follow him even to the darkest pits of the Johto desert if they must.

Even Richie was now having the same idea. After rescuing his best friend from that strange Pokemon war, he decided to follow the girl's example and sleep on the floor. And before anyone even knew it, all the couches and beds were completely abandoned. Everyone wanted to stay near Ash at that night, because none of them wanted to lose something they cared the most. **(NO IT IS NOT YAOI!!!!!)**

When Arthur finally returned from the bridge, he had brought with him a couple of soda cans and a board game, "Hey kids, I was able to find someth…" he never got to finish that sentence when he saw the sight before him. The old man grew out a smirk and quickly turned the other way, ignoring the snores being given by the others. "Well… I guess I'll come back later then…" he said quietly to himself before moving back to his bedroom.

**(Valmarian city airport)**

The professor was having a wonderful day when his plane finally reached the air port. Delia was still lying on his chest sleeping like a puppy at the waiting area while the Jennies and Mr. Mime waited for their luggage. He was so happy that he didn't even notice that he left the book he was reading back on the plane. Just when his heart was melting like a frozen yogurt in an oven, Delia finally began waking up from her deep sleep. "Haaaaa" she yawned loudly as she stretched her arms, "Oh my, I must've slept through the whole flight. I'm sorry about that professor"

"It was nothing to worry about Delia" the old man replied with his golden smile, "Besides, I think you needed a lot of catching up with your sleeps. You looked really tired on the plane"

The woman smiled at his kindness, "Yeah… I'm not sure what happened myself, but I feel like my whole body wants to relax again" she let out a long stretch before moving towards a small fast food stand.

With Delia looking a whole lot better than before, Sam couldn't help but feel happy for her, especially now that she was going to see Ash. Hopefully he was somewhere around town training or something. But while the old scientist was thinking on how to surprise the boy, his thoughts were then interrupted when the Jenny twins arrived with their luggages on a cart. "Hey there professor" the first one spoke, "Oh, where's Delia?"

"She's out buying some food right now" the old man replied.

"Well it's nice seeing the old Delia back" said the other Jenny putting her hand on her waist. Not long after they met, Samuel suddenly noticed one package he didn't seem to recognize on the cart. It was a small white square box wrapped around nicely with a tin bow. The name 'Delia' was imprinted on the package so it must've belonged to hers. Besides there aren't a lot people who are named Delia, are there?

A few minutes later, a slight tapping could be felt on Samuel's back. The old man jerked his head and was quickly surprised to see someone who he didn't expect. "Hey grandpa" it was Gary, Samuel's grandson, "Gary! There you are my boy, how are you faring? I haven't seen you in months! I didn't expect to see you here" they both exchanged friendly hugs. "I'm fine gramps" the boy replied. But then the professor noted the scar that was on his face. "Oh my word! Where did you get that scar?" the scar was imprinted on his face remaining as a permanent mark of his misuse of Pokemons. He was so focused on defeating Ash that he didn't care about his Pokemons. That scar alone, would forever serve as his reminder for all eternity.

"Just a little training accident, nothing big" Gary replied truthfully in a way. "Well you should be more careful Gary. Don't over exert youtself during your training. Oh that reminds me" he gestured with his hands, "By the way, have you seen Ash? I was hoping to give him his Pokemons before the league starts" Gary was now fighting down a frown that was slowly creeping onto his lips. The Jennies also notted that the boy had an eye twitching problem too…

"Sorry, haven't seen him" the boy replied mockingly, "Why don't you go to this fan club? I bet you'll find plenty of 'him' there" but just when their little reunion was coming to a good start, one of Havic's 'minions' as he called them appeared with an exhausted face, "Boss, I got a message for you" but Gary quickly shut him up with a death glare that would've sent the chills onto his bones. "I gotta go gramps. I'll see ya later" he quickly moved to a secluded spot where the trainer can relay the message quietly.

"What is it?" Gary asked.

The trainer quickly recomposed himself before pulling out a note from his pocket. "A message from Havic sir… He's waiting for you at the Uno café with the others. I was told to give you this" Gary immediately snatched the note and read its contents with haste. A scowl became visible when he read it over and over again. With the words imprinted on his mind, he crumpled the note and threw it into the recycle bin. "Come on" he motioned to the goon, "We got a meeting to catch up"

-The note

_Dear Boss_

_It looks like the Bail Outs are about to try something stupid again. One of their guys just issued another challenge on a two on two battle. Jaques and Steve are already on scene and holding them off. For now, just come to the Café. There's something that I'm sure you would like to know._

_Yours truly_

_Havic_

**(Back on board the S.S Jennifer) (A few hours later)**

During the middle of the day while everyone was asleep, Ash began rubbing his eyes seeing that there was dust gathering around. He got up from the floor completely oblivious to the sight of everyone that were sleeping next to him. "Oh… where's the bathroom around here" he opened one door to the next, but saw no room that came close. Then when he reach for the bridge door, he was kind of surprised to see Arthur there holding the wheel in his arms.

"Hmm? Oh hey there Ash, what's up? I thought you'd still be asleep"

Ash may not know it, but his face actually almost looked like a Snorlax in one of its hibernation days. "I was kinda looking for the bathroom"

"Last door on your right" the old sailor pointed to a wooden door at the back. Ash didn't really have to use to the toilet or anything, he just needed a sink to wash his face from all the dust that were gathering on his eyes. After having a cool refresing water to take all the filth away, Ash felt his eyes fully revitalized. "Thanks Arthur"

"No need to thank me boy" the old man smiled back.

"No… I meant, thanks for taking us with your boat" Ash clarified to the man.

Arthur smirked back, blowing a few puff off his pipe, "Oh don't mention it Ash. After all, I did promise you guys to take you on my ship" but just as the mist around the ship began to clear up Ash began to wonder how long had they spent the time overseas.

"Hey Arthur" he grabbed the man's attention, "How long have we been sleeping?"

"Oh not long, just a couple of hours I think" the man replied. "Hey… you wanna try and take the wheel?" he offered to Ash, "Me?" the boy was reluctant at first but then decided to do something new for a change.

"It's not that hard really" Arthur explained, "Just keep the wheel as steady as possible but don't try to force it to stop a turn. When it stops turning, just reel it back in. It's like handling a bike… except its way bigger" when Ash took hold of the wheel he began to feel like he wasn't IN the ship but WAS the ship itself and the thin layers of tin were his skin and armor. He could feel the engine humming just right below his feet, which way the rudder was turning and how strong the winds and currents were. It was an amazing feeling (trust me, I know)

"Wow… it's incredible. It's like I can feel what the boat is feeling" Ash remained awed as he now became familiar with the maneuvers themselves. "Wow Ash, you're a natural in this" Arthur complimented, "Just like my son Richie hehehehehe. Looks like the two of you have a lot of things in common other than Pokemon that is. I was actually interested to see you ever since he came home" that last statement caught the boy's attention. "When he came home?"

"That's right" Arthur replied as he reignited his pipe, "Ever since he got back from the Indigo Plateau, he was more interested in battling you more than before. He actually began skipping meals just to train his Sparky and his other Pokemons"

"Well I guess training does come before the stomach" Ash joked. But after comparing his watch to the one on the navigational system, the young trainer began to wonder, "Hey Arthur"

"Hmm?"

"How long till we get to port?" the old man laughed but this time it was a little louder, "The port? Well we're already there" the moment he pointed out into the window, the sight suddenly became clear as a pure seven carat diamond itself. Just right before the bow, was a port city of……

"I don't believe it" Ash remained awed as he tried to take it in the sight before him. What he thought was nothing but mists and smoke, now turned into a lush green grassland clear with the empty blue seas below the beach. It was like watching a dream unfold before his very eyes. "No way! We made it! We finally made it! Wait till I tell the guys!" he quickly left the room leaving the wheel to rotate freely on its own.

"Oh wait a minute! Ash!" Arthur quickly grab the wheel and hurried back into the normal position. "Phew… that was close…" the old sailor sighed.

**(Back with Ash and the gang)**

"Everyone wake up! Hurry, you guys got to see this!" Ash began nudging all of his friends as they al drowsed up to see what was all the commotion.

"Hey Ash… what's with all the rush?" Dawn yawned at the end rubbing her eyes to take away the sand. "Come on everyone! We're here! We're in Valmarian city port!" with a quick yell from their fearless leader, the gang all looked at each other before processing the information within their brain.

"WHATTTTTT!!!!!?"

With a blink of an eye, the whole gang began exiting their ship and headed towards the front balcony, where they could get the first look to their final destination! With all their hearts anticipating a great grand welcome the gang were practically so psych that their tose were beginning to curl from all the excitement.

For three months they have been dreaming of getting here. For three months had they've been hindered by Team Rocket and the others. But now… after all that hardwork of getting through… they were finally there.

"Hey guys, look at that welcome sign!" Max quickly pointed at the sign that sprung their hearts in motion.

Welcome to Sandgem Town, the gateway to Shinou……

Silence…

Silence…

Silence…

Silence…

Silence…

"**WHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"**


	42. Wrong Place, Right Time Part 1

**Chapter 42: At The Wrong Place At The Right Time (Part 1)**

**(Sandgem town port) (03:00 PM) (2 weeks before the Valmarain league)**

The whole gang jaw dropped to the floor as they made it out to the boat. With huge windmills facing against the wind, empty plains of wheat field and small community housing littered all over the area, they were quite sure now that weren't in Valmarian city. While Ash and his friends were still stunned by the fact that they were in the wrong place, Brock and Drew had to choke hold Richie as he tried to reach for his old man's coat. "Dad! What are we doing here in the Shinou region!? You were supposed to take us to Valmarain city!"

"Valmarian city?" Arthur looked back at his son innocently, "Nobody told me anything about Valmarain city. I just thought you guys were just tagging along so I didn't bother to say anything" but that only caused Richie to put even more strength into his hand as he reach for his collar, "We spent three months trying to get to Valmarian! Where else do you think we were going!?!!!!!" steam was rising from his nose like a mad Tauros looking ready to do a stampede.

"Hey take it easy Richie" Ash calmed his counterpart as he tapped his shoulder a little frightened if the boy would bite back, "I bet your dad can take us to Valmarian city on his next trip… right?"

"Nope" the old man replied plainly which caused all of them to face fault to the ground, "WHY NOT!?" Richie yelled, "I got to deliver three more packages to Goldenrod city in Johto and after that, I have to head to Slateport city for check up. Those clams don't deliver themselves you know" he winked at them gesturing that he was serious… in a certain way. "May be you kids can find a ferry that'll take you there instead"

But then Richie quickly grab Misty's magical mallet and readied himself to beat the life out of his father. If it weren't for Todd and Tracey, Arthur would've been eating the rock hard cement on the floor already.

"Captain Arthur" said one of the dock workers, "The package has been unloaded. But we found one box that wasn't listed on our delivery note sir" the sea dog quickly took the note pad from the worker and slowly scanned its contents, "An idol package? That's unusual… what is it?"

"Don't know sir. There's just a name on it" the worker quickly gestured to the Machamp to bring in the box on the cart wheel. "Here it is" It was a big box, probably big enough to store a TV set. Strangely enough, there was a simple name imprinted on the top of the box.

'Ash'

All eyes turned to the hero as he looked strangely at the box as well. "Is this yours Ash?" Arthur asked hoping that he wouldn't need to pay any extra fines or anything. "No… I don't remember having a package for me. What's inside it?"

"We don't know either" said the woker, "We tried opening it using one of the crow bars, but it looks like it was built to witstand a typhoon" he then rubbed his head violently, "Aww man, tell you what: You take the package. I have enough trouble as it is with all the extra lugages coming around. Valmarain city is taking more and more of my time" with a quick tear of a piece of paper, the worker decided to leave along with his Machamp to attend to their other duties.

"W… wait a minute! What am I supposed to a box that can't even open!?" Ash yelled out but the man was already too far, too late. "I wonder what's in it"

Seeing that this conversation was getting nowhere, Arthur decided that it was time for him to leave. "Well I guess it's time for me to leave. Sorry… I wish I could help you guys, but these clams won't deliver themselves hehehehe" Richie simply pouted, "You said that already dad…" but just when Arthru was about to board his ship, the S.S Jennifer, a thought quickly nudged him, "Oh that reminds me…" his face suddenly turned serious as he approached Ash, "Ash…… while I'm gone… can you do me a favor?" Richie suddenly turned a little surprise as his dad's tone changed from the happy go lucky fisherman mood to a serious dead tone.

"Sure… what is it Arthur?" Ash replied, completely confident that he could take responsibility to whatever he was asked to do.

"When I'm away… take care of Richie for me…" the boy in question suddenly flushed out of embarrassment, "DAD! I can take care of myself!" the old sea dog's face returned to its normal state as he grinned from ear to ear, "I know you can son, but I would feel a lot better knowing that someone's looking out for ya hehehehe" Richie's face was so red that even the snow that was falling down on his face were melting just as they touched him. "I'm 14 years old dad! I can handle myself!" little did he know that the gang were holding a bit of a laugh behind his back.

When Ash recompiled himself, he immediately smiled back, "Sure thing Arthur"

"Ash, don't reply to that question!" Richie barked as turned into a cerberus (not literally) glaring both of them with a blush on his face. Arthur simply laughed and boarded his ship before casting the rope off, "Oh by the way Richie!" he called out to his son, "Don't forget to change your underwear too ok! Or they'll reek just like when you were ten!" Richie's face was riping so badly that even a tomato wouldn't be able to compare to his embarrassment.

Along the way, the gang could hear several sailors and workers giggling at the very humiliating scene.

**(A few minutes later)**

Since their transportation was now cut off, Ash decided to split his gang up into groups. One team will go to the ticket booth to see if there are any cruise boats that could take them to Valmarian city while the other team go to the food court and purchase some much needed supplies. After a few minutes of wandering around, they finally gathered together at the local park to give their results.

"Hey guys" Ash hailed to the other group as they approached. "So what's the news?" from the looks on Drew's face, Ash knew that it wasn't good. "All boats going to Valmarian city are booked till next month" Drew began, "I checked all the class but none of them are accepting anymore. I don't really have any favors here in Shinou. To be truthful, this is actually my first time here as well"

Seeing that the news was worst than he thought, Ash decided to make a head plan, "Well, the first thing we need right now is shelter" he acted very leaderish with his poise and tone. "We have plenty of food" May interrupted giving the boy some advice, "Maybe We can plan our next move after we get some rest. Don't you think so Ash?" with a synchronized nod from everyone, the gang decided to pack up and leave for the Pokemon center. There will always be room at the Pokemon center……… or so they thought.

**(Sandgem town Pokemon center)**

"What? You have no more rooms at all?" May raised her voice slightly amazed by the fact for the first time in the natural course of history that one of her sactuary was booked full. "I'm afraid so" said Nurse Joy as she bowed with an apologetic look, "There are even several trainers that made reservations even before you guys so I'm afraid it's still going to be a long time before there's an empty room for you to use"

And as if he was right on cue, Brock quickly got on his knees and pulled out a bushel of roses, courtesy of Drew of course, "But there is another room you can fill Nurse Joy!" he began, "The room in my heart will always hold the candle light for you! Forever and evaacckk!" in a matter of minutes, Croagunk quickly came out of its Pokeball and punch the man's stomach with a poison punch. Brock fell to the ground completely paralyzed while the frog Pokemon dragged the love sick man out of the center.

"Ahehehe I guess some things never change" Ash giggled then he turned to Nurse Joy, "Well thanks for your help Nurse Joy" and with a slight bow, the gang picked up their luggages and moved back to the streets where Brock was still lying with a twitching eye.

"So much for that idea of shelter" Max sighed heavily under his breath. "If the Pokemon center is booked, there's no doubt that the all the inns must be booked full as well"

"Then I guess we'll just have to improvise" Anabel smiled cheering the group a little bit at a time, "I haven't been to the Shinou region before so I'm not exactly familiar with the place"

"I guess that goes for the three of us" May replied including her brother in the sentence.

"Todd and I have only heard about the Shinou region, but never actually been here before either" Tracey added holding a sketchpad on his arm, "If we're going to stay here, we might as well look for a guide" after a moment of thought, all eyes suddenly turned to Brock. "Why's everybody looking at me for?" obviously the man was a living guidebook. Being a Pokemon breeder, the guy practically had more experience in traveling to other regions other than Ash.

"Hey I got an idea!" Dawn spurted out with Piplup by her side. "Why don't you guys stay at my place? There's plenty of room for everyone to gather around. And I bet my mom would be psych to finally have some guests around the house"

"Oh yeah" Ash remembered, "Your house is in Twinleaf town right? If I remember correctly, it should be at least a three hour walk from here to your place"

"That's right" Brock added, "We stopped by your place once, after the Shinou grand festival. It would be nice to see her again too"

Ash then turned to the rest of the gang who seemed pretty oblivios to whatthey were talking about. After all, Ash didn't really remained in contact when he was out on his own in the Shinou region. "Is everyone ok with that?" the boy asked earning several nods and 'yeah' sound from the group. "Alright then… we're off to Twinleaf town!" with a jubilant cheer from the gang, their celebration was suddenly cut short when a mob of reporters suddenly appeared out of the blues. "Huh?" they all said in exact unison.

"Come on you two, the greatest Pokemon trainer is here!" said one of the reporters to his camera crew.

"Pick up the pace boys, we wouldn't want to miss this chance of opportunity!" said the female reporter who was busy combing her hair.

At first, Ash thought that they were coming for him, since he's been getting the special attention all the time back in Kanto, Johto and Hoenn. But before he knew it, the media suddenly ran passed him, avoiding every possible contact with the boy. This earned a few confusing gaze from several memebers of the gang. They all thought that they were coming for Ash as well, but it seemed like someone else has taken over his spot light.

When Ash finally recovered from the near death trample, he slowly turned his head hoping that none of the media would recognize him. He wasn't wearing his disguise anymore, which mean some of them might actually recognize him. But right now, the gang was quite curious on who was the best Pokemon trainer they were all talking about. "Hey what's with all the commotion back there?" Anabel asked to anyone who could give the answer.

"Dunno" came in Brock's reply, "But whatever it is, its got Ash's attention that's for sure" and true to his words, the boy in question soon found himself prying through the small media group as they hung several mickes on top of the Pokemon trainer who was said to be the best.

Not long after Ash was able to get himself inside, he immediately saw a woman probably in her mid-twenties with long blond hair wearing a lightly darkened long coat. This was probably the Pokemon trainer that the reporters were talking about. But with Ash's guess on her facial expression, she was probably having a hard time controlling the crowd who were asking several rediculious questions.

"Champion Cynthia, Champion Cynthia!" called one of the reporters who scooted the others with her tape recorder, "How does it feel to have once again won the Shinou league again?"

**A/N: Cynthia is the world renowned Pokemon trainer who is said to be the best in the land and probably in the world! You can find more info about her in serebii  
**

"Uh..." this probably wasn't the first time this young lady was questioned by a mob of reporters, but no matter how many times you get swarmed, no one will ever get used to all this kind of attention.

"What league region are you going to compete next!? Kanto, Hoenn?"

"Umm…" Cynthia was never one to worry about appearances before but with all these questions being thrown right in front of her face, she was practically looking for tbe nearest exit possible.

"By the way, do you have a boy friend by any chance?" said one of the reporters who suddenly spurned the interest of everyone in the crowd, even the mick-holders were curious as well on whom the woman might've been with already.

But this only gave the young champion a good excuse to get away. She quickly recomposed herself and kept a stern face going, "Actually… I do have a boy friend" the replies from the crowd were going estatic. People that were watching the news channel now were practically glued to their seats as well. Who was the lucky man?

"WHO!?" the reporters all held their microphones closer to the woman as she raised her hand. "He's right……… here" with a random hand of fate guiding her fingers, the Pokemon champion knew at once that she made a lucky choice. She could already recognize Ash the moment he stepped into her sights. When the crowd noted on who she was pointing at, they all went like 'HUH?!' (Pika?!)

Even in the distance you could hear some people in their houses saying the same thing.

But the gang's reaction was more of astonished rather than confused. "Huh?!" they all said in unison.

When the reporters finally gave out some room, Cynthia decided to play the act a little bit longer, to convince that she wasn't lying… or at least pretend that she wasn't lying. (A lie-lie if you can call it that) "It's true" the Pokemon champion stated, "I believe you all know the world famous Ash Ketchum, no?" this caused the crowd to gasp even more than before. A world renowned trainer hooked up with the world Pokemon champion… it was so obvious! "We've been dating for over a year now"

"_We have?"_ Ash wondered to himself, _"What did I get myself into this time?"_

"Isn't that right sweetie?" Cynthia cooed at the boy as she wrapped her arm around his. With the crowd anticipating some sort of reaction from the boy, they still didn't look quite convinced.

"Uh… I guess…" Ash replied comepletely oblivious on what was happening. Cynthia simply let out a chuckle, "Thanks a lot Ash" she whispered to the boy, "Just keep acting for awhile and I'll get us out of here" the boy nodded with her gesture and quickly began following Cynthia's lead. "Yeah… I guess you're right" the boy spoke out loud putting his acting skills to good use. Amazingly, the media seemed to be buying their act quite well.

After recomposing from the shock, one of Shinou reporter, which some know as Ronda from the show Shinou Now TV came in front of her camera crew to feed the audience some info on what was going on. (You can find her and her funny crew in the beginning of Pokemon Shinou episode 29: The Champ Twins!) "Well ladies and gentlemen! You heard it here so you must've heard it first" she began as she couldn't find the words to continue that sentence.

"Hey, Champion Cynthia!" shouted another reporter, "Can you give us a kiss for the camera?"

The blonde champ simply smiled, "Of course!"

"WHAT!?" Ash was good with acting and all but a kissing scene was not something he thought he would be doing.

"HAAAAA?!" the gang yelled too as they slowly approached the 'pretend-to-be-couples' "Wait a minute… are they acting… or being serious here?" May wondered as her heart began to pump along with her fist.

But before anyone could react, Cynthia was already making her move. She gently closed her eyes and moved her face closer to Ash. Though she wouldn't say it out loud, she had to admit that the boy looked pretty cute when he was embarrassed. "W…w…w" Ash was trying to speak but the voice in his throat seemed to have been trapped inside his lunges. His heart began to race against the time increasing his blood capacity by the second. His sweatglands began to act up like he was in a sauna bath and not even the snow was enough to cool him down.

The crowd zoomed in their cameras to the lips as they were just barely inches apart. Some were biting their nails while some were biting their clothes ripping a piece of fabric along the way. The anticipation was growing more and more intense by the second as Cynthia's lips were slowly converging with Ash.

But before anyone could even take a decent picture of the scene, a large voice abrupted from behind catching the camera crew off guard. "NO!!!" May, Duplica, and Dawn all yelled together as they hastily loungue themselves to the scene causing a huge dust cloud to envelop.over the boy. Seeing this as her a loop hole in the crowd, Cynthia grabbed Ash by the arm and pulled the rest out of there before the media could have any time to recover at all.

"(cough cough!) What happened?!" said one of the camera men. "Hey! They're running away! Media crew, after them!" and with that they began what we would call… the cat and the mouse chase.

**(Ten minutes of running later)**

After breaking off the persuit of those media zombies, Cynthia and the gang decided to take cover inside a restaurant which seemed to be averagely popular with the locals. While the gang occupied most of the seats, Cynthia had an apologetic look on her face as they began their little conversation, "Ahehehe… I'm really sorry about that earlier" she began, "I really needed to break away from those guys so I had to make up a story break the line up"

"That's ok" Ash returned the smile, "I know how you feel. I also had that kind of problem back when I was visiting other cities around the world"

"My dad also had that kind of problem once" May added taking a sip from her tea cup, "Ever since he became famous, the news crew wouldn't stop bothering him for once second. He had to make a special appearance almost at least once a week nowadays"

"I guess you guys know I feel then too" Misty added putting her face on the table. Brock raised a questionable eye brow on what she meant by that. He could understand that her sisters were popular, but he has never seen her on TV before. "I didn't know you were famous Misty" this only earned him a 'what do you mean by that?' look from the orange haired girl, "Since my sisters are so famous with their role play and performances, they let me handle all the news interviews for them (sigh) Sometimes I wonder if I was even adopted…" (Togic… preeee) shouted Togepi with a smile.

With a laugh from all around the table, Cynthia decided to change the topic a little bit, "I was quite surprise to see you here Ash. I thought you would be in Valmarian city by now" the boy simply let out a small sigh while rubbing his back, "Well… we had a little bit of a detour back in the ocean" he explained, "And right now, we're kinda looking for a boat to take us there" but the blonde champion only returned with another chuckle, "Well I guess you and I have the same problem" she let out a sigh which was followed by a smile, "I just came from Jubilife city a few days ago and I'm also looking for a boat to take me to Valmarian city"

"So that means you're competing too huh?" Brock added earning him a nod from the champ herself. It was obvious that Shinou would send their best and brightest trainers to make a name for themselves, but sending the best of the bests was probably one of their desperate ace in the hole move.

"You guys shouldn't be too surprised… I am the champion of the previous Valmarian league after all" she stated out earning a couple of glares before the gang shouted…

"WHATTT?!" this was now becoming a new habit of theirs. Having people surprise them at the last possible moment.

"No way! So you were the winner of the Valmarian league before!?" Ash stammered as he tried to cope with the information. The blonde trainer nodded before taking another sip of her tea cup, "That's right… first time battle and won it all. It was indeed the hardest battle in my entire life"

"So can you tell us anything about it? Any hints, info that might be helpful?" Tracey quickly pulled out a note pad and readied himself to take down notes. Cynthia almost felt she was being assaulted by the news crew again, but at least this time she could answer their questions thoroughly.

"Well… I guess I could explain to you guys on how the league works" before she knew it, every member of the gang who were participating in the league were all ears to her words. "Are… you guys entering the league too?" Ash quickly knew of his mistake, "Oh sorry Cynthia. Let me introduce to you my friends. I'm sure you've already know Brock and Dawn. Over here is May, and her littler brother Max from Petalburg city. From my left to right is Richie, Drew, Duplica, and Anabel, they're participating in the league as well"

"Except for me!" Max added, "I still haven't gotten my starter's Pokemon yet" the gang let out a giggle all at once.

But then Cynthia's face turned serious when she began to explain the situation to the gang, "As you all know… the league consists of four preliminary rounds which takes place with a one on one battle. During the preliminaries, both coordinators and trainers will be separated so they either enter as a contest contestant or trainer contestant. Since there are so many trainers, each preliminary round would probably even last a couple of weeks. After that, when only thirty-two trainers are left standing, they are immediately devided into four teams. (that means eight trainer/coordinator per team). I know this may sound harsh… but when it comes to the Valmarian league, there can be no 2nd place"

It almost sounded like what Drake told them back in his ship. But with the food order arriving, they decided to leave that topic off for now.

**(Back in the port of Sandgem town)**

An escape pod that drifted across the ocean landed safely on the beach of the Shinou region. It was unsure how long that pod had been there, but with the looks on its wet metal surface, a rough guess would say 'about a few hours' When the pod suddenly opened, three pathetic figures came rushing out of the top, literally kissing the sand as they go.

"Land! Sweet land!" said Jessie as she held the sands in her palms. "I'd never thought seeing so much dirt would be so relaxing!"

"I'm just happy to put my feet on something other than the cold steel!" said James as his smooched the earth over and over again.

Meowth on the other hand, quickly purred around the sand scractching his whiskers as he laid completely relaxed under the hot sun, "I wish the boss would give us a well paid vacation for once meow. A place like this would be great for my fur…"

But after finally getting used to the sun and the earth, Jessie began to scan her surroundings, "But… just where is this place anyway?" she wondered. James quickly took out a small world map from his pocket and quickly began doing some calculations. Having gone to college really does have its merits after all. "Hmm… since the current winds drifted us down south and the currents of the ocean blowing at this speed… hmm… I think it will take some time for me to find out where we are"

"Or we could just ask that guy over there" Meowth pointed towards a fisherman who was sitting on the pier humming some sort of music along the process. "That could work" James replied as he approached the old man.

"Excuse me sir" the blue haired man began. "Sorry to interrupt your hobby, but could you please tell us where we are? Me and my friends are kind of lost at the moment" The old man smiled and lifted his straw hat for a moment to get a clear view of the man who was talking to him. "Oh… you guys must be new in town. Well… this here is Sandgem town. Well at least part of it. The town is still a few kilmeters over this here road. Just follow that place and you'll see it"

With a polite bow to the old man, James returned to his partners in crime, "Well… it looks like we've drifted all the way Shinou again"

"Shinou!?" the two others yelled in disbelief. "But that means we're far away from home!" said Jessie

"But I have some good news however" James halted their panic with a single wave of his arm, "Fortunately my family owns a restaurant not far from here. We can spend a few days there before going off to one of our other adventures"

"Hmm… a nice warm bed and a full stomach does sound nice" Jessie replied holding one finger on her chin. After a moment of thinking, she quickly vouched, "Well I've decided… for the next three days, Team Rocket is now officially 'On Vacation!'"

With a jubilant cry from the rest of the team, a sudden silence suddenly followed when something unusual befell before their eyes. A box the size of a television set was bouncing around moving forward right pass them. It seemed like something was inside and was trying to come out, but due to the nails stuck on the hatch, it seemed to be having a hard time.

"Did anyone see that?" Jessie asked around hoping that it was just the seasickness taking toll on her wild imagination. "If you mean the box that was hopping in front of us like a bunny…… then no"

"Good…" and with that, they ignored the object and continued on with their mission for a vacation singing the Pokemon summer vacation tune. (You can listen to that song in the first Pikachu summer vacation)

**(Back with the gang) (Outside the restaurant)**

After a little R&R at the restaurant, the gang decided that it was time to head towards their new location 'Twinleaf town'. With the route all planned out, the gang believed they'd be able to get there in a matter of hours.

"Well I'm going to look for another way to get to Valmarian city" said Cynthia to the others. "If I hear anything, I'll call you guys right away… ok?" the others nodded while Dawn quickly pulled out a notepad to write down the address and phone number of her house, "No need to write me the address. I know where you live"

"Huh?" the Shinou coordinator looked confused at her statement

"Your mother and I go way back during the days. I know where her house is" but then a thought bumped into her, "Oh and that reminds me. I still need to pay a visit to professor Rowan too"

"You know professor Rowan?" Tracey said amazed, which was replied with a nod, "Of course I do. He's the one who gave me my starter Pokemon when I was a little girl" she then looked at her watch, "Well I got to go now. I got some things to do. I'll see you all later then" but before she left, she had one more remark to claim, "Oh… and Ash…"

"Huh?"

A slight smile crept on the blonde champion's lips as she said her final words, "I'll have a rematch with you…"

With their farewells said and with their stomachs full, the gang progressed their way towards Twinleaf town, but before that, they needed to make a small stop at the Pokemon center (again) to make sure their Pokemons were in tip top shape.

**(Pokemon center)**

After passing all of their Pokeballs to Nurse Joy and getting Brock out of there before Croagunk could hit again, the gang decided to wait at the lobby. Besides, they'll need all the energy they can get before moving out for another grand adventure.

Right now most of the gang were just goofing off doing everything like it was just a part of a simple routine, but for the participants to the Valmarian league… it was probably another story. A deep hole of disappointment seemed to have dropped into their hearts. For a short moment there, they actually thought that they were really in Valmarian city. Their dreams seemed to have been within their reach just a few hours ago… but with a little misguided turn by a certain sailor… they now seemed to have drifted even further away from their main goal.

Along the side of the room, the gang could see several posters hanging on the wall decorated will a full blast of colors. Its magnificence alone was enough to tell the crowd what it was. 'The Valmarian All Out League!'

'Do You Have What It Takes?' was the slogan used to encourage youngsters from all around the world to compete in the battle. This was how the league became so famous.

"It looks like getting there is a lot harder than I thought" said Drew as he continued to eye the poster reading the slogan over and over again until it was practically stuck in his head. "Just how many more detours are there?" he wondered out loud.

"No journey is ever easy" said Brock as he began to share his words of wisdom. "It's like what the people of the old used to say all the time…"

1) The beginning of a journey always begins… with one step

2) But that first step… will always be the hardest

3) When you begin on something, it will either conclude with failure or success……… but it is in the progress… that you will find its true value…

-Several important saying that keeps me motivated into writing this story…

"Excuse me…" came in Nurse Joy's voice, "But your Pokemons are all treated and ready for pickup now" the gang quickly got up and made their way to the counter to pick up their Pokepals. With their bellies filled and their bodies rejuvenated from a little nap, it was time they moved on. "Alright everyone!" Ash stated pointing his finger to the town's exit, "Next stop… Twinleaf town"

"YEAH!" but right just when they about to take a step on the town's outskirts… a familiar object seemed to have appeared before them.

The box… the small TV set box was right outside the city road and to make it more of a coincidence, it was right in front of the gang as well. "Hey… what's that?" asked Richie who was the first to noticed the object in question. The group quickly approached the object cautiously, and at the same time curious in what might be inside the thing. "Hey… isn't this the box we left back at the port?" Max inquired adjusting his glasses

"Did it… follow us here?" May guessed out loud which seemed pretty farfetched for some reason. Max laughed at her so-called joke and tapped the box slightly on the sides. "Hahaha! Don't be rediculious sis, box don't follow people" but as he said those words with a chuckle, the box began to shake violently, making the others take a few steps back. "WHA!?" they all said when it began to move over to the sides.

"T t t t… there's something inside that thing!" Tracey stuttered, shivering a little bit

"It… it… its" said Brock, "It's the Ghost Box… eeerr… I mean… The Box Ghost and uh… uh… 'Beware!' (Danny Phantom joke if you get it)"

But Ash was not one to back down from something he didn't understand. He stood up from his position and made his ground right there. When the box became more and more violent each second, the gang were now thinking on what could actually be inside. The box wasn't big enough for any huge machinery and it was definitely too small for any Pokemon to be inside. At least for anything the poachers would want. But with the air holes around the top of the box, it made them reconsider that thought.

A few seconds later the box stopped on its track making an eerie silence loom over the place. A few seconds ago it looked it was ready to tear itself apart, but now that it stopped… it seemed to look like an ordinary box again.

Seeing that it calmed itself down, Ash decided to approach the strange anomaly/object and tap the sides a few times to see if there was any reaction. He immediately pulled away the moment he gave it a gentle nudge, but still it didn't respond. Again he nudged it… but this time a little stronger. He did that process for about five or six times until…

WHAM!

A black paw-shaped fist punched through the top of the box causing everyone to take a few steps back. When the hole at the top was big enough, a strange figure popped its head out from the gutter gasping for some much needed air. When the guys (and girls) were able to decipher the figure with their eyes, their memories began to kick in.

It was a Lucario that was inside the box.

But this was not like any other Lucarios the guys have known about. This one was dabbed in the color of pink, making them all believe that it was female. Its cute tiny head was poking out of the box exterior gazing at its surroundings like it was suspecting a threat. When its eyes caught sight of Ash and his companions, she let out a slight frown before speaking, "Are you gonna stand there all day, or are you gonna help me out of here?"

It was when she spoke that they immediately recognized her. It was Rosa… the 4th member of the Guardians.

"Hey I remember you!" said Todd with his camera in his hands, "Your one of the Lucarios back on that island yesterday!" the pink Lucario shrugged, "Well good for you to remember me. I guess your brain is much bigger than the strains on your hair" the level of her sarcasm was so high that it would've annoyed a man to no end.

But the others quickly got into their battle stances in front of Ash, "What do you want this time!?" shouted Richie with his pal Sparky on his shoulder beaming up some electricity on its cheeks, "Did you come to hurt Ash again!?" upon hearing that, the other trainers including Brock picked out their Pokeballs and prepared for battle. This time, they weren't gonna let her take their 'leader' away. But Rosa seemed bored from all of their reaction.

"It seems there is a bit of a misunderstanding" she began, "I'm not here to kidnap him nor hurt him at all. Quite the opposite exactly" this earned several confused glance from the gang, "The opposite?" some of them said in unison. "Yes… but I'll be able to explain more when I get out of this contraption. Stand back…" the gang followed her orders and quickly stood back a good distance. And with a mere push of her power, Rosa's wooden prison exploded like a small grenade sending debris of wood scattered all over the place.

With the Pokemon free, everyone was now able to see the splender and grace of the Lucario. Though it may have the size of a little child, don't let its appearance fool you. The gang had experienced the might of the Guardian first hand and was not going to go easy on her even though she was alone.

"That's better" she muttered under her breath. When the gang approached her once again, she already saw the untrusting eye coming from all of them… except Ash. "Does my appearance frighten you humans?" Brock had to gulp down the answer. Truthfully, he was scared to his spines that he was almost ready to wet his pants. Having seen her power at a point blank range, he knew that fighting her at a full fresh condition was probably going to one not easily won.

"You said something about explaining?" said Anabel who repeated the Pokemon's choice of words. "So what do you want from us?"

Rosa gently crossed her arm and gazed back at them with eyes brimming with a a slight hint of nobility, "From you? Nothing" she replied coldly, "I am merely here following my duties… that's all" this earned another strange glare from the gang, "Your duty?" Max mimicked her last statement. "Yes…" was her unemotional reply. Seeing that none of them were getting the idea, she decided to explain the whole inchalada, "If you really must know, then I'll explain it. All members of the Guardians are assigned specific tasks in which their skills and talent benefits the most. These duties were given to us by our king and it cannot be changed no matter what" she paused for a moment trying to see if any of them were dumb enough NOT to understand her.

"Sha-hear as you all know" she continued, "… is assigned the task of management. He keeps track of everything and does all the necessary decisions before taking the next step. Hagard, my other companion is assigned the duty of keeping order around the land. His negotiating skills works most at time in long boring debates…… and then there's Chaucer. His duty is to protect the Pokemons from natural threats" and with that she ended her explaination. "Any questions?"

"I get their duties and all…" Brock spoke out, "So… what your duty?" everyone seemed to be on the same page of the conversation so it would be poitless to lie to them. The pink Lucario simply sighed on her crossed arm, "(sigh) Well… my duty is to protect the king"

A strange silent moment came before them when she finished. And it was Misty who broke that silence, "So what does this have to do with us?" she asked putting Togepi in her knap sack for protection. Rosa sighed even deeper than before again, "Unfortunately… we are all bound by our duties for life and as Guardian, I will follow it till the end"

"So… why are you here?" Max inquired not taking an eye off of the Pokemon, "Didn't your king disappeared into that portal of his?" the pink Lucario coughed before finally pointing out her reasons, "True… Hsa, did vanish into the void of time. But he did declare his successor" her eyes then turned to Ash who seemed a bit paralyzed by her stare, "Unfortunately for all of us… he seemed to have chosen you"

"Me?" Ash pointed to himself earning the eyes of all his other friends. "I guess you were too tired to listen to his majesty's last words. Did you forget that he declared you as the new Pokemon king?" they all thought for a moment, till they recalled the last words of the king.

**(Flashback)**

Hsa thought for a moment putting his hand onto his chin, "Hmmm… you have a point. An empire does need a king to rule it" and then a thought hit him, "Ah I go it!" he snapped his fingers and quickly pointed towards Ash, "Ash Ketchum, by the power invested in me, I here by declare you as the new Pokemon king!"the boy in question looked puzzled

**(End Flashback)**

"Oh yeah… now that you mentioned it, I remember him saying something like that" said Tracey. With their memories recollected, Ash decided to speak up, "Ok… so what does that mean?" the gang face faulted to the floor with a loud thump. Just how ignorant can this boy get? Rosa on the other hand just placed her paw on her head and slid it down her face disfiguring her K-9 nose for about two seconds. "Did you hit your head when you born? (silence……) (sigh) It means you are the king, there for it is my duty to protect you!" and so it would seem that the one who waited for the king for two million years was losing her patience to a mere boy.

"Oh… so that's you mean" Ash looked like a complete idiots to those around him. But that was probably just his nature. Outside battles, he's as clueless as a Slowbro, but when in battles, he can let Zhuge Liang (Chinese Millitary Strategist) make run for his own money. Time and time again, the boy proved to everyone that was stupid yet smart when needed the most. With this first impression, Rosa can only conclude with one thing:

"The empire is doomed…" she sighed as low as the world could take her. She was quite right about that last factor though… what would really happen if Ash did rule the world? I guess only time will tell.

**(Valmarian city)**

"Are you really REALLY sure?" said Samuel in a begging manner. He and Delia and the Jenny twins were at the main entrance of Valmarian city asking the guy if her son had come through the check point. "I'm sorry sir" the guard replied, "But the computers don't lie. No one by those names seemed to have crossed this gate" apparently the old scientist had been asking the names of Ash's companions too. If they were here then there's a slight chance that the boy was here as well.

"I see… thank you officer" the professor finally submitted to his defeat and went back to Delia who seemed to be in a better mood now for some strange reason. "Oh hello professor" she said in a cheery mood, "Did you find Ash yet?" Samuel knew that she would be devastated to hear what he was going to say, but lying to her was probably just going to make things worst, "Sorry… it looks like he hasn't made it here yet" but then to his surprise, Delia smiled.

"Oh that's too bad" she looked like an actress in a love comedy movie or something, "I really wanted him to meet Burno" she took out a Pokeball from her purse and summoned out a dog like Pokemon with demon like horns sticking out of its head. When the Pokemon caught sight of its owner, it began to make those cute doggy noises while licking Delia's face. "Ok boy, down Burno" the pet Pokemon obeyed and started wagging its tail like a good boy it is.

"Oh I see you brought Burno in as well" said the professor with a slight smile. But when he was going to pet the little dog, Burno immediately gave him a snarl which clearly stated 'If you touch me, I'll bite your hand off' the professor pulled back his hand and gave out a sweat drop. "Ahehehehe… good boy… nice Bruno hehehehe"

Seeing that Ash wasn't there, the mother decided that it was time to 'kill time' "Well since Ash isn't here yet, I might as well do some shopping. Do you want to tag along Jenny?" the twins were now wearing different casual clothing much to Samuel's appreciation, since with that he can now tell the difference between the two. He doesn't know how Brock does it, but that man seemed like he could tell one Jenny from another for some reason.

"Sure!" they both said in unison.

"Do you want to come too professor?" the woman turned to old man who seemed to be happier to see her smile again. "Sure thing. I haven't got a lot to do myself" but with one look from Burno, the man had to think of another excuse fast, "Err… but then again, I really must be making some reservation back at the hotel. I'll drop our things there and we can meet up later… ahehehe" Delia looked dumbfounded for some reason. Usually the professor would be all over her, but then again, he is a man of great importance. "Ok… I'll see you professor" and with that, the three girls left the guard station to go on about their own duties.

"(sigh) Raising Burno might actually be a problem after all…" was the man's last remark before leaving the station only the see the girls off on a taxi.

"Professor Oak?" with his name being called, Samuel turned his head to the left only to be greeted by the sigh of one of his old colleages. "Elm? Professor Elm?" Professor Oak quickly recognized the man's thick lense glasses and whacky hair-do the moment he caught sight of him. "Professor Oak, it is you!"

(If you guys are wondering who this guy is then look at Pokemon Johto episode 119: Don't Touch That Dile! It's a funny episode really)

The skinny scientist quickly grabbed the old man's hand and shook it vigorously like he some kind of fan or something. "It's been so long 'teacher' almost too long!" Samuel could already see the sparkle in the young man's eyes. "It's good to see you again Elm. It's been years since we've seen each other in the flesh. How's your research going in Johto?"

"Oh it's great!" was his cheerful reply, "I'm actually making great progress with old ruins I've found. I've been trying to get professor Birch's help, but he's too busy with his own research about that strage P-wave he detected. He's pretty much locked himself in his lab 24/7"

"Well, that's Birch alright" Sam laughed, "When he starts on something he doesn't quit until he has reached the end. Oh, do you have time for a cup of coffee? I would like to spend some time with one of my renowned students" Elm knew that he was talking about him since he was probably his only student during his time at the university. "I'd love to professor!" and with that they head off to the last café any trainer would go to……

Uno Café…

**(Back with the gang) (Somewhere between Sandgem town and Twinleaf town)**

The gang (now including Rosa) was moving at a steady pace along with their new Pokemon companion, Rosa. Though the pink Lucario kept her distance between them and herself, the others still couldn't get that ichieness on their neck that she didn't tell them the real reason why she was following them. Although most of them were pretty much up to their heads on the female Pokemon, Ash didn't seem to have much trouble with it. He actually feels much safer though he doubt he needed any kind of protection.

After an hour of walking, Dawn recommended them to spend their snack time on a little public garden just right down the road. The place was recently built and tended that much was for sure. With the sun out melting the ice, the garden was practically so clean that nobody seemed to visit it. The trash bins were barely full, the benches were cold and the winter roses near the natural water spring were undaunted. It was indeed the best place to court someone (trust me, I got rejected with my first crush in a park)

With no one but them around, Brock was free to start cooking along with Tracey. They were trying to compete on who would make the best stew. Todd was taking pictures of some rare flowers and herbs on the garden and also several Pokemons that seemed to have wandered into the area. Dawn and May were playing a little game of Frisbee with their Pokemons as well. A little time chilling out was good once in awhile, especially when the sun was out in the middle of the winter season.

"Ahhh… now this is the life" said Ash as he layed down on the snow to make a snow angel. Pikachu wasn't far behind, but his snow angel was a bit more like a round blob. "A little sun to heat up, Brock making stew, everyone having fun… what could be better than this?" but just when he layed back lazily on the soft ground, Rosa appeared right above catching, waking up his inner nerve. "What are you doing?" she asked still frowning like before.

"AHH! Rosa, you scared me" Ash leaped off from the grown a little scared about the pink Pokemon, but at the same time, respects her for some reason. It might because he still has some memories from Hsa when their minds were unified.

But Rosa simply approached the young trainer and wiped some snow off his jacket, "If you keep doing that, you'll catch a cold. Stay away from the spring and don't go the bushes over there… they're Poison Ivy" she then wiped his nose and fizzled with his hair like an over protective mother. "Uhh… thanks?" Ash replied who was a little grateful to her care. "Don't get any wise idea" she stated harshly, "I'm only doing this because it is my duty. Your health and safety comes above all else. If I had a choice, I could care less about you or any of your friends" it was a good thing no one was listening or she'd be on the blacklist of every member of the gang.

Ash was a little offended by her statement, but he understood her feelings well. To lose someone that was most precious to you was probably one of the greatest damage that could be done on anyone. Seeing a glimpse of Hsa's memories flash before his eyes, Ash offered a gesture. "Hey… why don't you come play with us?" but she only replied with a sneer, "No thanks. If you need me, I'll be over there by the statue" she pointed to a small statue at the end of the garden which had a good view of the park from the surrounding areas.

With her walking off, Ash was suddenly thrown out of his daze when Dawn's Frisbee came into view. The boy caught it with ease, "Hey Ash!" shouted the blue haired coordinator, "Come on! Throw it back here!" Ash let out a smile as he turned to his Pikachu, "Are you up for a game buddy?" (Pikapika pikachu!) came the little mouse reply. "Alright, catch it if you can!"

With Ash and the girls began playing around, Richie and Drew couldn't help but join in as well along with Duplica. But as they played around, Rosa eyed every last one of them, scanning their every possible moves and threat level. So far none has proven to be worth her time.

"Hey there" the pink Lucario slowly turned her head to meet Anabel who seemed to be smiling back at her. But Rosa was not one to be fooled. She could sense some mistrust in her voice, so that could only mean that she was talking with her just to get some motive out. "You're… Rosa… right?" she nodded in reply. But when returned the gaze, she began to notice something different from this girl than the rest of the gang. "You…" Rosa noted, "Your psychic capabilities are too strong for an average human. Who are you?"

"I guess Ash didn't really introduced us yet" came the Salon Maiden's reply, "I'm Anabel, I'm a Pokemon trainer" she began, "The two over there cooking are Brock and Tracey. They're pretty much the only adults in the gang. The girls over there is Misty, she's a strange one at times, but she's actually quite nice to Water Pokemons. Over there taking photos is Todd. Don't mind him, you'd get used to his attitude after awhile" Rosa fought down a smirk as it began to creep up her lips. "And the rest of the group over there is Dawn, that's the one with the blue hair. The one wearing all red is May and the little boy next to her is her little brother Max. The one with the green hair is Duplica"

"That's an odd name for a boy" she motioned her nose to Drew who just caught the Frisbee and the running from his Absol. Anabel simply let out a small laugh, "Oh no no no. Not that one. I meant the girl. She's an ace duplicator and she has a knack of doing a lot of things. The boy with the green hair is Drew. I don't really know much about him, but he has a good heart. The one next to Ash is Richie. He's probably like a brother to Ash and a great friend"

"Thank you for the introduction" Rosa replied still not raising away her frown, "But it wasn't necessary. I would've eventually figured each of their names in due time" was there any way to her sound more unfriendly? With one look of her icy glare, it was clear enough that she didn't come all the way from Fort Gregro just to make friends.

After they were done talking…… or if you can even call that a conversation, the gang decided to take a little break and chill out on the picnic tables set up by Todd who had already ran out of films. After taking dozens of pictures of the garden, he planned to advertise it to the local Shinou weekly to make some spare cash. It wasn't just his hobby, but probably the boy's way of life.

"Alright everyone, come and get it!" shouted Brock as he ringed the 'tiangle' (a musical instrument). With one whiff of the food aroma coming from the table, he didn't need to tell them twice. They stampeded through the ground and got to their respective places before anyone could even think. After seeing how eager they were to taste the delicious meal, Brock didn't stop them. "Alright guys, before we dig in, why don't we give the Pokemons their food as well?" the others quickly agreed and began releasing all of their Pokemons to the field.

With three large packs of Pokeblocks emptied to fill in the bowls of tasty treats, the gang digged in. "Alright… time to eat!" (ittedakimasu!) with the food quickly vanishing before their eyes, Brock and Tracey could only wonder, 'Are they even tasting the food?' or something like that. Because at the pace where they were going, these guys look like they swallow first, taste later.

"Hmmm… this stew is great!" said Drew who was munching on the meaty portion.

"Hey, do you mind sharing with me your recipe?" asked Todd, "If I get two more of your meals, I can make a book out of it already"

While the gang chatted around randomly on their numerous topics, Ash suddenly noticed Rosa sitting on the statue eating a bunch of berries she found in the meadows. It was an oddly familiar sight which Ash remembered well when he encountered his first Lucario. (see Pokemon movie 8: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew) Not wanting to relive tha old situation, Ash decided to save one bowl of Pokeblocks on a plate. He figured that she was civilized enough to eat with her hands.

"Hey… Rosa?" he called out to her slowly making every little step count. The pink Lucario stopped eating for a moment and turned her attention towards him, "What is it sire?" she replied professionally like a true loyal warrior. "I thought you were hungry so I brought you something to eat" he gestured to the plate and handed it to her. She sniffed the seemingly strange shape cubes a few times before turning her eyes around, "That would not be necessary" came her quick reply, "I have an abundance supply of food on my own and the world provides me with much of its benefit"

The boy was definitely not one with big words, but from what he can make out from her old saying is, 'I got food' and 'I don't need your help' that was pretty much it. "Come on now. You can't always stand on this world alone. Why don't you try something new? I guarantee that you'll love it. Right Pikachu? (pikapika!)" submitting to defeat, Rosa took several pieces with her paws and fed herself. Once she managed to get the taste into her tongue, she had to admit that it was delicious.

"Hmm… the taste is… average…" she quickly put back the crumbs left on her finger on the plate (if paws have fingers that is) and left, though in truth, she still wanted some more. Seeing the Pokemon going off into the distance, Ash couldn't help but feel sorry for her, "Hmm… I hope she feels better after this"

**(Back in Sandgem town) (Professor Rowan's laboratory)**

Professor Rowan and his co-workers just returned from their lunch break in the nearby local restaurant. "Well that was an interesting meal" said one of the female workers. "I never knew that the chef had those in the menu. I'd better stop going there or I'll be gaining more weight than losing them in gym" said another. But when the professor reached the entrance to his lab, he noticed that the automated doors were unlocked.

"Hmm? Johnson, did you leave the door unlocked?" he turned to his assistant. "No sir!" came in his quick reply, "I remember I locked it when the last of us came out" when they heard of this, the scientists quickly dropped their notes and pad-papers and grabbed whatever heavy object they could find. So far they were only able to get a chair, a broom and the flower vase that decorated the outdoor window.

Armed with pathetic weapons, the group of scientists quickly entered the lab hoping to find the intruder. Much to their displeasure, the lights seemed to be out and the switch to turning them back on was at the other side of the room. "Everyone, be on your guard" said the head professor, "The intruder might still be in here"

But then suddenly the light turned on, surprising all of them at once, "AHH!!" the guy that screamed began waving his broom around like a club hitting everyon in the process, "I won't let you take me! You'll have to take me in a body bag!" the guy was practically swinging his sword blind.

"That's odd. So I'm an intruder now professor?" came an oh so familiar voice to Rowan.

When the old scientist caught sight of who the intruder was, he couldn't help but smile back at the blonde girl, "Cynthia…" he managed to mubble the name out. The Shinou champ smiled back and approached them gracefully, "I still can't believe you haven't changed the laboratory's password. Your birthday is actually easy to figure out you know" she mockingly spoke with her hand on her waist. "I guess old habits are hard to die hehehehe" the old man replied.

The two of them glared at each other for a minute until Cynthia gave him one big hug, "It's good to see you again professor" a silent tear slipped down her eye as she finally break away from the scientist. "It's good to see you again too Cynthia" Rowan replied putting his weapon down while scanning the woman's figure, "My my… to think that this beautiful woman was actually little 'Cynthy' who was beggin me to give her, her starter Pokemon" he called her by her nickname which some of his assistant remembered instantly.

"Professor, you know the Shinou champion Cynthia?" asked one of his assistant. "Of course I do. It was before I had this lab built about ten years ago"

"Twelve years actually" Cynthia corrected him.

"I was the one who gave Cynthia here her starter Pokemon. You wouldn't believe how cute she was back then" the three assistant were practically dumbstruck of the fact that the two of them knew it other, but the real thing that really hit them hard was that the fact that professor Rowan was actually… happy. Usually he'd be scowling at almost everything around him, taking things way too seriously for anyone's level. But now that he's with an old apprentice, he seemed to have been brought back to his younger days again.

"So what brings you here Cynthia? I thought you would already be in Valmarian city. I was the one who nominated you for after all"

"Actually, that's the reason why I came here…"


	43. Wrong Place, Right Time Part 2

**Chapter 43: At The Wrong Place At The Right Time (Part 2)**

**(Valmarian city sewer entrance)**

Red, the unknown Pokemon trainer was waiting at the sewer entrance as if he was suspecting someone to come and meet him. It wouldn't take a fool to figure out that the guy was plotting something big. His moves and motives were pretty unclear, but with all his works and string being pulled around, it was hard to tell which member was on which side. Wherever this boy walks, chaos and confusion seemed to follow him.

Suddenly two figures appeared out of the sewer entrance. One was tall and the other one was shorter by two inches. They were wearing aviator goggles and thick coat which was perfect for the cold weather. "Are you the one who sent us this note?" said the taller one as he threw the note to the dirty fluid of the sewer. "Rodrigo Bicento… and Daniel Bicento… I presume?" Red stated their names quietly as he shifted his cap towards the darkness. The two trainers could already feel the evil aura pulsating off this boy just by looking at him.

"That's us…" Rodrigo stated looking back with a suspicious glare. "So what do we owe the honor of one of Gary's 'elite crew' calling for us?"

"A simple matter really…" came the red boy's sinister reply, "I have a proposal for the both of you"

"Not interested…" the little brother known as Daniel interrupted before turning away with his big brother. "Please…" Red begged sarcastically, "At least hear me out. I wouldn't have called the two finest trainers in the competition without good reasons" a grin crept upon the face of the boy who spoke, making Giovanni's grin look like a girl-scout smile.

It was then Rodrigo held his little brother's shoulder, "Come now brother… let us at least hear out this pathetic boy's offer" Daniel was reluctant at first, but then decided to agree. Who knows… may be they might even let out a laugh after this, "Very well…" he said finally, "You have five minutes" they couldn't even begin to imagine the grin the boy was putting on his head.

The afternoon train of Valmarian city that ran through the tracks right above the sewer had passed through making all noise and voices fainter than a squeak. By the time he finish his proposal, a great wave of hate seemed to have originated from the two brothers.

Rodrigo and Daniel were visibly gritting their teeth to the offer, "How dare you…" the older brother threatened, "You tarnish the name of a Pokemon trainer with this offer! We the Bicento brothers shall remove that thing you call a mouth so that you may never speak again!!!" whatever offer Red had in mind for them, it sure pissed them off quite nicely. The two ace flying Pokemon trainers were practically steaming with anger.

"Come brother!" Rodrigo called, "Let us teach this boy how honorable trainers fight in a real battle!" they both pulled out a Pokeball from their coats and called out Mothim and Fearow.

When Red saw their pathetic attempt to defeat him, he let out a smile, "That's too bad… I was really hoping you would see things my way… but… I guess it can't be helped" he then took out one Pokeball from his jacket and inflated it with one press of a button, "Now…… let's see how the two younger brothers of the Bicento family… hold itself against my Pokemon!" and with one blinding flash, only the heavens know what became the fate of those two trainers.

**(Twinleaf town entrance) (06:45 PM)**

After finally getting themselves to the entrance of the town, Dawn stepped forward in front of the gang and took in a deep breath of oxygen and held it in before releasing it back into the atmosphere. When she was done, she quickly yelled out, "I'M HOME!!" her voice was so loud that it would've awoken even the dead from their graves. The gang stepped a few paces away from her thinking that she had gone crazy or something. After she let out a small sigh, she smiled, "Ah… it's good to breath the fresh air of home"

"Well after being gone for so long, I know how you feel" Brock recovered, "I'd do the same if I was gone from my home town for so long" with a quick nod from the others, Dawn decided to show them the rest of the way. A few minutes later, the gang was now setting their eyes on a huge house… more like a dormitory if one would at it at a different perspective.

"Well… here we are guys… my home" the Shinou coordinator stated showing them the entrance. While the rest of the gang seemed thrilled, Rosa just seemed to look bored with an expressionless face. Traveling with the group has been somewhat satisfactory.

Dawn slowly knocked on the door a few times before awaiting a reply. She was psyched to be home, but never expected her adventure cycle to come full circle already. The only time she would ever come home is when she finished a contest match or unless something really important comes up. After a few minutes, the door opened up to reveal someone she didn't expect to see. "Hi ya mom! Long time no see!" she shouted not knowing who she was talking to.

"Deedee?" the person who opened the door stated out. This caught the attention of several trainers and Pokemons as well. When Dawn finally focused on who was in front of her… she yelped from the stairs and onto Ash's hand, making the boy carry her in a bridal style, "Kenny!?" she yelled, "What are you doing here!?"

**A/N: Kenny is a real character is Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. See episode: Getting the Pre-Contest Titters!**

"I was gonna ask you the same thing Deedee" the small boy known as Kenny replied with a smirk. He then noticed some familiar faces at the back, "Hey is that you Ash?!" he sounded almost like one of those fans back at home. "Nice to see you again Kenny" the raven haired Pokemon trainer replied with his trademark smile, "How've you been? The last thing I've heard about you was in the Hoenn grand festival contest" the little coordinator smiled back holding his hand on his head, "Well that's true" Kenny replied, "I came in fourth place that time hehehehe"

"Kenny, is someone out there?" came a voice back in the house. When the door opened up again, everyone was a little surprised to see a woman in her late 30s wearing an apron come out. When Dawn and her mother locked eyes they both seemed to be equally surprised to see each other. "Dawn?" the mother called out, "Is that you honey?"

The daughter only gave out a soft smile a sweatdrop, "Oh… hi mom… uh… surprise"

"What are you doing all the way back home? I thought you were going straight to Valmarian city after you finished your chores in Hoenn. Don't tell me you got lost again" this made Dawn pout with a slightly angry glare, "Mom! I'm twelve years old for crying out loud! Give me a break!" this made the gang let out small laugh. But then the mother suddenly noticed that there were some faces in the crowd that she recognized, "Oh and you must be Ash and Brock"

"Nice to see you again Johanna" Ash answered lowering his head slightly in respect of elders. The mother now known as Johanna simply waved off the formalities, "Well I guess you must be here for the same reason as Kenny" they all looked at the boy who stood next to her, "He was currently looking for a way to Valmarian city so he stopped by for a little pitstop. I never expected you guys to come by as well"

**A/N: Note that the name of the mother is taken from the game. Since the name on the anime series hasn't come up yet I decided to let this stay ok? Good!**

"Sorry about that" Dawn replied, "I guess we should've called ahead and told you that we were coming" Johanna sighed, "Well I guess it can't be helped. So who are your other friends Dawn?" the girl quickly brightened up and began pointing out the others, "Oh, this here is my friend May, Max, and Drew. They're from the the Hoenn region. Over there is Duplica and Richie, they're from Johto. And over here is Misty, Anabel, Tracey and Todd. They're all from Kanto (except for Tracey)"

"Well it's nice to meet you all" the mother replied, "I'm Johanna and this boy over here is a friend of mine Kenny"

"Hi" he stated

"Well… by the looks on your faces, I'm sure you must all be pretty hungry" some were already srubbing their stomachs when she stated the word 'hungry' "Why don't you guys go on in and I'll whip something for you guys to eat" while the rest of the group walked in, Johanna turned to Ash, "Oh and …Ash…" she began, "Why are holding Dawn?"

"Huh?" the two of them said in unison. By the time they were able to see their position they immediately jolted away from each other with a slight blush on their faces. "Oh nothing! It was an accident an accident I tell you!" Dawn blabbered out while her mother was giving her… the grin…

Oh yes… a mother's grin can be very intimidating to a child, especially when that child knows what she was grinning about. After her mother turned away and went back into the house, Dawn could only hope that nothing bad would come out of this. She could already feel that her mother had something in store for her, that much was for sure.

**(After awhile)**

When the gang settled into Dawn's house, they were amazed on the actual size of the whole area! The place was practically big enough to fit all of them without any extra necessities! There were plenty of bed rooms, three bathrooms, a kitchen with a full set of the latest cooking utensils and a living room that could hold a party! To put it bluntly: The house was big.

"Whoa this place looks better than ever!" Ash commented which made Johanna blushed, "Oh why thank you Ash. Now why don't you guys wait here while I head to the kitchen and whip something up" Brock and Tracey decided to help as well, since cooking for an army would be something one person shouldn't do. When the three of them were out of sight, the gang began to roam around the living room looking at all the picture frames and trophy sets.

When May noticed the grand ribbon trophies on top of the fire place, she could wonder herself, "Hey Dawn" she called out, "Was your mother a two time winner in the Shinou Grand festival?" the blue haired trainer simply chuckled, "No silly, my mom won the first one on the left. I won that one last year when Ash was traveling with me"

"Really…" a dark shadow loomed over the young Hoenn coordinator as she glared at the trophy and the picture next to it. A girl who started her Pokemon journey after she did was actually doing much better than her. _"You can't be serious"_ she thought to herself, _"She just started her Pokemon journey last year and already she's won it to the finals!? How could this be!? OH man… I'm so pathetic" _Max could only stop, watch and humor himself while watching her sister verbally cursed herself in her head. But then his entertainment ended when he caught the sight of the picture that was hanging just right next to Dawn's trophy.

It was a picture inside a city and at the center was Brock. On the left was Ash with Pikachu on his shoulders and Ronda, the news reporter and on his right was Dawn holding the trophy on her shoulders supporting its weight with her hand. The three of them were all smiling happily but what caught Max's attention the most was that Dawn was holding Ash's hand. "Hey… what's with this picture?"

Dawn visibly blushed slightly as she began to explain, "Oh that… well that was…"

**(Flashback) (1 year ago, after Dawn won in the Shinou grand festival contest)**

After defeating Zoey and her Pokemons in a tight six on six contest battle and getting the trophy from Mr. Goodshow, Dawn immediately head towards the backstage to get some rest and recouperation. No matter how many times she looked at the trophy, she still couldn't get the splender off its color. Even though the girl knew she had to get out of that room some time today, she knew the moment she walks out of the stadium she's gonna be swamped with cameras and microphones for sure. But right now that didn't matter. She just wanted to enjoy the rest of the day bragging about her win to everyone she knows.

"Excuse me, Miss Dawn" the security guard outside knocked before entering, "Sorry to disturb you, but you have visitors" when the girl turned around, she was pretty estatic to see she saw Ash, her raven haired Z'd cheek mentor with a bushel of roses on his hands and Brock, the squinty eyed love sick man. "Brock, Ash!" she gave them both a warm loving hug, "You guys came after all!" her heart and mind squealed with delights seeing the two of them again.

"Yeah, these VIP passes really does have its value after all" Brock replied holding his ID card on his hand. When Dawn broke the hug, Ash handed her the bushel of flowers, "You were great Dawn! Here, this is for you" the girl blushed as red as a tomato as she reluctantly took the gift. "Oh wow… thanks Ash, but I couldn't have done it without your help"

"Hey, don't give us all the credit" Brock added, "We were just there to support you. You were the one who did all the work" Ash smiled in agreement along with his Pikachu, "Yeah! You gave it everything you've got and you won!"

"Zoey was pretty good herself. She wasn't even holding back any of her combinations" Brock added again holding a smirk and a smile at the same time.

Dawn smiled at their compliments and looked back at her trophy. Though it may look like nothing more but a cup made of gold, the owner of the trophy could tell that she had earned this through her blood, sweat and gut. It may not look valuable to the eyes of many, but to the eyes of its true owner it is a symbol that he or her won something.

Taking that moment to recollect herself, Dawn took a short sniff of the roses Ash gave to her. It smelled wonderful at first, but then suddenly… Ambipom's head struck out catching all of them by surprise. "Ambipom! What are you doing in there?!" Ash yelped as he stepped back from the monkey Pokemon. (Aipom ai pompom ho ho ho ho!) with the speed and agility of a… a… well… a monkey. Aipom quickly snatched Ash's hat (again) (For some reason, he just likes that hat) and began taunting the boy with it. "Hey Ambipom, give me back my hat!"

While the two of them began chasing each other around the room, Dawn and Brock just couldn't help but give out a small giggle to the oh so familiar scene. (You can see this scene happen a lot of times during the Battle Frontier and the Shinou league) "Well it looks like Ambipom and Ash are still closer than ever"

"You said it" Brock replied, but then something began to tap against his senses, "Hmph!" he groaned slightly

Dawn noticed her friend's "What's the matter Brock?"

"My 'danger' senses are tingling……… that could only mean" but before he could finish, a sudden rumble began occur just right outside the changing room. And before anyone knew about it, the media broke it. "WAHHH!!!!" the three of them yelped as the cameras and microphones were being held against the buffy security guard, "Miss Dawn! I can't hold them forever! Quick! Take the back door on your right!" taking his word for it, Ash quickly grab the girl by the hand and moved out before the media broke through. "Come on Dawn, this way! Brock hurry up!"

"I always wanted to be chased by girls but not like this!" the love sick boy yelled. As they all took a little glimpse behind them, the rampage those news reporters were doing almost resembled that of a Tauros stampede. If you look closely enough, you can practically see their saliva drooling down their mouths and the fire burning in their eyes. Geeze… talk about determination and dedication.

A few minutes later, the gang managed to get out of the arena and into the city where they could blend in with the crowd. But with the trophy in hand, it was pretty hard to stay incognito.

"Excuse me! You there!" the trio froze on their tracks as if they were hit with an ice beam attack. When they slowly turned their heads around, they caught the image of Ronda, the TV reporter from Shinou now, "I knew I'd catch up with you kids" she panted heavily like a dog that just ran through a marathon, "R… R… Ronda?" Ash managed to stutter out, "Yeah!" the woman's face looked as if she hasn't had a sleep in weeks and the wrinkles under her eyes proved that theory quite well. "I've been spending sleepless nights outside the stadium just to be the first person in to get a scoop. I had been eating nothing but instant nodles for a whole week… used my weak and fragile body to carry these equipments… and you think running away from me is gonna work?! Ha! Haha! Hahahahaha! MWaaahahahaha! WAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!" she paused for a moment and breath in the good oxygen to cool off the steam that was generating inside her body. And to add to that note, it looked like she hasn't taken a bath in weeks as well. "And now… my suffering has finally paid off!"

As she approached the trio with her zombie like figure, the gang couldn't help but freeze on their feet. "This first interview…… with you" the reporter chuckled evilly like a sadistic witch, "Will put my name in the front page of the newspaper!!!!! NOW GET OVER HERE AND GIVE ME THAT INTERVIEW!!" a soaring aura appeared from behind showing a faint picture of a Ursaring with angry eyes.

By the time Dawn got to her side, the wrinkles and exhaustion seemed to have disappeared from the woman's face completely. "Good now let's get on with the show" Ronda began with her cheerful smile suddenly returning out of nowhere.

"What's up with her?" asked the camera man, "A second ago she looked as if she was half dead and now she looks like she just woke up"

"I guess that's her when she's in front of a camera" said the chubby mic holder

And before they knew it, Ronda spoke the word 'Rolling!' which mean the interview began.

"Hello this is your host Ronda Star reporting live in Jubilife city with my guest Dawn" she began in her reporter like tone, "Dawn, thank you again for joining me. So how does it feel to have finally won the Shinou grand festival contest?"

"Uh… wonderful… I guess" she looked at the camera clearly being new to this whole new celebrity props thing. "So what do you think was the key at winning? Was it your amazing techniques? Or was it your Pokemons? Or was it your undeniable will to win?" as Ronda held the microphone closer, Dawn was now getting a little freaked out by her attitude. The more she looked at the reporter, the more crazy she begins to look.

"Uh… I think… I think…" hey eyes then darted to Ash who was blankly starring at her with Pikachu on one side and Ambipom on the other. After a brief moment of thinking, the girl quickly grabbed the young Pokemon trainer's hand and pulled him in sight of the camera along with Brock. "I think my key to victory was because I have a great teacher… right coach?" and with that a click sound was made making them all smile in sicronition.

With one blight flash, the story of the picture came to an end…

**(End of flashback)**

When Dawn was finished telling the story, she couldn't help but smile chibily (chibi) with a faint blush on her face. Having that wonderful moment of victory really did bring the thrill back in her life.

"Oh yeah I remember that" said Ash who suddenly came out of nowhere, "That was after you won the Shinou grand festival"

"Oh yeah" said Brock, "If I remember correctly… Ronda wasn't exactly in her best moods that time" as he recalled that terrible event, a sudden shiver was sent down his spine. "I'll never forget that moment… ever. Her face looked like a zombie from one of those scary movies"

"Come and get it!" came Johanna's voice as she reentered the living room with several plates of spaghetti and stew in her hands. With the table filled with hungry stomachs, the gang digged in before anyone could say 'thank you for the food' (ittidakimasu!)

"Oh wow! This spaghetti is awesome Johanna" Ash complimented taking in a long slurp. "Oh don't mention it" she replied, "My special gourmet dish is always filling to an empty stomach"

"But still, you gotta show me the recipe" Brock stated analyzing the food intently; "If you make this for dinner I can't wait to see how you make breakfast and lunch" they all agreed at once. If this is how her spaghetti taste like, then they could imagine how her other dishes would fair. "Well since you're all keen on knowing, maybe you kids can help me with the Bake Off"

"Oh are you competing again mom?" asked Dawn whose face brightened up like a lamp post in a dark day, "That's right sweety, and I'll be making my very own Johanna special Strawberry 'Long' Cakes" the mother flexed off her muscles slightly.

"Aren't they called strawberry short cakes?" Todd interrupted taking a gulp of water down his throat. But Johanna simply waved a finger in response, "Not in my recipe book you don't. With my secret ingredient and some extra love, I might even make it better than last year" she let out a short laugh along with everyone else. "Oh that reminds me Ash. I never got to thank you that day when you came back last year"

Misty gave out a quizzled look, "Huh?" Even Ash was wondering what he did to help her. He may have the brains of a genius on the battlefield, but when it comes to remembering the small details, he's as clueless as a Slowbro.

"Oh I guess you don't remember" Johanna concluded before explaining, "I think it was around the time Dawn won the grand festival…"

**(Flashback) (Twinleaf town) **[Special scene adapted by movie making

As Ash and the trio returned to Twinleaf town, they immediately stopped by Dawn's house to greet the mother with a warm big smile. But not all plans go straight… instead of being greeted with a big hug they were greeted by a doctor who told them that Johanna was stuck in bed with a fever.

"_I was stuck with a bad fever that time when you and Dawn got to the house" Johanna began, "I really wanted to give Dawn a hug but I was too weak to even move"_

Soon after Brock and Ash came in to see Johanna, the squinty eyed man began to work his magic. Even though his specialty was with Pokemons, he still had many healing remedies that involved human. Besides, the first step on curing Pokemons is to learn how to cure humans. But not long after Brock checked up on the woman's temperature, he began yelling something to Ash and Dawn.

_"I don't really know what was happening when you came back, but I remember seeing Brock telling you to get something" Johanna continued, "When you came back from the market, you were all sweating and panting like a tired old Houndoom" _

Once Brock checked all the necessary ingredients, he began making something right next to the ill mother's bed. While Ash and Dawn could only watch while the man does his thing, he didn't even realize that he was holding onto Dawn who was already in a point of a near crying state. When Johanna saw the position those two were in, she couldn't help but smile inside her head. Seeing Dawn with someone she cared about really made her day.

When Brock was done with his miracle potion, he quietly mixed them together and put the contents into one cup. The steam it gave out clearly stated that it was hot, but Johanna didn't have the willpower to resist anymore. She gently took small sips of the drink and was gently tucked back into bed.

"_I don't know what Brock gave me, but after a whole night of rest, I practically felt like a new person" Johanna squealed the next part along with Brock_

_ "Hehehe… it's one of my family's healing tonics. I learned it from my mom and my dad back when I was still a kid" the Pokemons breeder explained shyly._

"_Well whatever it was, you still took care of me for a whole week" the mother stated with a slight blush crossing her face, "I was so embarrassed that I felt like a pampered girl" Brock laughed, "Well it must've been boring staying in bed for a whole week"_

"_Not really" was her cheerful reply, "I had a very good view from the window…… a very good view indeed"_

**(The next morning) (Still in flashback)**

When Johanna was finally feeling better, she decided to sit up on her bed rather than to lie down. Brock comes by regularly to check up on her condition, but usually he would just say the same thing, "You're improving, but keep getting more rest" But the mother had just about enough of rest. She wanted to spread her wings again and go on the soar around the house. But just when she was about to do that, her eyes suddenly caught a glimpse of Ash who was hanging some of the laundry on the poles out at the back yard.

He wasn't wearing his cap anymore, but instead he wore an apron that made him look absolutely adorable and all of his Pokemons were helping with the daily chores as well. Turtwig was using his razor leaf attack to cut down the woods in half to make some fire wood. Staravia was helping Ash carry the heavier loads onto the poles. Ambipom and Pikachu were helping as well, carrying the baskets into the house then out again with some more laundry. For a family of coordinators, they sure did have a lot of clothes.Gligar on the other hand simply rested at the back snoozing like the lazy Pokemon it was.

But as Ash was laughing around with his Pokemons, Dawn came out from the back of the house along with her Pokemons as well. From Johanna's POV she couldn't exactly hear what they were saying, but whatever they were talking about, they seemed to be enjoying it quite well. They were chuckling and laughing while hanging the clothes together.

With this sight in front of the mother, she could already tell that Ash would make a suitable husband for any woman. Heck, if she was fif-teen years younger than before she would've fallen in love with him as well. But right at that moment… she could see that she wasn't the only one who had her eyes on the boy. As her imagination began to go a little berserk, she began see Ash and Dawn as a married couple! The boy was a perfect match! He may not be as smart as those kids in college but just by looking at him, Johanna knew that if this boy put effort into something… he can accomplish anything. Not only that but he was also kind, sweet and very attractive in both the outside and the inside.

After seeing such a magnificent sight before her eyes, Johanna felt like she didn't want to go out of this room ever again. If she had died at that very moment because of some ridiculous reason then she would've died a very happy person.

After a week had past, she was actually quite sad to see Ash and Brock leave…

**(End of flashback)**

A single drop of tear fickled down Johanna's eyes making the other wonder what was happening in that head of hers, "Is everything alright Johanna?" Anabel perked up sensing some happiness coming from the mother. "Oh nothing dear" she replied wiping away the tear, "I just love happy endings at times"

"I guess Ash and I didn't really want to impose" Brock stated, "But we had our reasons to head back home. Right Ash?" the boy nodded taking one last slurp of his food. "Yeah… I had a lot of things to do too. With professor Oak having me run errands all the time, I made a lot of progress in my training"

Johanna laughed along, "Oh but don't worry about that. It was hard to miss you you guys at all"

"Huh?"

"Well ever since the two of you left, Dawn here couldn't help talking about you Ash" the girl in question spatted her spaghetti right onto Drew's face choking on the sauce in the process. The green haired boy's eye's visibly twitched as he began to ask himself, 'What was that for?!'

"Mom!" Dawn yelled out with a blush on her face growing redder by the second, "Oh but I'm only speaking the truth dear. In fact, you couldn't say a single sentence without his name on it" if Dawn was a thermometer, her head would've popped through the unbearable embarrassment already. "Oh and there was one time when you were sleeping and…" if there was a quote for this it would probably be 'saved by the bell' the door bell at least. "Oh who could be visiting this late at night?" Johanna quickly got up from her seat and went straight to the door. And when she opened it, she was quite surprised to see a very familiar face.

"Hey there" Cynthia greeted with a wave of her hand. "Long time no see Johanna" the mother quickly perked up with great excitement, "Cynthia! Oh my gosh! It's been so long! How've you been? When did you get here? Did you get lost again?" the blonde champ simply smiled back in return, "Easy there J.J. I'm fine"

"J.J?" the gang raised a puzzled brow while Drew was busy wiping the sauce off his head. Johanna returned an angry blush at her friend, "Oh would you grow up!" she yelled followed by a small pout, "I thought you'd stop calling me that since college!"

"Ok come on J.J. You have to admit it's a good name for you" Cynthia mocking said holding her hand on her chin, "Yeah right…" Johanna replied having a sly smirk on her face, "I guess I could say the same for you… Cyndaquil…" this caused the blond Pokemon champ to flushed with a blush stain on her face. "Hey! Y… you! So it was you who made that name up!" but Johanna simply looked away innocently with her face slowly resembling that of a cat, "I have no idea what you're talking about Cyndi… meow" she purred.

Before the gang knew it, the two adult champions were beginning to fight like old friends again. "Wow… who would've thought that Johanna and Cynthia knew each other" Brock stated as he watched at the fighting scene which seemed to be causing him some sort of a de ja vu, "Hmm… why does this look very familiar?" just as he turned his head around, he immediately let out a sweat drop to the sight that answered his question.

Ash took the last piece of meat off Misty's plate since she said that she was full, but then Misty wanted it back. "Give me back that meat Ash!" she shouted

"No way! You said you were full so finders:keepers!" replied the boy.

But just when they fighting on each others chair, Misty suddenly lost her balance but in the process, she was able to get that last slice of meat. "Aha!" she cheered before falling on the floor face first with the rest of the body coming after. Once she was done she wondered if that fall was worth the taste.

But after getting themselves reacquainted with each other, Johanna thought up of an idea, "Oh that reminds me! I made some poffins earlier (Poffins are like pokeblocks except that they are made in Shinou not Hoenn) I'll go and get them, while you guys wait"

"Hey, we should let all of our Pokemons out and play too!" Ash suggested which they all came to an agreement.

"Come on out everyone!" they all in unison as they reached the backyard of the house. Even Cynthia decided to throw in her friends as well, "Come out Garchomp, Milotic, Roserade!" everyone was quite surprise to have a champ play by their side, but to heck with it! They've been playing with an even bigger champ already.

Rosa, who was sitting quietly on the side lines, simply watched as the humans and Pokemons made a big fool out of themselves. The night moon was shining brightly above them like a big lamp illuminating a dark world. Even though the nice was peaceful and loud, the pink Lucario just couldn't find her peace. Why was she here? If she wanted to leave, she could've done it ages ago. Was she doing this because she was bound by the words of her oath? No… there was another reason… a reason so secret, that even she herself didn't know about it.

"Alright everyone, the poffins are here" called Johanna through the kitchen window. Once every Pokemon were able to get a bowl, they were simply addicted to it already. With all of them eating and chewing through their mouths and the humans taking a little break as well… everything that has happened this past week… seemed to be nothing more… but a memory.

But memories are not always pleasant. Though some of them may be flowers and rose petals, there are some memories that affects us like a fire that burns within our bodies. It leaves behind a mark, reminding us of what we have done and telling us to change ourselves for the better. That is the benefit of man: To be able to learn something from our past mistakes.

Once everyone settled down for a moment, Johanna and Cynthia sat together to remember the good old times. "So you still remember how to make those poffins huh?" the blonde responded looking at the Pokemons as they happily chow down their bowls of tasty treats. "You betcha" Johanna responded, "I've been teaching Dawn how to make them too. She seems very dedicated" but then a thought hit her, "Which reminds me: Have you been practicing baking poffins lately?" Cynthia suddenly choked on her saliva as a blush came through her face. "Uh… yeah of course I have"

But Johanna wasn't quite convinced, "Oh really…" she purred sarcasitically like a cat, "I hope it's better than the first one you made. Tehehehee… I remember it like it was just yesterday when you fed professor Rowan's Pokemons with your poffins" a vein began to throb on Cynthia's head as she balled her fist trying to suppress the embarrassing anger. "Because of that, we had to send them to Nurse Joy for a whole week. Even today we don't know what she put in them that made them taste so awful" and with that last remark, the blonde haired champion snapped!

"OH YEAH?! You got a problem with that 'Big Wig'?" she taunted.

Johanna rose from her seat and yelled back, "Well excuse me! This 'wig' as you call it is actually real……… Cyndaquil!" she emphasized her nick name to tick the girl off.

"You're asking for trouble aren't you!?" Cynthia countered standing from her seat as well, "J.J"

"Geek!"

"Shrimp!"

"Cindarella!"

"Big wig!"

And the rest as you know it is all blabber blabber

While the two adults continued to curse each other to no end, the gang and their Pokemons couldn't help but all sweat drop together, "Wow… they're acting just like rivals" said Ash as he noted the burning passion of rivalry sparkling between them. If you look closely at their faces, you would actually see a feint smile on their faces.

-True potential comes from rivalry-

-My friend Bob

"I guess they must've known each other for a long time" Brock added with a nod, "I wonder if they got their starter Pokemons together" but when they were chuckling at the funny sight of two grown-ups battle like children, Cynthia suddenly stomped her hands on the table signaling that she had enough.

"That's it I've had it!" she began, "You wanna settle this the old fashion way!?" but Johanna simply replied with a smirk, "What's the wager?" Cynthia grinned, "The 'usual' bet…" and when the gang thought that things couldn't get more intense, they suddenly began to see a feint picture of a dragon and a tiger roaring behind the two adults. The dragon had the tiger in a wrapped around its long body (I'm talking about the Asian Dragon) but the tiger seemed to have control of its head and was able to bite the dragon hard. A choke hold battle!

And then suddenly, the two trainers turned to their Pokemons, "Glameow/Garchomp! Let's do this!" they said in unison. Before the gang even knew what was going on, Tracey was pulled away to be the referee of the battle.

**(2 minutes later)**

"Ok Cynthia, let's keep this simple. One on one, no time limit" Johanna declared putting her hands on her waist, "Ok, fine with me" replied the blonde holding the same stance as her rival. The two of them eyed each other not making the first move. They knew very well that the first one who makes a move will probably lose to a counter attack.

Back outside the ring, the gang was darting their eyes left and right waiting for Tracey to lower the flags. The excitement began to build as an eerie silence loomed over the area. It was as if the whole land was holding its breath for this one particular event, "Oh… this is just too exciting! I got to take a picture of this!" shouted Todd as he began snapping sneak photos of the two champions. With two aces were on the field, there's no way a battle like this couldn't be interesting.

When Tracey was certain both of them were ready, he raised his flag up high and shouted out, "BEGIN!"

"Glameow, let's go for the top! Use double team!" in an instant, the cat like Pokemon began to duplicate itself into multiple clones confusing Garchomp, "Good, now use shadow ball!" with her command, Glameow charged up a dark ball from its mouth and unleashed a furry of it at the enemy causing a small explosion.

Cynthia on the other hand remained silent and let Garchomp take the blow.

"Hey… why isn't Cynthia doing anything?" Max asked to anyone who could answer him. Anabel quickly noted her style and was immediately impressed, "She's gauging her opponents abilities" the Salon Battle Maiden began, "She's trying to see how strong her opponent is. Taking that blow may cause a lot of damage, but when you know the limits of your enemy, you can focus on the weak and strong points like a simple game"

Ash nodded back since he knew her style as well, "Yeah… she did the same thing to me back in the Shinou league. I didn't really know it at first, but then her tactic became much clearer once you put it that way"

"She likes to counter-attack rather than to attack first" Duplica added receiving a nod from the others.

Taking their attention back to the battle, Cynthia let out a smirk, "Looks like you and your Glameow grew stronger J.J" she began, "But that's nothing compared to what I can do! Garchomp, use dragon rage!" with a wave of her hand, the half-dragon Pokemon unleashed a powerful beam off its mouth causing Galmeow to be caught in its wave. But to her surprise, the Glameow she attacked to have vanished. "What the?!"

Johanna chuckled, "You underestimate me Cynthia. I know you too well to fall for that same old trick. You've been using that tactic since we were in grade school!" she let out a full blown laugh which made the Pokemon league champion twitch her eye in irritation, "I guess it's my turn now. Alright Glameow, let's show her our true strength! Use shadow claw!" with the speed and agility of a feline creature, Glameow charged out from the pack of clones and smashed its claw right onto Garchomp's torso. "Alright! First strike! That's twenty points out from you Cyndi!"

The gang sweatdropped in unison. To think that a renowned trainer like Johanna would actually act so childish in front of a crowd? She was even beginning to imagine herself in the stadium again, but with only her friends in the audience seats.

"You know… we aren't exactly in a contest battle here" Cynthia mentally kicked herself as she began to feel like a twelve year old all over again. But while the blonde was busy being distracted by Johanna's act, the contest champion took this as an opportunity to make a second strike, "Ok Glameow, take her down while she's distracted, use hypnosis!" and in an instant, Garchomp began feeling a bit woozy. And before Cynthia could react on the fact that she was tricked, Garchomp was already fast asleep, "Oh no Garchomp!"

"Now my chance!" Johanna stated out, "Glameow, use dream eater!" and with one look on the eye, Garchomp was inflicted a large amount of damage causing it to wabble on its leg. "Garchomp pull yourself together" Cynthia cheered snapping the dragon out of its daze. "That was a smooth move J.J" she complimented, "I never you would actually surprise me. But no more miss 'Good Lady'. Garchomp, let's show her a combination of our own! Use dragon rage one more time"

Garchomp immediately released a devastating attack at Glameow through its mouth, but Johanna had more tricks up her sleeves, "You an't gonna get me that easily. Glameow, use your tail and jump high!" using its spring like tail like a trampoline, Glameow leaped high into the air, invulnerable to many of Gachomp's attack. But Cynthia had another thing in mind. "Just what I thought you'd do" she muttered under her breath, "Now Garchomp, use hyper beam while Glameow is still in mid air!"

"So that's her plan" Johanna thought quietly before ordering out. "Glameow, use aerial ace and dodge it!"

"Aerial ace?!" the gang said in shock except for Ash and Dawn who seemed pretty sure that she was gonna do that next. "But isn't that a flying type move?" Max recounted his theory on how a normal type Pokemon use aerial ace. Seeing their confusion, Ash decided to explain "Just because it's not a flying type doesn't mean it can't use a flying type move" he began, "I was surprise to see that too, but after awhile you'll realize that you can't judge a Pokemon by its shape and color" the gang nodded and continued to watch the excellent battle going on.

"Trying to get away?" Cynthia taunted, "Well try dodging this! Garchomp, use sandstorm!" with one wiff from the trainer, the half dragone Pokemon began to use its power causing a large amount of dust to gather around the battlefield, "Alright now use hyper beam!" and with a blow from its ultimate attack, Glameow plummet to the ground like a meteor caught in a blazing inferno.

"Oh no Glameow!" but the cat seemed fine… for now, "That does it blondie! You'd better watch out cuz this is gonna get a little ugly!"

"Why? Are you gonna shave your head like the time back in highschool?" Cynthia chuckled making a baby face.

"Mom shaved her head?" the gang asked curiously to which the mother shouted back, "You be quiet! That happened a long long time ago!" if her face could get any more cuter than this, than it would've been one to die for. "Oh but J.J. It was such a happy moment for us" Cynthia cooed causing Johanna to twitch her eye in turn, "I even have a picture of her right here" Johanna immediately began to panic. If anyone sees that photo, her reputation and respect will go down the drain faster than you can say… catch.

"Oh would you grow up! Glameow, snatch that picture now!" she ordered. That was when Cynthia saw an opening, "You fell for it this time 'Big Wig!'" she declared, "Garchomp, go for a 'Fire fang' attack!" when Johanna saw her mistake she immediately reordered, "Glameow, turn around and use shadow claw, full power!" as both Pokemons closed in on each other, the gang stood up from their seats and watch as two great powers collided together causing a massive amount of smoke. "Holy Miltank! Who won!?"

Even Rosa could sense the enormous amount of energy created by that attack, but it was not enough to be a threat to her. She simply widened her eyes slightly before closing them and going back to her original stance, "Stupid humans…" she muttered.

When the explosion was made, the gang ducked and coughed while waiting for the smoke to clear up. Once some of the fogs were lifted away by the winds, they could hear some sounds of struggling coming from Cynthia's side of the battlefield. "Mom, Cynthia? Are you two ok?" once the fog began to clear up, the gang gave out a mother of all sweat drops once they saw the origin of the sound.

"Give me that give me that! Give me that photo Cynthia!" Johanna struggled as she tried to grab the photo off her friend's hand. Cynthia on the other hand was holding Johanna with just one foot. "Sorry J.J, but this photo is coming with me everywhere hehehehe" she giggled. But once Johanna had enough, she gladly lounge herself to the girl and grab the picture before anyone else could see it. With a few sharp moves of the hand, the photo was torn. "Haaaaa… safe" she mumbled before crawling away from the blonde champ.

"That was really reckless Johanna" Cynthia muttered as she dusted the dust off her coat. "It was either that or eternal humiliation" Johanna purred in a very cat like manner. But even with the photo gone, Cynthia still smiled, "Well anyway… you lost to me so now it's time to pay up" but the mother declined that theory, "Oh please, it was so obvious that my Glameow won" but as the gang and the trainers in battle saw the battlefield, Glameow and Garchomp were already unconscious.

"It looks like a tie" Todd stated which was then replied with a yell from the two champs. "WHAT!"

"That's impossible!" Cynthia shouted first, "How could my Garchomp have a tie with a Glameow? There has to be some sort of mistake!"

"Well it's clear to everyone!" Johanna replied, "Your Pokemon fell before Glameow did" but the blonde champ did not respond in kind, "Oh yeah, what makes you so sure?!" they both shot each other a death glare, "Look at the dir patterns!" Johanna was now making up an excuse which could probably work, "It's obvious to the both of us that your Pokemon fell first!"

"Oh that's the worst excuse I've heard in all my life!" Cynthia countered. And before the gang could even recover from the strange sight happening before them, Brock tried to settle this matter in a peaceful way, "Eh… can't the two of you just accept that this battle was a tie? That way nobody wins or lose right?"

"YOU STAY OUT OF THIS!" they yelled out with demonic horns coming out of their heads (not literally) Brock then went to a small state of shock which was then followed by a state of depression. He made his way to a small corner and quietly mumbled something intelligible to himself.

"Why don't we let's the referee decide?!" Cynthia suggested which brought chills up Tracey's spine. With the two champions glaring at him with eyes of answers, he was cornered against the wall. If he chose Cynthia to win, Johanna will definitely kick him out of the house and feed him to the lions and if he choses Johanna then he believe that Cynthia will send her Garchomp to chomp on his head for sure. Poor guy…

While the adults were busy deciding who was the winner, Dawn turned to Kenny, "I never thought my mom could act so childish before hehehehe" to tell the truth, she was actually quite embarrassed to have that kind of performance just now. Back on the battlefield, you could actually see Glameow and Garchomp letting out a small sigh clearly stating that this wasn't the first time they battled each other.

"Kinda reminds me of back at the time in the Jubilife city stadium" Kenny inquired, "If they were rivals before, then I have no doubt that no doubt that they are rivals today hehehe"

"Hey why don't we have a battle?" Dawn challenged giving the boy a stern look, but Kenny just shrugged, "What I want: is to have a rematch with you Ash" the boy was taken back for a second there because he never thought that he'd actually be part of this conversation, "Me?" he asked.

"Yup" Kenny proclaimed, "I need a lot of training before the Valmarian city. Who knows, we might actually fight each other there" this earned several stares from the gang, "Wait… don't tell me you're competing too!" Dawn stated earning a nod and a letter of invitation. "Yup that's right" Kenny smiled back, "I even have my letter of invitation right here"

"Hey that's great Kenny" Ash cheered, "With your Prinplup on the show, I have no doubt that you'll do great in the Valmarian league"

Smiling back at the hero, Kenny looked at his Pikachu before grinning, "So how about it? Wanna have a little practice match?" but then Dawn butted in, "Excuse me! Didn't you hear what I just said!? I challenged you first! And besides, Ash is way off your league"

"If I remember correctly… didn't he steal a ribbon from you before too?" Kenny said looking away with innocent looking eyes. Dawn's face blushed slightly as she yelled back, "SO WHAT?! I won against you in the grand festival so don't you butt in about that!" quickly remembering what he was talking about, Ash quickly took out a ribbon from his pocket, "Oh yeah I remember that. I still have that ribbon right here" it was a normal ribbon like those you would see anywhere. But to coordinators, it was like a sign of victory earned through battles.

"THAT DOES IT!" Cynthia bursted out from Tracey's position, "I guess we'll just have to settle this, the old fashion way!" Johanna nodded back, "I couldn't have said it better myself! A one on one arm wrestle!" but before they could put their arms on the table, a single drop of water slapped itself on her head. Johanna and Cynthia jerked their heads upwards only to see the bright moon covered up in a thick bundle of clouds.

Sounds of thunder ready to strike began making its noise causing the other Pokemons to take shelter within the house, "Oh my…" Johanna quickly clasped her hands and jolted to the gang, "Alright everyone no more battles today. Everyone, in the house now… come one chop chop" as the pack made their way into the house, Cynthia returned her Garchomp and her other Pokemons into her Pokeballs so they won't take up much space back inside.

While the gangs were moving along, the heavens cried out causing them to move faster as it poured down their head. It was amazing how the weather could change even on such a drastic day. Not only was it raining hard, but thanks to the cold weather, it was nearly as freezing as the North Pole itself. When they made it into the safety of the household, they were already dripping wet.

"Talk about the sudden change of weather" whined Dawn as she squeezed her hair to get the water off the strains. "That storm just came out of nowhere!"

A few minutes later, Johanna passed out several large towels to keep themselves dry, "Here you go boys. You don't wanna get sick just because of a little rain now" as she passed them out individually, Ash saw Rosa on the corner shaking herself like a dog. Smiling by himself, the boy took the liberty of wiping the pink Lucario dry. To say the least, Rosa seemed very surprised and was even a little shock to have the 'king' take care of her. Her mind was forcing her to brush him off, but when his hand touched her fur she couldn't help but purr like cat/dog. It was like his hands were massaging through her pain making her forget all of her duties and troubles. And to tell the truth… she did look kinda cute without her usual serious face.

Taking a little look outside the window, Johanna knew that there was little left to do, but to go to sleep. "Well it looks like the rain won't be stopping anytime soon. Why don't I show you boys where you will be sleeping?" with a nod from the gang, she immediately brough them up the stairs for a little tour around the house. Lukily, there were enough room for everyone… except for one. Though Dawn thought that there were still plenty of beds to go around the house, but sadly, with the increasing number of guests… her calculations were a bit off.

The two guest rooms were large that much was for sure, but there just wasn't enough. Both rooms had three beds with a large empty space at the center. Misty, May and Duplica took the girls room while Anabel and Cynthia took the floor (yeah… she's staying too)

Richie, Drew and Max had the boy's bed while Brock, Tracey, Kenny and Todd took the floor. With all the space taken, Ash was left out. "Sorry Ash" Johanna apologized handing him a pillow and a blanket. "I wish there was a little more room but as you can see hehehe"

"No problem Johanna" Ash flashed out his favorite smile, "I'm pretty used to sleeping in my sleeping bag" but this time, sleeping outside the house wasn't gonna be an option. With the storm growing worst by the minute, even a Snorlax would wake up to find a better place to sleep. "Why don't you take the sofa in the living room" the mother suggested, "If you need anything just call me"

When the gang's head touched the solft fabric of the beds, they already began to feel a bit woozy. How long has it been since they lay on soft pillows? How long has it been since they even had a decent sleep? Probably longer that anyone could expect.

**(Time skip) (2 hours later)**

While the rest of the gang were sleeping peacefully after an exhausting day, Ash was still wide awake on the sofa looking at the ceiling fan as it spun around in a rhymetic motion. Even though the situation looked a little dim for the boy, he thought that visiting the Shinou region wasn't such a bad idea after all. With all that's been happening for the past week, a little vacation could really come in handy for taking the stress of their minds. The little bake off was also a good bonus as well. It would be great to something other than Pokemon battles in awhile…… and trust me… I think Ash had enough of Pokemon battles for a life time.

But as the boy starred blindly among the ceiling, a pink flash came across his face. He didn't even need to stand up to know who it was… he only knew one Pokemon who could do that kind of trick. "Hmm? What's wrong Rosa?" he stated as he looked at the female Pokemon starring at him at the end of the sofa. "Nothing…" came her cold reply, "I was just wondering why you didn't take the bed offer. You are a king, not some lowly servant. These people should be…" she was stopped in the mid part of her sentence when Ash waved it off.

"Sorry, I guess I'm not really used to being a king yet hehe" he joked away not being at all serious about royalty business. But Rosa was being serious. She suddenly leaped off the sofa and walked to the side of the boy's head. The more she looked at him, the more similar he became to Hsa. It was scary. "Well… I'm going to sleep now" Ash stated as he fluttered his blanket. "Good night Rosa"

When Ash closed his eyes Rosa simply walked away and stayed in the warmest corner in the room, "Good night……… Ash…"


	44. A Trainer For Hire

**Chapter 44: A Trainer For Hire!**

**(Dawn's dreamscape)**

Our favorite blue haired coordinator was having a wonderful dream tonight. She was in the Pokemon stadium, surrounded by millions if not thousands of people. They were chanting her name in a rhythm that was rare to find indeed. She was in the finals and with one slick combination move she was definitely gonna win. "Ladies and gentlemen!" the narrator began, "I give you… the one… the only…… DAWN!!!" the crowd went in an uproar causing the stadium to shake.

When Dawn got on the ground, she threw out her Pokeball which exploded with a big boom of hearts and lights. In an instant, Pachirisu came out with its cute expression still in tact on its face. When the girl looked around, she could see Ash in the VIP booth on the top floor looking at her with a smile on his face. Though strangely enough, no one else was with him. "Alright Pachirisu, let's do this one for Ash. Charge up your electricity!" the little Pokemon began charging up and preparing itself for a beautiful spectacle.

After a few seconds, Dawn waved her hand up, "Alright, now let it all out!" Pachirisu immediately released the energy off its cheeks, but instead of becoming a beautiful electric shock, it only became a little spark. "Huh? What the?"

"Oh! What a bad turn for Dawn and Pachirisu! That's gonna cost her a lot of points and the game!" said the narrator with a mocking voice. Before Dawn knew it, the whole crowd began booing her causing the girl to look around in confusion. Her move was perfect, but it looked like something went wrong. When Pachirisu heard the booing all around, the little Pokemon began to panic and began running amock. This caused the crowd to boo even more. "Pachirisu stop!" Dawn tried to calm the little one down, but it seemed that the beaver Pokemon was having a little big of a stage fright problem.

But as the light began to dim, she looked up once more only to see Ash frowning with a large hint of disappointment in his face. And within moments, the boy began walking away. "Ash!" she called out, "Ash wait!" she tried to reach for him, but it looks like there was no use. He was already too far… to be seen or heard.

**(Back in the real world)**

"Ash…… come back…" Dawn mumbled as the other girls slumbered in their sleep.

**(The Next Morning)**

Ash and Rosa were sleeping peacefully in the living room. The Guardian, due to her small size was able to fit perfectly on the chair making it her ideal soft sleeping point. Ash shifted his sleeping position a few times before his nose began picking up a scent coming from within the kitchen. Quickly turning around from the sofa, the boy suddenly remembered that he wasn't on a bed. "WAH!?"

Thump!

The boy fell face first on the cold wooden floor, causing his face to ache. "Oww…" when Rosa sensed the strange disturbance, she immediately got into protect mode, which means that whatever comes within five feet of Ash will immediately be attacked in the next two minutes. "Are you alright your majesty?" she yelled softly.

"Yeah…" he replied rubbing his aching head, "I just fell off the sofa… hehehehe" Rosa sighed and quickly dropped down her guard. Once she noticed the lump on the boy's head she immediately got to work, "Let me look at that" Ash was reluctant at first but then knew that she meant no harm… at least for now. After analyzing the damage on his head, she quickly put some energy on her paw to heal the wound. "There… it should be fine now"

"Wow… thanks Rosa" the pink Lucario let out a soft smile which Ash wasn't able to see. But then suddenly Johanna poked her head out of the kitchen, "Ash, is everything alright?" she asked while holding a spatula on her hand. "I'm fine Johanna" Ash replied standing up, "But what I really want to know is that wonderful smell" and to his truth, there really was a wonderful aroma coming from the kitchen. "Oh I'm just making breakfast for everyone" the mother explained.

Suddenly, there was a 'ting' sound coming from the kitchen, "Oh, the toast is ready" Johanna quickly excused herself and made her way towards the toaster where the delightful toasts were made (duh!)

Taking those wonderfully smelling air into his nose, Ash's stomach began to grumble, telling him that he didn't have enough to eat yesterday. "Ash?" Johanna called, "Would you mind waking the others up? Dawn usually oversleeps during this time of day and I wouldn't want any of your friends to miss out on breakfast"

Ash gave out a sweatdrop, _"Hehehehe… she kinda reminds me of Caroline"_

While Ash busy waking the others up on the second floor, Rosa thought that it would be a good idea to get out and get some fresh air. Being in a tight room without advance circulation of air was not something she was used to, besides, she also needed to make sure that the area around the compound was safe. She may be a bit of a paranoia, but in her language, there's no such thing as being too cautious. Using her wide range senses to detect every molecule in a two mile radius, there was nothing on earth that would be able to take her by surprise.

After a few seconds, she suddenly heard several footsteps approaching the house which made her jerk her head towards that direction. With her enchanced sights she was able to describe the 'visitor' within moments.

**(Back in the house)**

When Ash walked over to Dawn's room, he let out a knock, "Dawn?" he called. At first he got no reply. But after a few more knocks and couple of more yells, the boy had enough. He slowly opened the door and noticed the girl in question was sleeping peacefully on her bed. The boy had never been to a girl's room before, other than Misty that is, but that was different (I think) The place definitely suited the girl's taste. Aqua colored curtains, a ribbon rack to hold her ribbons (duh) a small tea table to attend some friends and several other furnitures that added to her style.

Sinking in the room's unusual smell, Dawn made her way towards the bed and began nudging girl on her shoulders. He knew that entering a girl's room without permission wasn't a good thing, but he really needed to eat and right now, waking her up was probably the fastest way to get back down for one of Johanna's tasty breakfast.

"Dawn…" he called out softly, "Dawn… it's time to wake up"

"Ermm… just five more minutes" she replied drowsily. Ash let out a sigh, but then he noticed Piplup waking up, "Oh hey there Piplup" Ash greeted the water Pokemon (is Piplup a water or ice type? I'll check on that later), "Hey, do you mind waking Dawn up?" (Pi Piplup!) the little penguin replied happily with a nod. But what came next caught Ash with complete surprise. Instead of waking the girl in a normal way, Piplup let out a bubble beam attack which hit both the girl and Ash, "WAhhh!!" the two of them shouted.

Back downstairs, Cynthia and Johanna were sipping on some morning coffee when a shock wave occurred. "This happens a lot?" the blonde champ asked to which the mother nodded, "Piplup likes to wake her up like that almost every morning. I guess it became a habit of his" while the rest of the gang were still surprised by the blast, Ash finally came down looking like he just came from a storm.

"Talk about a morning wake up call" he explained as the door bell suddenly rang.

"Hmm? Now who could that be this early in the morning?" Johanna stated before moving to the door.

"Hello" the visitor greeted, "Are you Johanna?" the mother nodded back in reply. "I brought a delivery from professor Rowan from Sandgem town" the boy quickly handed out a basket which was full of bottles and spices. When Johanna took note of some of the bottles, her face brightened up, "Oh, these are my secreat ingredients. I've ben waiting for them all week now"

The purple haired boy nodded and shrugged, "Good bye then…" but before the guy could leave, Dawn stepped down the stairs in her casual clothes rubbing the sands out of hr eyes. "Hey mom, where did you keep my… YOU!" she stopped mid-sentence when she spotted the delivery boy. "Oh great, not you again…"

"What are you doing here… meanie!?" if Dawn's voice could get any colder than that, she would already be known as the ice queen of Shinou by now. "I'm just delivering something" he replied, "I'll be going n…" but just before he finished, Ash came by from the kitchen, "Hey Dawn, come on. The food here is…… (gasp) Paul!" the boy gasped the moment his eyes darted towards the boy in the front door.

"Ash?" the purple haired trainer now known as Paul was equally surprised to see the boy as well. As the two of them locked eyes with one another, a great sense of uneasiness crept upon Dawn's shoulders. She's seen what kind of rivalry these two had together back when Ash was traveling with her and she knew that Paul wasn't exactly the best trainer you would find in the block.

But as the two of them continued to glare at each other, Dawn was quite surprise to see both of them cracking out a chuckle. Paul was smiling and Ash trying to hold himself from bursting a laugh. As the moments passed by with the two trainers acting strangely, Dawn could only wonder what was going on in their heads.

After a short while, the two rivals finally broke out and laughed together like buddies. "Hahahahaha… It's great to see you again Paul" Ash extended his hand for a shake. "Same here Ash hehehehe…" Paul returned the shake while recovering from the laugh. To say the least, Dawn was utterly confused. Was there something she was missing here?

"Wait a minute…" Dawn asked herself, "Weren't they supposed to be… rivals or something?"

"I guessed you still haven't heard huh?" said Brock who appeared out of the kitchen, "I was pretty surprised when I first noticed they were friends. But Paul and Ash had beeen friends ever since the Shinou league. I guess the reason why you didn't know is because we separated during that time" Dawn sulked at first, but was still unsure if this person was still as heartless as he was during the first time they met.

When Rosa noted that the 'intruder' was Ash's friend, she immediately let down some of her guard and sat back down in her meditating position.

"Oh Ash, is he a friend of yours?" asked Johanna who noticed the conversation. Ash nodded and decided to introduce them, "Johanna, this is Paul. He's A Pokemon trainer like me. Paul, this is Johanna, Dawn's mom and champion in the Shinou grand festival three years ago" the purple haired trainer bowed in respect to which the woman laughed, "Well, any friend of Ash is a friend of mine. Why don't you join us for breakfast? There's plenty of food to go around."

"Sure, I'd love to" Paul replied happily.

**(Valmarian city) (Hospital)**

The two younger Bicento brothers were lying in the hospital awake in bed while the doctor checked their pulse. "Hmm…" the doctor began, "Well from the looks of it, these two seemed to have a suffered from a severe concussion on their heads. It's nothing serious" Officer Jenny nodded in reply. "Thank you doctor. I was surprised to see them on the ground late last night. Do you think it's ok if I ask them some questions?"

"Go right ahead. I still need to check up on some other patients" and with that the doctor left.

When the two brothers sat up to meet the police officer's face, Jenny sat down on the arm chair to begin her interrogation, "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah…" said Rodrigo the older brother, "What happened?"

"That's what I wanted to ask you" Jenny replied, "Last night I found the two of you unconscious near the entrance of the city slums. Were you attacked?"

"Were we?" Rodrigo said a little confused, "I don't remember…… all I remember is that were walking back to our hotel room and then…… nothing. How about you Daniel?" he gestured to his little brother on the other bed, "Nothing… I can't remember a thing"

"Well that's strange" Jenny inquired, "Your hotel is located at the east side of the city. What were you doing all the way in the slums?"

"I think……" Daniel stated trying to remember what he last saw, "We were having a meeting with our cousins near the Central plaza restaurant. But then… uh… I don't remember"

Seeing that she wouldn't be getting anymore info from them, Jenny closed her note pad and nodded, "I see… well that's all I have to ask. The doctor said that you can leave the hospital tomorrow. Thank you gentlemen" and with that she left the room only to encounter several police officers on the other side.

"Well there's nothing more we can do here. Let's go back to the station and report this to the chief"

"Yes ma'am"

**(Back in Johanna's place)**

After getting the gang aquainted with Paul, breakfast seemed to have gone better than anyone could imagine. Jokes were being tossed around and random topics were generated one at a time making others talk while they ate.

"Oh dear…" Johanna sighed making the gang dart their eyes towards her. "What's wrong Johanna?" Ash asked first. "It seems like I forgot to buy the groceries yesterday and now I'm missing some ingredients for my Strawberry long cake"

"Well… do you want me to buy it?" the boy volunteered quickly, "I've been to Twinleaf town before, so I think I remember where the store is"

"Really Ash? That would be wonderful" Johanna replied with a perked up face, "Oh that gives me an idea! Dawn, why don't you show the others the rest of the town? They might want to see the town festival coming up" her daughter nodded with a smile, "Sure thing mom" she then turned to her friends, "You guys will love Twinleaf town. There's a festival ground and everything. We'll stop by the nursery school on our way back"

"I'll join you" Cynthia decided, "I haven't seen Twinleaf town for awhile myself and it would be nice to see some of the old ruins nearby"

"Oh you mean the old ruins at the back?" Johanna inquired earning a small nod from her old friend. But this seemed new to Dawn, "Wait, what ruins mom?"

Johanna laughed, "I'm not surprised you don't know about it. You never liked studying about history. Just outside Twinleaf town lies a small building almost two hundred years old. It's mostly just a place for tourists to visit, but every now and then, some archeologists would pass by and check the place out. No one has solved the mystery of the place yet, but they say there is supposedly a marvelous treasure deep within"

To say the least, the gang was a little interested with some historical mumbo jumbo. Two hundred years is barely enough to compare with the history they discovered. They found themselves a two million old king and Pokemons that can talk in human language.

"Well why don't you guys go on ahead" Tracey suggested, "I'll check around if there's a plane or boat heading towards Valmarian city in the next week"

"Oh are you guys looking for a way to Valmarian city?" Paul looked at all of them which was replied with a nod all around. "Well if you want, I'm actually heading there in three days. An old friend of mine is taking me there on his fishing boat on his next trip" the gang perked up almost instantly with the news, "Really!?" said Max with eyes as wide as saucer plates, "Yeah… I'll call him right away and tell him that I'm bringing some friends along. So how about it?" there was no need to reply to that question. The gang simply cheered and laughed all around. Finally, some real good news!

**(Time skip 1 hour)**

After finishing breakfast and cleaning up the table, the gang (now including Paul and Cynthia) met up at the front of the house. "Well, I'm off to buy some groceries in the store" said Ash with Pikachu on his shoulders. "And I'm off to the ruins" said Cynthia with a slight smile. "We'll meet up in a few hours ok?" with a round of nods from the gang, they immediately dispersed and began checking the many places in town.

But as Ash walked alone on the streets of town, Rosa appeared out in front of him in a small puff of smoke. If one would look at this, it would almost seem like that she was a ninja or something. "Oh hey Rosa" Ash smiled at her. "Good day your majesty…" came her cold reply. Not wanting to impose too much, the Guardian resumed her duties and began wlking beside the boy acting like a high and mighty bodyguard.

**(On the other side of town)**

Jessie, James and Meowth exited the family restaurant after a nice warm meal. It was great to be pampered like royalty, but staying like that for too long can take away experience. "Well I feel perked up and ready to go!" shouted the blue haired villain. "Let's go and nab that Pikachu!" they all gave out a cheer. "But there's only one problem!" Meowth said suddenly, "We don't know where they are!" this made the two humans face fault.

"Well that's a major change in the mood" Jessie whined as she sat on the table.

"Those twerps must be all the way in Valmarian city by now" James stated. "At this rate, we'll never get that Pikachu at all"

"Let's face it, we're complete losers without a mission…" the cat like Pokemon slump down on his rear. When the butler saw this, he immediately picked out a flyer from his back, "Excuse me master James" he began, "But if you're in need of some entertainment, perhaps this can help" the blue haired man took the flyer and scanned its contents.

'Twinleaf town annual Bake Off Festival!'

-An all out baking from different restaurant!

-A Pokemon unofficial contest!

-Prize for battle winner is a Twinleaf badge

-The winner of the bake off takes home the Twinleaf town prized Trophy!

"Oh well what do you know. It seems like Twinleaf town is holding a Bake Off tomorrow" James noted.

But then Jessie perked up, "And it looks like they're having a contest battle as well!" this made the other two members of the Team Rocket shiver as they knew what was gonna happen next, "You know what that means" the red head purred, "It's time for your very own… Jessalina!"

A/N: Jessalina is the name Jessie uses when she enters a Pokemon contest. You can find out that she does this a lot of times in the Shinou league.

"Oh no… not again" said James and Meowth while they sighed, "Well… at least we can sample the delicious cake they'll be cooking" this made James perk up as well, "Well I guess we'll just have to bake our way to victory!" he then turned to the butler, "Chief, do you happen to have my grand mother's cake recipe?"

**(Twinleaf town festival grounds)**

As the gang made it to the festival ground, they were quite amazed on how al the processes were doing. Flyers were being posted on the walls of almost every building, decorations were placed in various locations to give the place that festival mood, and mini shop stand were being place for tomorrow's bake off.

"Hey guys, check it out!" said May pointing at the festival sign, "There's gonna be a Pokemon contest during the festival. And get this… the winner gets a bake off ribbon!"

"Well… today's the last day to sign up" Brock noticed the date written on the back, "If you want to join, now would be the best time" May nodded and quickly scribbled her name on the list. "How about you Dawn? It would be nice to see how much you've improve"

"No thanks" the Shinou coordinator replied, "I'm helping my mom setting up the stands and selling the cakes. The stands can be very crowded during the day"

"Then I guess that leaves me" Kenny stated as he signed up. "How about you guys? A little practice can go a long way in a real battle" Drew nodded in agreement and decided to sign up for the competition as well. "I guess that makes three of us"

"What about you Anabel?" Brock asked the Salon Maiden, "I bet you have some combinations up your sleeves" but the purple haired girl flatly refused, "No thanks. I enjoy Pokemon contest more by watching them"

"Then I guess I'll join too" said Duplica as she signed up her name on the note pad.

"Hey look at that!" Max pointed to a bunch of cakes on the free sample table. "Wow… check it out. They look absolutely delicious" the little boy began drooling as the aroma of some of the hot baked bread rose to his nose, "Hehehe… I wonder if they taste just as good as they look" but just before he cold reach it, a fan slapped against his hand. "Yeow!"

"Oh no you don't young man!" said the old lady, "You an't taking a bite off this!"

"But I thought this is a free sample table?" Max inquired which was replied with another smack at the head, "The only time you'll get to taste this is during the festival! No get lost kid!" the gang immediately backed away as several other bakers began doing the same. It looks as if all of them were determined to win this Bake Off no matter what.

"Geeze… talk about an old hag" Max mumbled as he rubbed his hand.

**(The grocery store)**

As Ash checked on the list of things to get for Johanna's cake, he marked off the last thing on the piece of paper and paid the cashier to necessary amount. "Thank you and please come again" the clerk smiled back and bowed politely.

When Ash left, with two heavy plastic bags, Rosa volunteered to carry one of them, "Allow me your majesty" she said professionally. "Thanks Rosa. These things are a lot heavier than they look" as they continued to walk pass the crowded streets, Ash couldn't help but notice several stares he was getting from the area. It wasn't bad or anything. More like confused and amazement or something like that. Ash was now wondering if they recognize him as the kid from TV. The good thing about the Shinou region was the fact that he wasn't as popular here than the other regions. Though a lot of them know his name, his face wasn't exactly posted on every door in the city.

And just when they were passing through the local Pokemon center, Rosa began to feel more and more stares coming their way. Was there something wrong with a Pokemon helping its master carry the groceries?

"Excuse me sir!" shouted one of the trainers suddenly. Ash turned around and faced the man who clearly looked excited for some reason, "I'm sorry to bother you, but is that Lucario… yours?" he pointed to the pink Pokemon who was raising a brow of suspicion. "Well uh…(pika?)" Ash began until he received a nod from Rosa. "Yeah… she is"

"Wow… I've never seen a Lucario before!" the man quickly pulled out a Pokedex and began identifying it. "This is amazing!" it wasn't long till a few more trainers began gathering around them like a pack of ants swarming at a piece of delicious bread.

"Whoa… this Lucario is different from the ones in the picture"

"Hey, do you mind I take a picture?" and before Ash knew it, he was already pushed out of the crowd while Rosa was having a strange time of her life.

"Uh… Rosa, I think it's time we get out of here" the pink Pokemon nodded in agreement and with that they dashed off to the distance all the way back to Johanna's front door. The crowd barely had enough time to react when they vanished from their sight.

**(Back at Johanna's place)**

"Phew… that was a close one" Ash panted heavily as he held his chest. It was amazing they didn't drop anything from the groceries during that sprint. "I thought we'd never make it out of there"

"I'm not surprise though" Rosa stated. Unlike Ash, she barely even look winded at all, "Lucarios are not common to be seen around the land anymore there for it was quite unusual for someone to be seen walking with one" she place her part of the groceries on the floor and move to the sides. Pikachu perked up a little and jumped off Ash's back taking off that extra weight on the boy's shoulder. "Well… I guess it can't be helped hehehehe"

"Sorry your majesty…" she apologized, "If you wish, I could change into a human form" Ash could sense much displeasure in the tone of her voice so he didn't want to force her, "Nah… I think it would be better to show who you really are Rosa" he began in a very mature tone, "Pretending to be someone you're not isn't something someone should do… right Pikachu? (Pika pika!) hehehe"

"Ash, there you are!" said Johanna as she came out the door, "Did you buy the things I asked you?" the boy simply nodded and handed her the two plastic bags. "Great! Why don't you come on in? I made one of the cakes today and I was wondering if you could try it"

When the three of them arrived at the kitchen, Ash's stomach began to growl the moment his eyes came into contact with the strawberry Long cake. It was just like Johanna mentioned it. It was absolutely stunning just by the look of its cream.

Not wanting to wait any longer, Johanna gave a nod and let the boy try it out with a single bite.

With large chomp Ash began to feel like he was near heaven. In an instant the cake seemed to have killed him (not literally) and took him all the way to the clouds. Having that kind of experience, Ash took one bite after another, until there was nothing left.

"Well… how was it?" Johanna asked with a smirk. By the looks on Ash face, she could already tell that he was more than satisfied. "It was awesome…" he replied with a loud burp coming after. Johanna giggled, "Well… that's my grand mother's secret recipe. Why don't you go hand out and play for awhile. I'll need to make a large batch for tomorrow's Bake off"

"You want any help?" Ash offered putting his old war torn cap away. "No thanks dear" came the mother's reply, "I think I'd rather do this on my own. Now go along now" but then suddenly the phone began to ring, "Oh who could that be at this time?"

By the time Johanna answered the phone, a familiar old face popped through the video screen, "Hello? Oh there you are Johanna!" it was professor Rowan of Sandgem town. "Oh hello professor, I wasn't expecting you to call. What can I do for you?"

"Sorry to interrupt on you Bake off Johanna, but I'm having a bit of a situation here myself" the professor looked a bit down for some reason, "You see, there are some new trainers coming by in the afternoon and I was hoping you could come by and give them a few words of advise and a little training exercise"

"I'm sorry professor" Johanna replied, "But I'm in the middle of the bake sale and I have a lot of things to prepare and…" her eyes then darted to Ash as the boy was playing with his Pikachu, "But I think I could send someone in my place…" Rowan let out a quizzled brow, "Oh are you sending Dawn?" the mother shook her head, "No… even better. I hope to see you soon professor. Bye bye" and with that she hung up.

"Ash…" Johanna turned to the boy and Rosa, "Do you mind doing me a little favor?"

"Sure thing Johanna" the boy was already ready to do anything even without knowing what the favor was. "Professor Rowan called and apparently there are some new trainers coming by his lab this afternoon. He was hoping that I go there and give them a little experience, but as you can see… I'm a little busy with making the cake… so I was thinking if you could go for me… please?" she gave out a pout at the end.

"Sure thing" Ash replied immediately. "A little practice can go a long way. Right Pikachu? (pika pikachu!) You wanna come along too?" he gestured to Rosa to which she replied with a nod.

**(Ruins of Eleksha)**

Cynthia slowly made her way towards the old ruins just on the outskirts of Twinleaf town. After getting through all the high and thick grass and following an old dirt path, her persistence was finally rewarded. The ruins were just like the name says…… 'ruins' Everything within a twenty meter radius within the ruins were desolated and most of the soil had been rooted by the forest. If thing are this bad outside, Cynthia wouldn't be surprised to see some stray Pokemons inside the building either.

"Hmm… interesting…" she muttered to herself while wiping some of the dust away from the architect. From the walls of the small building were stone carved pictures of several legendary Pokemons, to which fascinated her even more. "I'm surprise... I didn't even know such ruins exists" she chuckled slightly.

"Oh hello there miss" came a voice from behind. Cynthia quickly turned around and met the face of a worn old man. "I didn't expect to see anyone here. Are you an archeologist?"

"Huh me?" the blonde champ pointed at herself and began waving it off, "Oh no not at all. I was just sight seeing"

The old man smiled back, "Oh that's nice. I never thought people would still be interested in ancient history anymore. The only people who ever came her are mostly old folks like me hehehehe" he then approach the woman with his stick cane, "So you want to know some thing about these ruins?" Cynthia nodded, "Well… let's see…… hehehe… it's been a long time since I told this story to anyone… I kinda forgot most of the details already. But you could say this place was a worshipping ground for Dialga and Palkia" Cynthia's eyes widened slightly as this story took interest in her almost instantly.

"Really?"

"Yup…" was the old man's reply, "People from all over the region would bring gifts and food offerings to the Pokemon during the old times, but now that the Pokemons are gone… I guess they didn't need this place anymore hehehehehe"

"It's too bad that no one has actually seen these two legendaries" Cynthia sighed with a bit of a smile on her face. But the old man just gave her a confused look, "What are you talking about?" he began, "These two Pokemons are still alive" Cynthia's senses were quickly confused as she gave out a quizzled face, "Don't you watch the news young lady? These two Pokemons were seen in Alamos town about two years ago"

"WHAT?! Are you sure?"

The old man nodded, "Of course, I saw it myself when I was paying my niece a visit" he then began rubbing his chin, "That was some experience hehehe…… if it weren't for that Ash kid, non of us would never make it out of there alive"

"Ash?... as in… Ash Ketchum!?"

"Huh? Yeah… that young famous trainer that's I've been hearing around lately. He's the one who stopped them… or at least that's what they said" before the old man turned his attention back to Cynthia, the girl was already long gone. "(sigh) Youngsters nowadays… no respect for their elders"

**(Sandgem town) (Professor Rowan's lab)**

Ash and his buddy Pikachu arrived in Sandgem town in just about an hour walk. Traveling alone can speed progress, but traveling with a pack can really slow you down. By the time he made it to the lab, he was a little surprise to see how it changed over the years. What was supposed to be but a simple lab turned into a large complex. There were several new rooms at the other end of the building, and an observatory was added at the top of the laboratory.

"Whoa… this place changed a lot since we last visited (pikachu…)" Ash then approach the door buzzer.

"Yes?" came a female voice from the speaker, "This is professor Rowan's lab, can I help you?" Ash was a little reluctant at first because he wasn't really used to technology, but then he decided to speak up, "Uh… yes, I'm looking for professor Rowan"

"Oh ok…" the woman on the other line replied, "Professor, there's someone who wants to speak with you"

"What?!" came a muffled voice on the background, "Oh all right (mumble mumble) Yes, who is this!?" from the tone of his voice, the professor didn't sound like he was in a good mood. Ash noticed this and quickly took a gulp of his saliva, "Umm professor Rowan… uh… Johanna sent me to take her place in training the trainers?" it sounded more of a question rather than a statement.

"Ah good good very good! Please come in, I've been waiting for you" when the speaker turned off, the automated door slid open letting the boy in.

After getting inside, Ash recognized the lab smell anywhere. Since he's been visiting professor Oak's lab a lot of times, he began getting used to the smell of chemicals and other odors. By the time he reached the main research room, he was greeted by Rowan's surprised face. "Ash!? Wha… what are you doing here!?"

The boy smiled back with his Pikachu, "Hey professor, Johanna sent me here for that errand you had to do. I hope I'm not late" the old scientist recovered from the shock with a sigh. Sure, when Ash first walked through those doors, he was practically a nobody in the Shinou region…… but after defeating Cynthia two years ago… his fame practically skyrocketed through the roof. If the people could only recognize his face, then he'd have a hard time going through the streets during the day.

"No, not at all… I just didn't expect to see you that's all" the professor let out some stress from his chest, "Please follow me" they began walking through the halls of the lab in a two man formation… well two men and one Pokemon (Rosa)

"By the way Ash" Rowan started a little conversation, "Where did you find that Lucario? Its strange colors are not one you would see every day" Ash smiled back and sighed, "Well, actually… she's a friend of mine"

"I see…" by the time they reached the new set of doors the professor decided to have a little preparation, "Oh Ash… do you mind removing your cap?" the boy nodded and did what he asked, "Good… now listen. These trainers are a bit jumpy since they started their Pokemon journey a few months ago. They're a bit overconfident with their talents and they believe that they can defeat anyone. I want you to show them not to get over their heads… can you do that?"

"Sure thing professor" Ash quickly agreed, "I've been overconfident before myself. I know how it feels"

"Great, well then let's begin" and with that they entered the lab. From there, Ash was greeted by three trainers who looked like snobs from the first POV. Two of them were boys and the one on the right was a girl. The girl had long black hair and green eyes. She wore the same outfit as Drew except with a little more girlish color. The first boy had blue hair and was a bit tanned on the side but other than that, he looked pretty normal. The second boy was the one that freaked Ash out the most. He was wearing the same outfit he was when he was traveling in Shinou. A black long collared T-shirt with a single yellow stripe in the middle. But the boy's attitude and looks really tore off the fashion.

"Everyone" Rowan began, "I'd like you to meet a good old friend of mine. He's a trainer from Kanto and he'll be taking Johanna's place for the day"

"Hi…" Ash began, "I'm…" but before he could introduce himself, the three trainers just shrugged. "Ah… yeah…" the tanned boy began. "Professor… we were expecting to train with a real Pokemon trainer champion. Not a wash out" Ash quickly rose along with his Pikachu, "What!? Who are you calling a Wash Out?! I tell you I was…"

"Uh he… participated in the Shinou league two years ago!" Rowan cut him off. "He's a real pro and can handle himself in any situation" but neither of the three took any interest of the boy.

"Tch… must've got yourself beaten in the very beginning hehehe" the boy taunted earning a little steam from Ash's head. "Why you……!"

"We then" the professor interrupted, "Why don't you all have a little practice battle? A simple one on one. The three of you can choose whichever Pokemon you like, while my 'friend' here chooses his. Agreed?" earning nods from the group Rowan immediately escorted Ash outside where the boy could blow off some steam.

"Sorry about that Ash" the professor apologized, "I don't want them to know who you are just yet"

"Huh? But why not?" Ash asked with a puzzled face. "You see… these trainers were actually inspired by watching you on TV. As you can see… they're quite a lively bunch. Since you're here, I might as well give them a lesson. And who better to teach them than their inspirationer?" the old man smiled clearly making up the last word. Seeing the plan unfold before him, Ash nodded in agreement and followed the professor to the battlefield where the three trainers lie in waiting.

**(Five minutes later)**

Finally reaching the normal field at the back of the lab, the professor asked one of his assistants to be the referee. The first round was going against Ash and the girl.

While Rowan and his other scientists were enjoying the battle scene, Rosa stood next to Ash, ready to protect him from any possible danger. She could not speak as long as there are other humans around.

"Alright" the referee began, "This battle will be a one on one with no time limit. Trainers, choose your Pokemons!" the girl smiled, "Hey there, I'm Yalana, and I dream to become a fire Pokemon master!" she declared.

"And I'm…" but before Ash could introduce himself, the new female trainer shrugged, "It doesn't matter what your name is" she interrupted, "I'm gonna beat you so fast that you wouldn't even know what hit you. Come out Infernape!" a medium sized fire monkey appeared ready to do battle. "I spent the few months I had training my Chimchar to the fullest… as you can see, it evolved faster than your average Pokemon"

"_Geeze… I guess that's why the professor thought that they were overconfident"_ Ash thought as he checked the fire Pokemon. He really wanted to find out more about this Infernape, but with his Pokedex lost (and possibly destroyed) he just had to use his natural instinct, "Well… I guess I'd better teach them about being over confident… I choose you… Turtwig!" a small grass type Pokemon appeared which caused the other young trainers to giggle.

"Hehehehe…… this is going to be easy" Yalana stated, "Everyone knows that grass type are no match for a fire type. I'll just end this quickly. Infernape, use flame thrower!" the fire monkey Pokemon suddenly unleashed a powerful ray of fire. As Ash looked at the size, he let out a smirk, "Ok Turtwig, sit still and take the blow head on! (Turt! Turtwig!)" when the grass Pokemon took a direct hit, Yalana let out a smirk…… but that smirk soon died down when Turtwig resurfaced from the fire unscathed. "What the!? Impossible!"

"Hmm… impressive" said the professor, "It appears that Ash has been training his Pokemons on how to resist their weak elements"

"I guess it's my turn then…" Ash began, "Turtwig, go for a tackle attack!" the grass Pokemon charged in with great speed and slammed its body against the fire Pokemon, "Let' keep up the pressure, show him a little razor leaf!"

But Yalana wasn't gonna give up yet, "Infernape, use endure!" the fire monkey went into a defensive stance and blocked the leaf attacks that were slamming against its body. "Hold old Infernape, now use over heat! Let's go!" with the last of the grass attack gone, Infernape charged in an even more powerful fire attack which hit Turtwig directly. But to her surprise, Turtwig barely looked even hurt, "No way!"

"You can't judge a battle just by looking at their types" Ash commented, "I'll show you a new trick! Turtwig, use leaf storm!" in an instant, Turtwig unleashed a large volley of leaves which sent Infernape flying through the sky, "Now with one more blow, use tackle!" and with one slam on the torso, the fire monkey was incapacited. "Oh no Infernape!"

"The match is over!" the referee announced, "This victory goes to Turtwig!" As yelled out a cheer, "Alright! You did it Turtwig!" Ash went to hug his little Pokemon and congratulated it, "You did great Turtwig. I promise to let Johanna give you a bowl of her poffins later" the grass Pokemon smiled and quickly went back to the Pokeball.

"Yalana" Rowan stated, "You are defeated, you can come back now"

"Yes sir…" the girl sighed as she put Infernape back into its Pokeball, "You did well my friend, now take a good long rest"

A minute later, the tanned skin boy came to challenge Ash, "Hey mahn" he spoke in a hippy accent, "The name's Jigaro, but my friends call me 'J' for short. I'm a rock Pokemon trainer. So let me introduce you to my little friend! Come out Cranidos!!" a small dinosaur like Pokemon appeared with its head as hard as steel.

"A Cranidos huh" Ash smirked, "I've faced one of those before. You ready for this Pikachu?" (Pikapikachu!) the little mouse replied and happily walked down to the battlefield with electricity sparking on its cheeks. "You got to be wickidy wik man!" Jigaro complained, "Even a beginner can tell that electric types don't stand a snowball chance to take down a rock type"

"Hey, don't count your Goldeens until they hatch" Ash stated, "Mind if I start off first? Alright Pikachu, let's set this off with a thunder shock attack!" Pikachu immediately let out a strong looking electrical surge to Cranidos, but as obvious as a bird in the air, the rock Pokemon didn't even flinch. "Told ya so dude" Jigaro sighed, "Come on Cranidos, let's end this with a head butt attack!" the dinosaur Pokemon began charging at Pikachu with great speed.

"Pikachu, go all in as well!" Ash ordered which the electric Pokemon followed to the letter, "Now jump!" with Pikachu in the air, only Ash knows what comes after that, "Now do the spin move!"

A/N: The spin move is mostly used by Ash during the Pokemon DP series. It is a clever technique developed by Dawn in Diamond and Pearl episode 485: Wild in the Streets

With Jigaro caught off guard with that amazing move, Ash refocused his attacks, "Now Pikachu, use iron tail assault!" in an instant, the little mouse Pokemon unleashed a flurry of attacks at the rock Pokemon's back which sent to crashing through the ground, "Oh no Cronidos, let's counter that attack with a flame thrower attack!" the rock Pokemon quickly unleashed a fire attack but with Pikachu's quickly agility, it was nothing to be threatened about.

"Alright Pikachu, let's show a little skill off the old block! Use volt tackle full power!" with one charge at the chest, Cronidos was sent flying to the air an struck back to the ground with a loud thud. "Oh no Cronidos, are you alright buddy!?"

"The match is over!" the referee declared as he waved the flag, "The winner goes to Pikachu!" Ash jolted with a cheer. "Alright! Good work Pikachu!" he congratulated his pikapal, "I'll let Johanna give you a bowl of poffins as well (pi pikachu!)"

"Jigaro" Rowan stated, "You are defeated, now step away from the battlefield"

"Yes sir" the hippy boy replied as he returned his Pokemon back to its Pokeball, "Good work dude. I'll give you a treat after this"

A few minutes later, the third trainer and the Ash-imitator came, "Walis" Rowan spoke his name, "You may choose your Pokemon" the boy now known as Walis stepped forward. "You may have bested my friends, but against me, you don't stand a chance" Ash was really getting irritated with their continuous taunts. It was no wonder why professor Rowan wanted to discipline them… these guys were purely overconfident with their skills and Pokemon type. "I choose you…… Gallade!" in an instant, a Pokemon that resembled a Gardevoir appeared.

Ash flinched as he had not encounter many of that Pokemon before. "A Gallade huh…" he strategized, "If it's a psychic-fighting type then I'll have to counter it with…" but before Ash could pick out a Pokeball, Walis interrupted, "Hold old shorty pants" the overconfident trainer smudged, "I want to try my Pokemon against that Lucario of yours over there" he pointed towards Rosa who was standing next to Ash. "Yeah… since this is a 'real' battle. A fighting Pokemon like a Lucario should be an even match. Besides, I wouldn't want to let you lose that easily"

Ash would've countered back at his taunt but he just waved it off, "Sorry, but Rosa doesn't exactly go for Pokemon battles" but then suddenly the pink Lucario nodded, _"Its ok your majesty"_ she began a telepathic communication, _"Like I said… I am yours to command if you want to. Let me battle him…"_

"But…" Ash wasn't sure if he agreed to this idea, but heck it wasn't gonna come everyday. "Alright… let's go Rosa" the pink Lucario smiled and slowly made her way to the other half of the court. "Ok Walis, we're ready!"

The opposing trainer smirked, "Then let's do this……"

As the referee checked both combatants, he raised both flags up high and as the wind blew hard, he swings them down, "Begin!"

"Gallade, let's start this fight with a leaf blade attack!" the psychic Pokemon charged against Rosa, drawing out a high powered attack, but Ash was ready. He knew what Rosa could do… and since he experienced it first hand he practically knows most of her moves. "Rosa, hold back for now and analyze your opponents attack! Wait for an opening!" Rosa nodded in reply and began dodging each blow with speed and grace.

"Amazing…" said one of Rowan's assistant, "Ash's Lucario is really putting up a great fight even in type disadvantage. I wonder where he got it"

"Hmm…" Rosa hummed as she muttered in her mind, "This Pokemon is well trained… but it's speed and strength doesn't match up to its own flexibility" with her analysis completed, Ash moved in for the counterattack, "Alright Rosa, show it one of your famous shadow ball attack!" the pink Pokemon quickly leaped behind Gallade and began charging out an attack. However, Walis simply smirked, "Gallade, use teleport!" in an instant, the psychic Pokemon vanished.

"Great… now he's using teleport" Ash thought, "Ok let me think for a minute. Gallade is a Pokemon that can use psychic attack and is good in close combat……… close combat! That's it!" he then sent out a new order, "Rosa, Gallade's coming on top of you!" with this new info, the pink Lucario aimed up and launched her attack. And when Gallade reappeared, WHAM! The psychic Pokemon was caught off balance, "Ok Rosa, just one more hit and we can call this over! Use hyper beam!" with Gallade still in mid-air, Rosa charged out her most powerful attack through her mouth and BOOM! The psychic Pokemon was sent crashing towards the ground where it got roughed up… lightly.

The referee checked the downed Pokemon first before finally declaring, "The match is over! The round goes to…" but before he could finish, Gallade got back up. "Uh wait! The battle still continues!' with another wave of his flag, the battle resumed.

But after taking such a beating from Ash's Lucario, Walis wasn't playing games anymore. "Gallade, we can't let ourselves get overconfident. We'll have to deal with this in every way we can!" a smirk grew upon Rowan's lips as Walis finally understood his own mistakes. After having his over confident side go down, the professor gladly took a sip of tea from his cup and enjoyed the battle.

After about ten minutes or so, Gallade finally fell after receiving a critical blow against one of the pink Lucario's focus punch. Though Rosa may look a bit winded, she was only sighing seeing how weak her opponents actually were.

"The match is over! The round goes to Lucario!" the referee declared holding up the blue flag on Ash's side.

With all three trainers defeated, professor Rowan stood along with his three assistants and began clapping their hands in admiration. "Excellent, very impressive" he said to all of them, "I hope you three something from all of this. Being confident in battles can sometimes be a good thing, but being overconfident can turn the tide of battle in an instant. Is that clear?"

"Yes professor…" the three of them said in unison.

"Good……" the professor then turned to Ash, "Now I believe the three of you owe this young man an apology and thanks for teaching you these valuable lessons"

Yalana nodded and was the first to shake Ash's hand, "Thanks… a battle with you was a real eye opener. I hope to fight against you in the future" then came Jigaro who simply waved at him, "Yeah man, your Pikachu is wickidy wack whack! I'd really to have a rematch later hehehe" and lastly came Wilus who was a bit reluctant to show his gratitude, "I guess I do owe you an apology…" he began, "That Lucario of yours beat my Gallade fair and square…… you might actually have a good match with Ash Ketchum"

But with his name called, professor Rowan simply laughed, "Well well well… I guess none of you really recognize him huh" the three new trainers simply gave a 'huh' look, "Ash, you can put on your cap now" to boy complied to his request and put his favorite old and beaten cap back on. When the boy tucked his hands away, the trainers gasped in an almost instant shock. "YOU!!!!" Jigaro said in a not so hippy manner, "Yes… I believe you all know… Ash Ketchum, from Pallet town"

**(Back in Twinleaf town) (Johanna's place)**

"Mom, we're home!" shouted Dawn as she returned to her home with all of her exhausted friends. After going through the town square and other districts, the ground found the place to be much larger than they actually expected. The town had a bar, a couple of restaurants and an inn for visitors to stay in. Not surprisingly, the place was booked full due to the town's Bake Off Contest.

"Oh welcome back everyone" Johanna replied with her usual smile, "I wasn't expecting any of you to be back in another hour or so" it wasn't long till the gang began sniffing through the air of a delicious smelling cake. "What's that wonderful smell?" Misty asked along with her Togepi. The mother let out another chuckle, "Tee hee hee… that's my secret recipe. Come on in, I'll get you guys one each" and before Misty knew it, they already found themselves sitting on the table with a slice of cake right in front of them. Though Johanna's cake may look delicious, the real question was: Does it taste as good as it looks?

While the gang were busy chomping and saying 'hmm…' or 'yummm' or something like that, Johanna couldn't help but feel proud that she could see all of those happy faces planted on each and everyone. But as time got ahead, she was now getting worried about Ash.

"Oh hey, has anyone seen Ash?" Anabel noticed that the leader of the pack was missing. "Oh don't worry" Johanna answered, "I sent him on an errand a little while ago… but… he is getting kind of late" but then suddenly the front door burst open which alerted all the inhabitants. "Cynthia?"

"Sorry if I scared you guys" the blonde trainer apologized, but as she darted her eyes back and forth, Johanna could already tell she was looking for something…… or someone. "But has any of you seen Ash?"

"He's in Sandgem town right now. I sent him there on an errand. He should be back later. Is something the matter?" Cynthia simply sighed and slump back on the couch. "Nothing… I really just wanted to ask him about those two legendary Pokemons he saw back in Alamos town"

"Alamos town?" Dawn echoed, "You mean Palkia and Dalgia?"

"You've heard of them?" Cynthia cocked a brow to which the girl nodded, "I've actually seen them myself" the Shinou coordinator replied taking a bite off the cake. "Don't you remember Brock?" the squinty eyed man nodded, "Yeah… if it weren't for Ash, who knows what kind of damage they would've caused"

"The three of you must be blessed with lady luck" Cynthia chuckled then sigh the next, "I wished I could've seen them. In all my life, I've never really seen any legendaries before"

Brock simply laughed, though Cynthia has been spending her entire life looking for legendary-rare Pokemons, Ash barely even needed to lift a finger to find one. He just walks up to a restaurant and then BAM! He can find himself a Pokemon.

Suddenly a 'ting' sound came from the kitchen to which Johanna smiled, "Oh, the cake must be done" as she pulled out the new batch of cakes, the mother turned to Dawn, "Dawn, would you mind helping me with the bake sale again? Mrs. Julian is competing in the Bake Off so she can't help me"

"Sure mom" Dawn replied with a smile.

"Hey need any extra help?" Brock volunteered along with Tracey and Todd. With Duplica, Drew, May and Kenny off competing in the contest, the others had to keep themselves busy by helping with the bake sale.

**(Back with TR)**

In James's restaurant, TR was having a time of their lives. While Jessie was having her nails done, James and Meowth were busy in the kitchen cooking for tomorrow's Bake Off. With the cake done and the bread ready, all they needed to do was to taste it.

"Hmm… something appears to be… missing" said James as he took a bite. "Yeah… I can't put my taste on it, but something is definitely missing" Meowth agreed taking another bite. After thinking for a short moment, the butler came, "Excuse me sir, but is this what you were looking for?" he handed out a bottle with a picture of an old lady with blue hair giving out kissy faces. "Aha! My grand mother's secret sauce! I knew I was missing something!" James replied excited about the bottle.

After a little while, the first successful cake was finally finished, "It's finally done!" James cheered along with Meowth. Along the background you can see several servants clapping happily with the boy. When Jessie heard this she immediately decided to take a little bite. "Hmm… sweet, tasty and easy to make… it would make an excellent idea to send some back to the boss"

**(Back in Sandgem Town) (Time skip: Sunset)**

After finally explaining the whole situation to the three rookie trainers, Ash decided that it was time to leave. He had finished up his errand and he had nothing left to do. "Thanks a lot man" said Jigaro in his still hippy tune, "… and sorry about all that trash talk back then. Who woulda thought that the big-dady-yo would be our opponent!?"

"That's ok guys" Ash waved it off. "But try not to be too confident just because you won a few gym badges. There's always gonna be a stronger opponent out there and you can't rest until you've defeated them all" the three of them nodded in unison. Then professor Rowan arrived, "Well that worked out better than I thought" he spoke through his white mustache. "Thank you Ash for helping them, I believe the three of them will be great trainers in the future"

"Hey I'm always ready to help" the boy gave out his trade mark smile. And then he turned to the three trainers, "Hey… if you guys feel like you're ready… come and look for me. I'll be happy to battle any of you… right Pikchu? (Pika pikapikachu!)" the three rookies smiled and gladly shook his hand as Ash left town. With three trainers off and their mind set straight, Ash couldn't help but smile at himself for he knew that the three of them would be great.

"Well it looks like everything will be just ok buddy" Ash said to his pikapal, "And thanks to you too Rosa. You were great on the battlefield" the pink Lucario blushed slightly turning her head the other way in the process to hide her face, "It was nothing. His Gallade wasn't much of a match anyway……"

"Hehehehe… well I guess that's all for today. Come you two… let's head back to the others"

But then Rosa had something else to say, "Umm… excuse me your majesty?" the boy turned his head as he continued to walk, "Do I get a bowl of poffins as well?"

The last thing Rowan heard in the woods… was a sound of a small laughter…


	45. Bake Off Take Off

**Chapter 45: Bake Off Take Off!**

**(This chapter was inspired by the anime: Cooking Master Boy)**

**(Twinleaf town) (Narrator's POV) (1 week and 5 days before the Valmarian league)**

It was a beautiful morning down in the Shinou region and it couldn't get any better than today. With a clear blue sky and low snow, the place was now in full pack mode. Fireworks fired off into the day light, children and pedestrian cross through the streets and Pokemons were glomming happily in the area. And as the people of Twinleaf town prepares for their annual Bake Off contest, Johanna prepares her lovely Strawberry Long Cakes for the village trophy.

"AHHHH!!!"

Clang! Crash! Pow! Boom! Bash!

But wait… what's going on in the house?

**(Johanna's place) (Normal POV) (07:30 AM)**

As the scream echoed through the house, Ash and his gang hastily made their way towards the kitchen where the noise originated from. But as they got there, they were greeted by the sight of a war zone. Plates littered all over the area and cream were scattered all over the place. Dawn shivered as the thought of her greatest fear coming to reality. But when Johanna appeared out of the kitchen, she let out a sigh of relief.

"Mom, are you ok?" Dawn asked worried about all the cream on the mother's face. But Johanna simply laughed, "Don't worry sweety ahehehehe. I was just cooking breakfast when I suddenly dozed off" she explained, "The pot was ringing for a whole hour until it exploded. Luckily, I was able to save my cakes" the gang let out a sigh of relief. "Well, you have been up all night making them" Brock stated, "Why don't you take a nap for awhile and I'll fix breakfast with Tracey. Besides, you'll need all the energy you need for the Bake Off this afternoon"

"Brock's right" Cynthia agreed, "If you go out like that, you won't be able to sell anything. Come on, I'll tuck you in bed and I'll wake you up before the Bake Off starts" before Johanna knew it, she was already being pushed away upstairs and neatly tucked in bed.

After awhile, the gang decided to help clean the house of all the mess. With the kitchen sparkly clean and breakfast eaten, the gang decided that it was now time for a little training before the Bake Off Pokemon contest. May and Drew were creating some new combinations while Kenny and Duplica make up some new tactics.

Since Ash and the others weren't in the contest, they all agreed to chip in the bake sale. But like always… not all plans go straight.

"Hey Kenny" Dawn called out her childhood friend, "Oh hey there Deedee, what's up?"

But the girl's face clearly stated out that she was not here for a common chat. She quickly held up a small note on her hand and coughed, "Don't Deedee me Kenny!" she began, "You promised my mom that you'll save us a spot in the town square!" the boy sweat dropped as he forced out an innocent smile that was breaking. "Oh yeah… ahehehehehe… I kinda… forgot" but then Dawn burst, "Well don't just stand there! Get to it!"

"But I need to train for the upcoming battle" Kenny whined, but that was probably a lame excuse. Dawn sighed, "You're hopeless, you know that?" she then turned to Ash who was busy feeding his Pokemons some of the leftover puffins, "Hey Ash" our hero turned his head towards Dawn as she approached him, "Can you and Tracey go the town square and put this sign on one of the empty stands? We need to get one before they're all taken"

"Sure" the boy replied before turning his head to his Pokemons, "Hey Pikachu, Turtwig, can you stay here and look after the others while Tracey and I go to town? (Pika pika!) (Turt turtwig!) Thanks buddy. I'll be back as soon as I can. Come on Tracey"

"Huh?" the Pokemon watcher blinked a few times before being grabbed by the collar and pulled away from his sketchbook. When Rosa noted that the boy was leaving, she quickly ate her remaining poffin and dashed to his side.

**(A few minutes later)**

After explaining why Ash had pulled him out, Tracey agreed to come along. But as they got to the town square they were completely awed by the magnificent sight that opened up before them. The whole town was redecorated (literally!) There were posters hanging along every side of every building, decorations and night lights were being placed around the corners for the late night festival and the smell of bread and cakes were a treat to the nose.

As the two of them got to the center of the festival grounds to look for an empty stand, Ash noticed that all of the good areas were already taken. There were a lot of equipments being brought in and more plates than a super computer can count. At the center of the town square, a few tables were put out for the judges of the food and of the Pokemon contest.

"Well… it looks like all the good places are taken" Tracey stated as he noted the chefs and their assistants making preparations. "It looks like we'll have to settle in that alley ov…" he didn't get to finish when Ash cut him off, "Hey look! There's a free slot right next to the town hall!" it was a perfect place to set up a vendor shop. There was plenty of room and it was connected right next to the street where the patrons would be pouring in and out.

But then suddenly, Ash got the feeling that someone else had his or her eyes on that stand… and true to his words when he jerked his head to the left, a chubby looking chef and his apprentices were all there glaring at the stands. When they noticed that the boy had the same intention, they decided to make a silent dual on who would get there first and put up their names. Tracey noticed this and began to feel a sudden shiver down his spine, but that didn't stop him. He was going to do this silent race in Johanna's name!

But before any of them could take a step, Rosa silently took the name tag from Ash's hands and placed it on the table faster than a jet plane on its fourth gear. The two groups sweat dropped and face faulted all together.

**(On the other corner of the festival ground)**

James and Meowth and a bunch of other servants were busy setting up the stand they reserved for the day. With all the trucks and funding from his parents, the operation ran smoother than expected. But as the blue haired villain and Pokemon-in-crime (partner in crime) prepare the last assortments, they suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from the other side. "Huh? That's odd" said James

"Hey what's wrong James, is there a fly buggin ya or something?" Meowth asked holding a list of goods that were coming in and out. "Call me ear deaf, but I think I just heard the twerp talking a minute ago" James replied as his ear perked up to find the source of the sound. But with all the people talking and some strangler crowding the street, it was hard to concentrate.

"Oh James, Meowth" Jessie cooed to them, "Look who's here" Jessie was now disguised in her disturbingly nice costume with those large glasses to add. "Oh hey there Jessie" her partner replied, "Are you ready for the Pokemon contest this afternoon?" the red head simply laughed menacingly, "Ahohohohohoho What a silly question, of course I am. With my Serviper and Dustox to help me, I'll be sure to win that ribbon for sure! Ahohohohohoho!" The other two gang members sweat dropped.

"Master James" the butler called in, "The final preparations are ready and the advertisers are ready to go out at any moment" the man smiled back, "Excellent…… with the combined power of my skills, our advertising strategy and my great grand mother's secret cake, there's not a chance on earth we can't win! (Wabuffet!) Butler, get the crew members ready! When the timer starts, we go all out!"

"Yes sir!"

**(Back in Johanna's place) (Ten minutes later)**

While Ash was busy registering Johanna in the stands, the rest of the gang were busy training up for their contest battle. May was able to come up with some new techniques with her Eevee and so as Drew's Absol. But with the mood intensifying, they had to come up with better tactics. This was probably the first time for any of them to be battling in Shinou and they don't know how strong their opponents will be so they had to make sure everything was in tip top shape.

"Ok… is everyone ready?" Cynthia asked popping in the practice area, "The first round will be starting in three hours" the gang nodded and quickly put their Pokemons back into their Pokeballs for some rest. They'll need all the strength they can get when they're out on the field.

"So what are you guys going to wear for the contest?" Dawn asked shifting her head to the other side. "Wear?" Duplica said in a question form as she tilted her head in confusion. Seeing that they were new on how the contestants in Shinou do contests battle Dawn decided to explain, "That's right. In Shinou contest battles, every trainer must wear a costume to fit their skills"

May's eyes widened slightly, "What?! But we don't have any costumes" hearing this, Dawn decided to bring them to her family's closet.

She turned on the switch for the light and in an instant, the whole gang felt like they were in a tailor shop. There were racks upon racks of clothes, much like those you would see in a royal palace, "Oh wow!" Duplica said excitedly as she searched through the dress section, "Oh my, this looks cute… but this one looks cute too! Oh how could I possibly pick just one!? I wished I had four or five more bodies!" and then a thought sprang up her head, "I know! Daddy dit, mommy dit, Ditto, and uncle dit, come on out!" in an instant, four Dittos appeared. "Ok, I want you all to transform into me" the four imitating Pokemons gave a confused look at first but then they decided to comply.

When the four Dittos copied her, she immediately brought out several sets of clothes, "Ok, I want you to wear these. Come on now chop chop!" the gang let out a laugh as Duplica pushed them into the changing room to get themselves changed.

On the other side, May was having a hard time choosing as well, but Drew had already chosen his. The green haired boy was now wearing a white tuxedo which would probably make the fan girls scream with delight. His hair was neatly comb and the bow on his collar was a sure killer. (Just like what Michael Jackson wore in the Music Video: Smooth Criminal) "Well… what do you think?" Drew asked as he spun around with his snobby hat. May just shrugged, "I don't really see much of a difference" the boy face faulted, "Thanks for the word of encouragement" he said sarcastically

"Hey guys" Kenny poked his head in, "Are you all done changing yet?" the boy was now once again wearing his green bull fighter's costume. It matched his attitude and it definitely suited his taste. "Hey Dawn, aren't you gonna change too?" the girl just shook her head, "No, I'm helping my mom in the bake sale, but I'll be rooting for you guys. Best of luck!"

But then Cynthia came in, "Hey everyone, I just got a call from Tracey. He and Ash were able to save us a good spot at the north end of the festival ground. You guys get ready and I'll go and wake J.J up" she then noticed Drew in a very snobby outfit, "Nice look for you Drew" she then noticed the four Duplicas lining up in different outfits, "Hey… have you chosen your costume yet?" the emerald haired girl shook her head and sighed, "I don't know which one to pick. They all look so cute!" they all laughed. But when the blonde champ noticed Kenny's costume, she grinned and quickly picked up out sombrero from the racks and placed it on his head.

With all the laughs passing around, May decided to wear the same one she wore back in Camaron palace (Her princess costume from the 8th Pokemon movie: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew). Though it was not suited for battle, it did give her the edge on looks.

But when Duplica came out, she wore a black tuxedo which seemed odd for her for some reason. When one wanted to ask, she only replied with a giggle, "It's a surprise"

"Hey everybody" Brock called with Richie and Anabel behind him, "Would you guys mind helping carry the food with you? We're kinda short handed over here" the gang nodded and quickly began carrying the many trays in whatever ways they could.

**(Back at the festival square)**

"Ladies and gentlemen!" called the town mayor, "I am… as you all know as mister (microphone static), the mayor of Twinleaf town!" the cloud gave a small applause as they listened, "I am pleased to see so many familiar faces… and I'm even more pleased to see many more new faces. With so many talented chefs and delicious looking cakes and bread, I want to show you all what you are fighting for. (Drum roll) Chefs and bakers… I present to you…… the pride of Twinleaf town…… the Golden leaf Trophy!" everyone eyed the prize whole heartedly, sinking its very structure into their minds like it was a part of it. With all of their attention gathered, the mayor continued, "And to be judging all of you, I brought in a special guest… Mr. Franklin the master chef from Jubilife city! (This is the name of the chef in my school!)" the master chef smiled and nodded as he took the mic away, "Thank you mayor for that wonderful speech"

While the master chef is still giving out his regard, Tracey looked at his watch and compared it to the one on the wall. "Hmm… what's taking them so long?" Ash gave out a quizzled look, "What's wrong Tracey?"

"Well… I know that the food competition doesn't start until later this afternoon or so" the Pokemon watcher explained, "But the guys should've been here by now for the competition"

"Don't worry Tracey" Ash flashed a smile, "I'm sure they'll be here" but the young Skechit wasn't that much convinced, "I'll go give them a call, you wait here ok?" with a nod as a reply, Tracey dashed off to the nearest phone booth to give a fast call to Johanna's place.

But as the minutes past by, Ash began to feel a little stupid to be standing there all alone with nothing to do but wait. Though Rosa was great for company at times, she didn't really talked much since the two of them never really had much to talk about anyway.

"Well here's a place I'd never thought to see you Ash" Ash looked around for the source of the voice until a finger tapped his shoulder. When Ash tilted his head to the side, he was greeted by the sight of a girl about a year or two younger than him wearing a purple shirt covered with an orange vest and aqua blue jeans. But her most remarkable and noticeable trademark would definitely be her red colored spiky hair which was entitled like a sea of flames, and resting on her hair was a pair of funky looking glasses,. "It's great to see you again"

"Zoey! It is you!" Ash nearly screamed her name out causing the girl to smile back, "How've ya been? I haven't seen you since the Shinou grand festival contest!" the boy was more than glad to see Zoey again. They were actually a good pair of rivals back in the days and boy, I tell ya… she's a tough one to beat. With her countless numbers of combinations and tactics, her skill as a trainer was admired by thousands of people, even Ash admired her from time to time as well.

"Well I've been traveling a lot nowadays" the red head coordinator replied with a smile along with HER Glameow. "Ever since that last match with Dawn, I thought that I needed some time training my Pokemons" she then rubbed her nose against her cat Pokemon's head like a little baby.

"Are you going to compete in the contest?" Ash asked with a little excitement. Zoey nodded before replying, "You bet. I have to build up my skills if I'm going to compete in the Valmarian league" Ash smiled back before letting all the info sink into his head, "Let me guess… you're competing in the league too?" he sounded so calm and unfazed by that story. He's been meeting a lot of trainers going to Valmarian city and boy, just getting there was a pain in the patootie. Zoey flashed a grin, "You got it!" she held out a letter of invitation and quickly pulled it back into her backpack. "And I'm betting anything that you're in it too huh" Ash rubbed his head in embarrassment as he gave out a soft laugh. Zoey saw this and smiled, "Well defeating Cynthia in the Pokemon league must've done something to get you there. It would be great if the two of us battled each other"

"Aww geeze" Ash said in embarrassment, "It was nothing hehehehehehehe"

Zoey then decided to change the topic, "So what about you? What are you doing here? Are you gonna sell something?"

Ash smiled with pride as he pounded his right arm on his chest, "Yeah! Dawn and her mom are gonna sell some cakes here and I'm helping out. Why don't you come by sometimes and have a bite on me?" the red head simply smiled and nodded, "I'd love to Ash. Just be sure to save me one or two for my Pokemons as well"

Suddenly, the microphone on the stage began to ring, "Attention… all Pokemon contestants please come to the changing room near the town hall. The Pokemon contest will begin in three hours"

"Well, I guess that's my cue" Zoey stated, "I'll see you around ok Ash?" the boy nodded, "You betcha! And with you in the competition, I'm sure it'll be a real eye opener"

"Don't forget to save me some of those cakes! Oh and give my regards to Dawn when you see her!" Zoey's voice became more and more feint as she strode away. "You got it! Just don't forget to come and pick it up!" Ash shouted back with a smile. But as the red head coordinator disappeared into the distance, Rosa perked up; "A friend of yours your majesty?" the boy looked back and nodded, "Yeah, that's Zoey, she's a good friend of mind and Dawn too. I wonder what w…" he didn't get to finish when Tracey came back with a strange expression on his face.

"Ash we got a problem!" Ash and Rosa perked up from their position, "What? What's wrong Tracey?" the Pokemon watcher took a breather before speaking, "There's been an accident! Johanna and the others are…"

**(A few minutes later, a few blocks from Johanna's house)**

Ash and Rosa arrived not long after Tracey told them about the news. Apparently there was a car accident near Johanna's place. By the time the boy arrived there, he began asking questions, "Hey, what's going on? What happened here?!"

"Ash, over here!" Richie called out waving his hand. When Ash noticed the boy, he immediately rushed over to him, "Richie, what happened here?" he asked in a very demanding way, but Richie just gave him a gesture to calm down, "It's ok Ash, no one got hurt" the boy let out a sigh of relief, "But……" Richie pointed towards the front of the car that smashed on a tree.

Apparently, when the gang were carrying Johanna's cakes to the festival ground, the car must've lost its balance on one of the potholes and began steering out of control. May was lucky that Pikachu and Turtwig were there or she would've been squashed potato in no time. But even though the gang were safe… the cake didn't seem to have survived the impact. What was left of it were probably some small splatted particles of the cream and seasonings.

"May, are you alright?" Johanna came by to check the girl who was the most shocked of her recent life threatening experience. "Yeah… I'm ok… thanks to Pikachu and Turtwig though" the two Pokemons simply smiled back in reply. "But the cake…"

"Don't worry about the cake dear" Johanna cut her off, "No one was hurt and that's what matters right?" the others nodded in agreement. But as Johanna looked at her work being crushed to pieces, she couldn't help but sigh, "Oh well… I guess I'll have to sit this Bake Off out" she mumbled as she picked up the tray. "But can't we sell the rest of your cakes?" Ash stated as he pointed to the few remaining trays near the car which were still unharmed. Johanna shook her head in response. "No Ash… I'll be needing about two hundred serves just to be able to make it to the qualifications. But it's ok. Like they say, there's always next year"

But Brock wasn't gonna let her just give up without giving a try. "Wait Johanna!" he began, "You can't just give up without trying your best! If it took you a whole night to make five hundred servings then may be it would take an hour with two people!"

"Hey, if you're baking then count me in" Ash volunteered raising his fist along with his Pikachu, "Hey if Ash wants to do it, then count me in too" Richie stated along with Todd. "Me too!" May waved her hand ready to help out. Before Johanna knew what was going on, the whole gang were all volunteering to help her out, heck even Cynthia agreed to help out.

"Thanks everyone, I really appreciate it, but it's impossible to make five hundred trays in just three hours" Johanna explained, but Ash was a persistent little boy, "Hey, how hard can baking be?"

**(Johanna's kitchen) (2 hours and 45 minutes before the contest starts)**

The whole gang (except for Tracey who's holding the spot for them back in the town square) were all lined up like a platoon of soldiers with Brock as their commander. The squinty eyed boy was holding a spatula and wearing a commander's uniform (courtesy of Johanna's closet) to give them the mood of command, "Alreight everyone, at-ten-tion!" the gang filed in attention as Brock walked pass them in a very professional manner, "You have all been drafted into the Johanna's baking company! For the next two hours you will think of nothing but baking and cooking… do you understand!?"

"Sir yes sir!" they shouted in unison

Brock nodded and continued, "Ok… I will now assign to you your specific tasks" he pointed to each of them as he stated their jobs, "Max, Duplica, Anabel: since your hands are softer than the others, you'll be in charge with handling the stoves and microwaves. Ash, May, Dawn: You three will the ones baking them. Since we have two stoves, you guys can handle it taking turns ok. Todd, Richie, Misty: You guys will handle in pounding the flour"

"Hold on a minute!" Misty protested, "Why do I have to be the one handling the flour?! Shouldn't I be like handling the food trays or helping out with the cooking as well?!"

Ash and Brock suddenly shivered as they remembered Misty's first dish. It was so bad that they had to stay in the hospital for a week. But the main reason why Brock put her in that group was because of her monstrous strength.

"Well… uh… anyway" Brock ignored the question and quickly went on with the others, "Cynthia, Drew and I will handle the ingredients and Johanna will instruct us on what to do. Alright… everyone spread out!"

And in just a few minutes, the gang got to work faster than expected, in just ten minutes, they were already ready with the first batch and a lot more was coming their way. But like John Silver says… nothing in this world goes straight. As they began working faster and faster to meet up with the required amount, mistakes began to happen. While Dawn and May were working on the stoves, they forgot to turn it off this causing one of the stoves to go temporarily disabled.

As Brock was helping the gang out cleaning out the dishes, he handed the blender to Cynthia, but what he didn't know that he accidentally put the blender into maximum speed thus causing the mixture in the bowl to go berserk. Ever since that little mishap, Brock decided to assign Ash to clean up duty, which means he cleans up where the gang leaves off. A little kind of like janitor duty, except that you don't get paid and mess comes in every second.

But as the dishes were made off more and more… production seemed to increase steadily after each one. By the first hour, they were already able to get in two hundred servings. Not only that, but the gang seemed to be enjoying themselves as well. With so many things being done, laughs and chuckles could be heard giving the place that wonderful feeling inside.

**(2 hours later)**

"Hey guys" Brock called, "You'd better get ready for the contest. You wouldn't want to miss it" but May refused, "But what about the cakes?" Ash giggled and put his hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, we'll handle the rest here. You guys need to get ready for your match. I think it's gonna be one to see with all of you fighting for it" with a reassuring smile from the Alpha-pack leader of the group, Drew, Kenny, May and Duplica stood from their working areas and dashed off to the town square. Hopefully no one would notice the small mess they have on their costumes.

"Hey Paul" Ash called out to the purple headed trainer who was helping with the mixing bowl, "Thanks for the help, I thought without you, we'd never make it in time"

"Don't mention it" Paul replied waving it off, "It's the least I can do after all that hard time I've been giving you two years ago. Besides, we'll be traveling to Valmarian together soon…… don't expect me to hold anything back. Me and my Pokemons have been training real hard" Ash simply chuckled and smile, "Hey, I wouldn't expect anything less from an expert trainer. Just don't forget that I won't be holding back either"

"Ok everyone!" Johanna shouted at them, "That's five hundred servings! We have enough for everyone!" the remaining crew cheered on as their exhausted bodies caught up with their fatigue. "Hurry up, we still need to set the stands before the contest starts"

"Hmm that reminds me" Brock looked around, "Is Tracey still there?"

**(With Tracey)**

As the Pokemon watcher stood watch of the stands, he was feeling sorta left out in the whole midst. Once in a while, some people would chuckle at him and even one time a kid came and say, "Hey mommy, why is that man standing there like a statue?" Tracey could only wait and watch as the wind blew through his hair sending him the chills down his back.

"Ah… haaa… haaaa… haaaa…… HAAACHOOO!" he sniffed, "I think I got the colds" but as the boy kept sneezing out, he wasn't able to see the four trainers making their way towards the contest grounds.

**(With Team Rocket)**

With Jessie ready for the contest and James ready for the Bake Sale, Team Rocket decided to huddle in for one final agreement in the plans. "So what do you think?" the red head villain began as she showed her newly done nails to the two others. "Umm… I'm not one to decide, but they still look the same to me"

Meowth nodded in agreement, "I got to agree with James on this one Jessie, but if you want to change your nails, I would suggest growing them longer" he extended his nails as a gesture of a cat.

"Well anyway" Jessie continued, "I'll be participating in the contest. Don't forget to come and cheer for me" and with that she skipped off to the arena like a ten year old who just got her starter Pokemon.

**(20 Minutes later)**

After finally getting the last of the trays into the stands, Tracey was immediately given a towel and a cup of hot coco to heat off. "Sorry to keep you waiting Tracey" Johanna apologized as she and Dawn and the rest of the gang set up the area. There were several notepads to keep in check with the sales and prices and Brock was able to bring in a cooler to keep some of the drinks cold. Though some people would ask why they would need a cooler during the middle of the winter season.

"That's ok" the Pokemon watcher replied with a little shivering following after, "It was no trou… haa… haaaa… haaaaaaa… HACHOO!" he sniffed and sneezed a couple of more times before Richie handed him a box of tissue.

"Well, I think we'd better get the rest of the packages in before the place gets crowded" Ash suggested but Johanna simply waved him off, "That's ok Ash. Why don't you and the others go and watch the competition? We'll handle the rest here" Ash looked reluctant at first, "Are you sure? But you might need some extra help" Cynthia then came by and pushed him towards the other direction, "Go on now, me and J.J will handle things from here. You guys have some fun" the blonde champ smiled and waved at the gang as they dashed off to see the marvelous show. Tracey on the other hand simply stayed behind because of his colds.

**(In the contest grounds)**

As Ash and his friends find themselves some good seats on the audience area, the announcer stepped in on stage to greet everyone. "Hello Twinleaf town!" she began with a round of applause and a few other clashes, "Welcome to the annual Bake Off contest! (cheer) I'm your host Mrs. Bunny! Today we have a lot of contestants and some are renowned professionals from different regions! Let's hope that they meet up with our expectations. And so for our judges, we have… professor Rowan, from Sandgem town and head researcher of all Pokemons!"

The professor stood up from his seat and waved at the audience, "Yes, it is a privilege to see so many trainers today. I hope you will all do your best"

And with that, Mrs. Bunny continued, "And our second judge is of course, our wonderful Mayor (mic static) Please give him a round of applause"

The mayor stood up and waved around, "Yes, thank you very much. I wish all the trainers well and hope to see a spectacular show. May you all play equally in good sports"

"And of course, our last judge is none other than Nurse Joy herself!" Mrs. Bunny continued pointing towards the pink haired Nurse whom you can see all over the world (literally)

Nurse Joy stood up and began waving, "I hope to see you all with wonderful combinations. I give you all the best of luck"

"Ok, a wonderful word of encouragement from the judges!" Bunny turned to the crowd, "Now remember trainers, there will be two rounds in the contest. First you will have to appeal to judges your combinations and then we'll move on to the second contest round! Ok, if you all get it then let's bring out the first trainer!" with the spot lights dimming a little bit, the audience held their breath as Duplica came out with one of her Pokeballs. "Our first contestant… is Duplica from Johto!" the crowd let out a small applause as the girl took the stage.

"Ok then…" Duplica took in a deep breath as she prepared for her first appealing match, "I choose you… Dit junior!" with one toss of the Pokeball, the hatch open, sending out thousands of confetti into the area awing the crowd a little bit. But it will take a lot more than that to please the judges. "Ok Dit junior, morph into Pikachu!" in an instant, the little blob like Pokemon changed into the electric mouse, sparkling some static onto its cheeks. "Now use lightning bolt! And send it high!" after Dit junior sent that lightning bolt into the air, Duplica ordered it to change into an Alakazam and create a force field around the trainer. After that, she changed Dit junior into Ash's Aipom allowing it to use double team. When the small group of Dittos surrounded Duplica in her force field she gave out one last command. "Ok Ditto, now morph into me!" when the lightning strike fell down to the Duplica, a massive explosion occurred blinding everyone in a massive cloud of smoke.

"Oh my goodness" Bunny announced through her cordless microphone, "Duplica just shot a lightning bolt right onto herself while in that psychic barrier! What will happen next?" when the smoke finally disburse from the area, the crowd couldn't believe their eyes. There were about ten or twenty Duplicas all lined up with different sets of clothing. But at he center of the formation, the real Duplica stood out and waved at the crowd with her clones right with her.

When the crowd sunk in the into their heads, they let out a mighty applause which could probably be heard throughout the entire town! The reason why the clones had different sets of clothing, was because Duplica was wearing layers upon layers of skinny clothing. Though it was probably hard to move in there, she was able to pull out a good stunt in the end.

"A wonderful show by Duplica!" Mrs. Bunny stated out loud, "Let's see what our judges have to say!"

Rowan started, "Hmm… a great use of Ditto special ability of mimicking other Pokemons, utilizing all their strengths and talents together. Very impressive indeed"

The Mayor came next, "A spectacular show of fashion and show biz! Perhaps we could use someone like her in Twinleaf town. I have not seen anything like it before!"

Nurse Joy came last, "An excellent and thrilling show indeed. I was quite scared when the lightning bolt struck down. Very good and a wonderful show indeed"

With a round of applause going all around, Duplica waved off and called in Dit junior back into her Pokeball. It was a good thing that she didn't use the Ditto's true special ability to turn a small Pokemon into a large size or else it would've ruined her surprise.

**(In the audience seat)**

"Wow… now that was something" said Ash as he sat next to Rosa who seemed to be awed as well. Brock nodded his head in agreement, "Yeah… I never knew that Duplica could be so good at this. Maybe all that time traveling around Johto and watching contest matches gave her the edge"

Richie and Todd nodded as this was probably Duplica's first try in a contest match as well. As the ace photographer continued to snap in quick pictures, he took a mental note to publish all the clothes for Shinou fashion to make a quick buck.

**(Contestants waiting room)**

The emerald haired girl let out a huge sigh of relief as she finally made her way out of the gaze of the audiences. She could handle stage fright, but not for too long though. But as she made her way to the benches, May came by with a glass of water in her hand, "Here Duplica" she offered to her friend. "Thanks May (gluck gluck gluck) Ahhh… I needed that" the imitator sighed again and slouched down back on the bench.

"You did great Duplica!" said Kenny as he approached them, "I've never seen all those skills put together before" the girl simply gave a 'thank' gesture. It wasn't long till the speaker began to speak up, "Contestant number thirty-two, contestant number thirty-two please come on stage please"

"Looks like that's me" said Drew as he pushed the bangs off his forehead, "Better keep a close eye everyone" he gestured to his friends, "I'll be having them shouting my name in no time" May simply shot him an annoyed look as his snobbyness returned, "Sheesh… what a baby!" Kenny laughed at the chocolate haired girl.

**(Back on stage)**

"Ok then ladies and gentlemen! Put your hands together for a trainer who came all the way from Hoenn… and one of Kanto's top eight grand festival contestants! The one and only…… Drew!" in an instant, several girls and ladies on the side line began screaming with 'oohs' and 'ahhs'. I guess when you're popular, you're popular"

"Alright then" Drew began, "Let's give it a show to remember. I choose you Roselia!" a Pokemon with flower like hands appeared showing out its splendor to the judges. "And it looks like Drew choose Roselia as his appealing Pokemon!" Bunny announced to everyone.

"Ok Roselia, let's start off with double team!" in an instant, Roselia cloned itself into various numbers, "Good, now let hold on together and give out your solar beam!" as the circle of Roselias began moving around, the original one charged up a blast so powerful that it would've wiped that stage off the face of the earth, but Drew had other plans for it. Instead of letting it destroy something, Roselia released its power to the sky exploding in the process, unleashing an array of gold sparkles. It almost looked like it was actually raining gold or something. "Now Roselia, let's have a grand finale, use magical leaf around me!" Drew was now getting confident with his increasing tactics, but what his next move was would probably scare the pants out of the judges… "Now… use poison sting" when the magical leaves appeared around the green haired boy, Roselia fired an array of poison stings which made everyone gasped. If one of those hit Drew, then he can kiss his career bye bye for a whole week.

But to everyone's surprise, none of them hit the boy at all, but all the leaves placed around him were struck to the ground each with one sting.

"An amazing technique!" Bunny stated out loud, "And soooo cooollll!" after that, the whole population of girls began screaming and chanting his name already. "Let's hear what the judges have to say!"

Rowan started "An excellent use of the weather and grass type abilities. Drew had complete trust in his Pokemon and managed to overcome the poison sting. A very dangerous and yet amazing tactic"

The mayor continued, "His solar beam was very impressive. Very powerful indeed, but that last one had me scared for a moment. Oh my… even my heart is still pounding"

But just when Nurse Joy was about to continue, Drew shifted his hair and looked at her with dreamy eyes. One gaze at the boy and Nurse Joy was already having hearts in her eyes; "Ah…" no words came through her mouth.

**(In the audience seats)**

Ash and the others had to shield their ears as the girls began screaming out like wild animals trapped in a cage. "Oh my god he's sooo cute!" said one, "That was totally awesome! I wonder if I can get his phone number!" said another. With these statements being tossed around, Brock let out a sigh. He had been trying so hard to get the girls to like him with every possible options, but then this boy just shows up and with one flick of the hair, the girls began falling for him already. Ash on the other hand, just smiled, "Hehehe… I guess that Drew hasn't changed at all"

Paul shrugged, "His Roselia is strong, but I wonder how strong it really is on the battlefield. His combination attacks are put together for show… but I think if he used it on a real battle, then I have to believe that he's gonna be tough opponent in the Valmarian league" the others nodded in agreement to his statement. There was not a single doubt in their minds that the Valmarian league wasn't gonna be a walk in the park. With trainers from around the world coming to one single spot, they believe they were gonna go against the toughest this planet had to offer. With so many trainers from different countries coming at one place, it was definitely gonna be a sight for the sore eyes.

But as time past through with many trainers going in and out, the final contestant made her way towards the stage.

"And now, for our final contestant… please give a warm welcome…" the spot light pointed towards the center of the stage where a red head stood.

"Finally…" Ash muttered as Zoey opened up her eyes to the screaming crowd. "This is gonna be good…"

"Hey… isn't that… Zoey?!" Dawn gasped as she instantly recognized her old rival. The red head coordinator was wearing her usual white coat tuxedo suit. "Do you guys know her?" Misty asked as Togepi seemed to be very excited with all the matches coming in and out. Dawn and Brock nodded, "Yeah… she's a really tough trainer back when Ash and I first joined in a contest in Jubilife city" the Shinou girl explained, "She's really strong and has a lot of Pokemon combinations to spare. I really had a hard time beating her in the grand festival two years ago. Man were those the days"

"Well I never expected her to be here" Brock motioned, "Whatever show she brings out, I bet it'll be a real eye opener for sure"

**(Back on stage)**

As Zoey waved to the crowd, she began to notice Dawn and her friends waving at her, "Hehehehe… I guess we'll just have to give them a show. Come on out Shellos!" in an instant flash of lovely looking stars, a snail like Pokemon appeared out of the Pokeball. "Now Shellos, use mud shot!" Shellos began firing several shots of mud through its mouth towards the air, "Now use ice beam to freeze them!" when all the mud balls became frozen, Zoey ordered Shellos to do a double team technique and each of them caught one ice-mud-ball each. "Good! Now use hidden power!" as the ice ball began to glow along with Pokemon, an array of bright golden light emerged from the center of the stage, creating a beautiful rainbow into the sky little did the people know… that the rainbow was just a small piece of a bigger masterpiece.

As the crowd stared in awe of the magnificent sight, Zoey decided to put in the critical blow, "Now Shellos, use blizzard!" as the small snow storm picked up, the rainbow suddenly echoed through the entire sky, creating an Aurora, making the day even more magical than before.

Back inside the waiting room, the whole crowd were also at awe with such an amazing sight. If a single one of Zoey's Pokemons can do something like that, they couldn't wait to see what she can truly do with two Pokemons.

"Wow…" was all the crowd and the audience could say. But Ash simply smiled as that was probably just a tip off the girl's true abilities. He knows what she's capable of and trust me… she can do a lot better.

"A… a… umm… oh Ummm ahh amazing!" Bunny startled herself, "That was truly incredible! I'm simply at lost for words! Let's see what the judges have to say!"

Rowan started, "An excellent use of a Pokemon's abilities. Creating a pattern with one full blow truly releases the true potential of a Pokemon!"

The mayor was still too awestruck to speak so Nurse Joy continued, "An excellent show indeed. My eyes still can't believe how beautiful that rainbow was! Truly amazing indeed!"

As Zoey returned to the waiting room, she could already tell that the first round was definitely in the bag. Though she may have had a wonderful impression from the crowd, the three judges will be the only ones who decides who gets to the top and who doesn't.

But as the minutes went by, the results finally came in. And that was the time for bunny to go on stage, "Ok ladies and gentlemen, after our final contestant, we have finally picked out eight trainers for the second round! (screen pops) and here they are!"

1st match: Kenny VS May

2nd match: Duplica VS Jessalina

3rd match: Drew VS Parker

4th match: Zoey VS Oblina

Ash and the others sighed out heavily as all of their friends were able to make it into the next round. With the match going well, he spotted a guy selling peanut bags and sodas. "Peanuts! Get your peanuts here! Get them while they're nuts!" the seller shouted out. Ash stood up, "I'll have one of each please" he gladly gave the man his money and took one bag of pack of peanuts. If this match had all of his friends in it, then he was certain that it was going to be interesting.

"Right then!" the announcer began, "Let's have our first competitors… Kenny and May!" the crowd went to a cheer so loud that the whole village would've shook.

**(Five minutes later, on the stage battleground)**

"Are you ready May?" Kenny smugged, "Cuz I'm not gonna hold anything back!"

"Same here Kenny" May replied with a confident face, "I'm always ready for a good battle. I'll bring out my strongest! Come out Blaziken!" in an instant, a fiery humanoid bird Pokemon appeared ready to take on its opponent! When Kenny saw this, he smiled, "Well… it's our turn! Let's go Prinplup!" a medium sized penguin appeared standing out in a good poise.

Back in the

"Alright then!" Bunny continued, "Remember… we have five minutes running on the clock! And……… BEGIN!"

"Prinplup, use bubble beam, let's go!" Kenny ordered which was immediately followed to the letter. The penguin like Pokemon quickly dished out a powerful bubble attack, but May wasn't gonna give him the first lucky shot. "Blaziken, jump up and use ember!" the fire Pokemon leaped high into the air and immediately released its ember attack which hit Prinplup right on the chest. After the hit, Kenny began to lose a bit of his point meter.

"Prinplup, use mist and hide yourself from the attack!" in an matter of second, the water Pokemon released a small thick dust of cloud which hid its presence from the naked eye. "Oh no…" May stated, "Blaziken, keep a look out! Don't let your opponent catch you by surprise!" (Blazi! Blaziken!) the fire bird replied holding its fist up.

"A good method" Kenny noted, "But still not enough! Prinplup, use metal claw!" coming out from the shadow, Prinplup's claws began to glow and when it was close enough to Blaziken, he slammed his claw right on his face sending the fire Pokemon flying up high in the sky. "Good! Let's keep up the pressure Prinplup! Use Drill peck!"

"Oh no you don'!" May declared, "Blaziken, blaze kick!" the two attacks clashed against each other sending both Pokemons on their respective sides. "Ok Blaziken, let's keep it up! Use flame thrower!"

"Prinplup, use ice beam!" again, the two ranged attacks met creating a small explosion on the spot of collision. "Now Prinplup! Let's get her while she's dazed! Bubble beam!"

"I'm not falling for that old trick!" May yelled back, "Blaziken, use fire blast full power!" but with water being the superior element over fire, the fire blast attack only leveled it in equal footing. "That's not gonna work May" Kenny stated, "It'll take more than that to bring down Prinplup. Come on let's give her our best shot! Metal claw!"

"Wait for it Blaziken" May smirked, "Hold until the last possible moment…" when Prinplup got close a spark came to her eyes, "Now Blaziken, use sky uppercut!" the water Pokemon was sent flying to the air which caught Kenny by surprise, "Good, now use over heat!" with Prinplup still up in mid-air, Blaziken sent out a fire attack so hot that even the snow around the area began to melt away.

By the time Prinplup fell to the ground, it was already incapacitated.

"And it looks like we have a winner!" Bunny announced out loud. "Let's give a round of applause for May, everyone!" the crowd roared and cheered as they put their hands together. Though Kenny still had a hard believing it, he knew that he had lost. He went to his penguinpal and put him back in his Pokeball.

"That was an excellent battle May" the boy extended his arm in good sport. "You too" May returned the shake, "I actually thought I was going to lose that time" while they both smiled in for a moment, Ash felt a pang of pride come into his heart as the girl waved off. After training with her for so long, it was probably safe to say that Ash is now her official master. Teaching her almost everything he knew and all the experience he's been through practically made her better… in being a trainer and a person. Who knows? If Ash hadn't met her on that fateful day in Littleroot town, she'd still probably be wandering somewhere in Hoenn or Kanto.

As May walked back to rest Blaziken for the next fight, Bunny announced the next match.

In the end, Jessalina was defeated by Duplica and Drew and Zoey advance to the next match as well. All of their talents were acceptable through the judges eyes, and with so many eyes watching the stage, it was hard to tell who would actually win.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Bunny began, "The semi-finals will begin after a twenty minute break! Please be sure to catch up with us!" while some of the audience were glued to their seats, Ash decided to visit his friends in the waiting room to give them that extra morale support.

**(Waiting room)**

"Hey guys (Pikachu!)" Ash stated along with his Pikachu on his shoulder and Rosa by his side. "Ash!" the four trainers who were inside said his name in unison in reply, "You all did great out there. It was amazing" the boy even praised the defeated ones for good luck.

Kenny rubbed his head and gave out a half smile, "Yeah… but I still lost hehehehe"

"Don't worry Kenny" Ash cheered him up, "I bet you can improve a lot more when we all get to Valmarian city" he then turned to the others, "Hey, I hope to see the both of you give it your all… ok?" Duplica smiled back and nodded while Drew simply waved off. "Oh hey… where's May?"

"I think she went to the wash room over there" said Duplica as she pointed towards the green door. Ash noticing this immediately dropped by to see her. "Hey May, are you here?"

The girl nearly jolted away from the sink as Ash came by, "Ah! Ash!! Wh… what are you doing here?" that was probably a silly question to ask. The boy always comes to visit his friends after each match. It was probably a routine for him already. But why was the girl surprised? Perhaps one will never know.

"Hey May" Ash replied, completely ignoring the question, "I was just talking with the others and they all said you were here? Is something bothering you?" the girl simply gave out a feint blush on her cheeks, "N… no of course not" but then suddenly… May began to realize that they were alone. This has never happened before since they've always been traveling together. Ash would always have one or two of his friends around him thus never having time to bud her love.

"Hmm?" Ash then noticed that the girl was becoming redder by the minute. But just as May was a little startled by the fact they were alone, her heart suddenly skipped several beats when the boy suddenly put his hands on her face. May didn't know what was going on, but right now, Ash had a stern look upon his face. It almost looked like he wanted to say something. "May… I…" the girl's heart was pounding harder and harder as Ash's face zoomed closer onto hers. She was panicking, yet at the same time she was feeling… great. Instead of resisting this feeling, she was prepared to open up her love for him in a matter of seconds.

She closed her eyes and awaited that romantic feeling… _"Am I dreaming?" _May wondered, _"Please… if this is a dream… don't wake me up"_ she was already planning one-hundred and one ways to kill the person who would dare to wake her up.

Thump…

"Hmm… it looks like you got a slight fever" Ash checked her head temperature with forehead. "Maybe after the battle, you should cool yourself off" to say it bluntly, an invisible 100kg weight dropped on the girl's head. "Eh?" she spoke in a soft muttering voice. But even though the boy wasn't gonna give out that kiss, having his face so close to her was probably a dream come true.

But if Ash wasn't give the first move, then she'll have to do it. "Ash… I uh…"

"Hmm? What's up May? (Pika?)" Ash broke off the face contact and looked at the girl as she began to twitch her thumbs together, "I uh… I need to uh… tell you something before this…" but then the girl's mind was acting against her mouth. "Wait May!" she thought to herself, "You can't say it yet! Not now!" But then her second subconscious kicked in, "But… but I… I can't hold this feeling anymore! If I don't tell him now… I'll probably explode!"

"Ash… I… I…" the girl opened up her eyes and glared right onto his blanked expressionless face. She was going to say it! She was definitely going to say it!"

But before she could say those three beautiful words, a certain green haired boy appeared, "Hey May!" he called out, "What's taking you so long? Your match is about to…" he then noticed the awkward position the two of them were in. May was twitching her thumb while Ash was just looking at her with his hands in his pocket, "Don't worry Drew, she'll be there" Ash replied for her. "Well I'd better head back to my seat. Give it everything you've got… ok May?" he gave her a thumbs up which was only replied with a nod.

When Ash finally left the scene, May walked up to Drew with her eyes hiding her hair, "Uh… I wasn't interrupting something… was I accck!" he was cut off his own sentence when May lodged a punch onto his stomach. "Ackkkk! My gut…… ohhh…" the boy fell to the floor in a very Brock like manner when hit by his Croagunk.

As May made her way towards the locker area, she let out a huge sigh as her heart melted away all those intensity. "Oh brother… I was so close…" she muttered softly under her breath.

It wasn't long till the speaker began, "May and Duplica, please step on stage now please"

When the two trainers met on the entry way, Duplica extended out her arms, "Hey May… don't hold back on me just because I'm new to this. I'll give you a run for your money for sure!"

May gave out a smile and softly returned the shake, "Yeah… same for you" she said in an almost whisper tone. Her near confession really took a lot of morale out of her.

**(Back at Johanna's baking stand)**

As Johanna, Cynthia and Tracey help out with the preparations, a roar of cheer echoed from the other end of the village making the noise pierce through their ear drums. "Well… there must be quite a show over there" the blonde champ stated as she placed the last of the trays on the table. "Well, the semi finals should be starting" Johanna motioned as she readied her cash register and other utensils. Other than her Strawberry Long Cakes, her stand was also offering some hot coco and warm bread to keep their options wide.

"Hey Johanna" Tracey called out as he carried some boxes of soda, "Where do I put these?"

"Oh just put them behind the counter. Not everyone would like something cold for the winter"

**(Back on the battle stage)**

As Ash finally returned to his seat the first round of the semi-finals start underway, "Ladies and gentlemen!" Bunny appeared, "Welcome to the semi-final round of Twinleaf town Bake Off Pokemon contest! Once again, I'm your host… Mrs. Bunny!" the crowd gave out an applause, "So far four trainers have been able to make it this far. Let's see who will go on… to the final round! Let's give up for… May and Duplica!"

"Go May! Go Duplica!" Ash shouted along with his Pikachu and the rest of his friends. "Give it your all!"

As both contestants head to their respective sides, a five minute timer appeared on the board. When Bunny saw the two of them ready, she immediately gave out the word. "BEGIN!!!" in an instant, May called out Blaziken and Duplica called out Daddy Dit then morphing it into May's fire bird Pokemon.

"A Fire type versus a fire type" Max analyzed, "This is gonna be a close call battle!"

Brock nodded in agreement, "I agree. And since Duplica saw most of Blaziken's attacks during the first round, she knows what it can do and what it can't do. But I still think May has the advantage"

"Well, I guess we'll just have to wait and see" Ash notified all of them.

Back on the battle stage, the timer began counting down signaling the two trainers that it was time for battle. May pulled the first punch, "Blaziken, use fire blast, let's go!" but Duplica only smirked, "Ditto, you do the same as well!" with both attacks equal in every way, the intense head only caused a scorch on the ground, causing the center of the arena to go black.

But May wasn't done yet, "Blaziken, use ember and follow it up with a blaze kick attack!" but Duplica only seemed to copy every attack she dished out. With both point meters equally balanced, Duplica saved the best for last.

After two minutes were lost with no attacks gained, May decided to take a little risk! "Blaziken, let's go for it, use blaze kick once more!" but then that was probably her biggest mistake. As Duplica copied all of her moves, she knew that the Hoenn coordinator would lose it and decide to do something rash. Since Blaziken was an expert in counterattacking its opponent Duplica gave out a little change, "I knew you'd crack sooner or later! Ditto, use over heat!" with May's Blaziken still too far for her blaze kick to take effect, the over heat attack came gushing through its body sending it flying back to a corner.

"And it looks like May's Blaziken is knocked back to a corner everyone!" Bunny narrated the battle through the side lines, "Will it still be able to fight?!"

When this sight came to his eyes, Max stood up from his seat in disbelief, "Hey… what happened there?"

But it looked like Ash had the answer, "May lost focus" he spoke professionally, "After seeing that their attacks were equal, she lost confident in her usual method and decided to try something that Blaziken isn't used to. She tried using close ranged attacks on long distances, which ended up getting beaten down by Duplica. Since both Pokemon are equal in everyway, there's no doubt that they both posses the same weaknesses as well. Duplica is using May's strong points against her weakness"

"But May's tactic reminds me of a certain someone" Brock motioned with a little giggle. Ash chuckled and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

With the battle raging on and with May on the verge with only ¼ of her points left, she had to devise another kind of strategy that would defeat herself…

"_Wait…"_ she thought of something, _"That's it! I have to find a way to defeat…… myself!"_ her fighting spirit suddenly returned to her soul as a master plan. "Alright Duplica, no more nice lady. Here I come! Blaziken, use sky uppercut!" in a fraction of a second, the fire bird Pokemon began charging up its fist for an attack and began moving forward with the speed of a cat.

"Hmm… looks all the same to me" Duplica taunted hoping to get May to lose focus. "Ditto, use fire blast one more time!" the copier Pokemon suddenly released a powerful fire attack, but May was now ready, "Now Blaziken… jump high!" "If her Ditto can mimic my Blaziken, then no doubt that that she will need time to recover from the attack"

With Blaziken, skillfully dodging the fire attack, May knew that this was it. If she can connect three attacks in one go, then she knew that Ditto would fall. With the sky uppercut connected to Dittos jaw, Blaziken unleashed a powerful flame thrower attack as a second blow, sending it high up in the sky, "Now Blaziken, use blaze kick and take him down!" with the final order given, Blaziken flew up faster than a rocket and slammed Ditto back down to the ground, creating a small crater. "Oh no!" Duplica squealed, "Daddy dit, are you ok?" but the Ditto only returned to its original form and fainted along the way.

With plenty of time to spare, the score board switched to May's picture, signaling the victor of the battle. "And we have ourselves a winner!!!" Bunny exclaimed causing some of the crowd to shield their ears from the sound, "Ladies and gentlemen, what a wonderful battle! In the end, I guess nothing can beat the original! Give it up for May and Duplica for a wonderful show!" with a round of applause given all around, the two trainers that were up on stage shook hands as friends and waved at the audience together. A single battle has been fought…… but little did they know… that a million more… awaits them at the end of their journey.

**(Ten minutes later)**

Not long after the first two left, Drew and Zoey entered the stage with eyes beaming with determination. "And now… for the second round of the semi-finals… I give you… Drew and Zoey!" with the crowd still as ecstatic as they once were, the gang cheered into view and waved at their friends as they prepared for a battle that might just be written down into history.

"Glameow/Absol, let's do it!" they said together.

As both trainers got ready in their positions, Bunny sounded the signal, "BEGIN!"

"Glameow, let's start off with a shadow claw!" the cat like Pokemon suddenly vanished from sight with intense speed unmatched. Drew was caught surprise by the speed but quickly regained posture. "Absol, jump!" before Glameow could make contact with Absol's body, the dark-dog like Pokemon leaped into the air catching it off guard, "Now Absol, use razor wind and strike it back!"

When the invisible wind attack struck against Glameow, the point meter on the score board suddenly dropped Zoey's points to ¾ but it was gonna take more than that to beat her. "Not good… Glameow, use thunder bolt, don't give him the edge!" when the cat Pokemon recovered from the attack, it immediately shot out a bolt of lightning from its tail in mid-air. At first, Drew thought that she missed because of the fall, but little he know that Zoey likes to think big…… and I mean really REALLY BIG.

As both Pokemons battled it out with no sight of the true victor, Zoey decided that it was time to unleash one of her most powerful combinations. "Alright Glameow, jump up!" the cat Pokemon obeyed its master and leaped onto the air. "Absol, use quick attack!" but when Absol leaped into the air to counter her attack move, the lightning bolt that was shot up in the air suddenly reappeared causing a blinding flash of light. (kinda like a flash bang except the noise) "Now Glameow, use quick attack and hit it!" with one swift attack from the cat Pokemon's claws, Absol was smashed to the ground in the nick of time. "Now strike it down with another thunderbolt!" even with her opponent down, Zoey had to make sure that it wouldn't be able to stand up again. With another shocking blow from Glameow, Absol felt woozy, but it still wouldn't go down.

"This one is harder than I thought" Zoey thought as she probably showed everything she got to her opponent. "Absol, snap out of it!" Drew ordered out loud, causing the dark dog Pokemon to shrug off the electrical effect. "We're not done yet. Let's show that Glameow that we can still fight! Let's give it everything we've got! Double team!" in an instant, Absol began splitting into eight units of itself. "Now let's go! Giga impact!" Zoey was so fazed by the attack that she didn't have enough time to order a defense move. "Glameow!" she shrieked.

"Continue the attack Absol! Use quick attack!" Absol attacked again and again and again and all of them hit right on target. The effects of the Giga impact had really taken its toll on the cat. "Glameow, snap out it and use iron tail!"

"Absol, use night slash!" as both attacks collided, the intensity seemed to have increase dramatically. With one minute left on the clock, Ash and his friends began standing up to see who going to win. Both Pokemons were equally damaged and scores virtually the same, it was gonna be hard to see who was gonna walk out the winner.

"Glameow, shadow claw!"

"Absol, quick attack!"

"Fifty seconds on the clock!" Bunny announced

"Glameow, lightning bolt!"

"Shadow ball Absol!"

"Twenty seconds!" the crowd began leaping off their seats of the intense match

"Absol, put everything you got on this one! Hyper beam!"

"Glameow, dodge!" in just of the nick of time, the beam attack missed its target just by an inch, causing a large amount of smoke to pop.

With the bell ringing, Bunny raised her hand, "That's it! Time's up!" everyone soon turned their eyes towards the scoreboard, heck even Zoey was unsure if she had won that match. She had to dish out everything she got in her arsenal just to make it near Drew's Pokemon. But as the smoke finally cleared, the results finally cleared up.

Zoey's points were indeed very low indeed, ever lower than she expected, but as she turned to her opponents score, you could see that she was only a few inches ahead. "And it looks like we have ourselves a winner! Everyone, give a round of applause to… ZOEY!!!!" the crowd erupted in a series of cheers and cries, some throwing roses in the process. Drew sighed in a little state of depression, but knew that he given out his best. If he was gonna lose, at least he was gonna lose… in style.

"You did great Absol" the boy groomed his Pokemon, "When we get back, I'll give you a fresh treat on one of Johanna's cakes (Ab… sol!)" with a lick on his cheek, Drew returned the Pokemon back into its Pokeball and walked away proudly with his head held high.

As the cheering finally died down, Bunny decided to announce the finals, "Alright ladies and gentlemen! We now have our two top coordinators who will be battling in the final round! But the final round of the Bake Off contest will be decided after the Bake Off. So trainers, please enjoy and relax until later tonight. Thank you and do come again!"

**(Ten minutes later, near Johanna's stand)**

As the area suddenly began to get crowded, Johanna and Cynthia knew immediately that the semi-final rounds were over. It wouldn't be long till the mayor starts the selling contest. "It looks like the semi-finals are over" the blonde champ notified them. Johanna nodded and readied herself for a battle she had prepared for all these months. Thanks to the help of Ash and his friends, she was able to cook twice as much than before and was able to get a decent stand for once.

"I guess it's time get to get ready" Johanna motioned, as she put on her apron. With the streets getting more and more crowded every second, the chefs and bakers from all sides began to prepare every attraction they could give. Some had huge sign posts with lights, some had Pokemons doing stunts, and some even had Pokemons cooking for them!

"Looks like this year's competition is gonna be a hard one to beat" Cynthia warned with a little hint of worry in her voice. But Johanna wasn't worried… well a little nervous, but never worried.

"Hey mom!" Dawn called out from the crowd along with everyone else. "Oh hey there sweety!" came the mother's reply, "Are you ready to help out?" the girl gave out a nod until Ash followed in, "Hey, you still need the extra help? I'm always ready to give my share" Johanna could possibly refused volunteered help, so without even thinking, she gladly accept his offer, "Sure thing. But…" there was a 'but' word at the end of her sentence. "You're gonna have to wear this!" she pulled out an apron and gently tied it around his waist. "There… doesn't he look adorable?" to say the least, some of the gang actually thought of Ash 'cute'. Not being able to see his adventure outfit, he looked almost like a part time worker boy.

**(Back with TR)**

Jessie was crying in a very chibily way at her lost during the contest. Apparently Duplica was more than a match for her Serviper any day. "Now now Jessie, don't cry" James tried to calm her down, but it was no use. She was too sulked to be cheered up. "Come on Jessie, even though you didn't win the contest, we still have a chance of winning the Gold Leaf Trophy"

**(Back on stage)**

"Ahem… attention please" said the mayor through the microphone. "We will be starting the town's aanual Bake Off in five minutes. I know some of you have heard the rules before, but for those who are new, I will gladly explain it thoroughly. Ahem… the contest begins at the stroke of 01:00 PM and will end at 08:00 PM during that time, Mr. Franklin (my school chef) will decide who will win. But… the more you sell, the higher the chances you get for winning! So remember: You all have seven hours to sell as many cakes, breads, or whatever it is you are selling. So now… without further ado… let the Bake Off………… BEGIN!"

The moment the mayor's hand went down, the whole village was up in chaos. Customers were packing faster than Santa Clause could spread his gifts all over the world to the nice girls and boys. Johanna's place was piling in fast as well. Ash was placed on the cash register with Dawn to assist with the counting, Cynthia, Tracey and Johanna will get the things that are ordered and help organize things.

But even as the street went crowded with all sorts of people, there was always Officer Jenny around to keep order of things.

"Oh man… I don't know which one I want to try first" Max drooled as he walked through each of the stands looking at all the tasty treats presented to him. With his limited amount of credits, he could only try very few. It was times like these that made Max wished that he had an infinite amount of cash like Ash. But his brother was probably too busy helping in the store. "Come on Max!" May waved by from one of the stores, "There's great food over here!"

Even though most of the delicious meals were mainly cakes and bread… that didn't stop the chefs from selling other delicacies. Noodles, steak, salad, fruit pies you name it, they got it. Brock also took this as an opportunity to show the world his homemade cooking. Brewing up some of his own stew and curry really attracted a lot of customers to Johanna's booth.

**(Back at Johanna's stand)**

"I'll have two please" said the customer with his money in hand.

Ash gladly handed him the two cake pieces and bowed politely, "Thank you, come again!" (Ite-ras-shai!) With the line of customers visibly going down by the second, Ash and Dawn finally had a little down time. The first hour of the sales was a total mess. Tracey had to run back and forth grabbing new trays every minute due to the cake selling out like… well…… hot cakes! (I really never really got that quote) "Man… this place sure is busy" the boy chuckled slightly along with his Pikachu. "Hey Piakchu" he turned to his Pikapal, "Do you mind taking care of the others for awhile? I really have my hands full and I can't play with you today. Why don't you take the others over by the park and I'll pick you guys up during my break, ok?" with a smile from his little yellow friend, Ash released all of his Pokemons to go and play while he works his sweat off.

"Hey Ash" called Dawn, "We need two more servings of my mom's cake. Can you hold on while I get Tracey?"

"Sure, no prob" he smiled in reply. With the girl gone, Ash stood alone watching the stands as people pass by aimlessly through the streets. Everyone had a plate on their hands and heck, some even had hot dogs too. With the sight of so many food, the boy's stomach began speak in a language only Ash can understand, 'Hey, get me some food dude! I'm low on fuel!' but that was just his imagination going on berserk.

"Hey Ash, still working I see" came a voice from the front. The boy looked up and noticed that it was Zoey. "Oh hey there Zoey" he replied with his usual smile, "That was a great match back there with Drew. You really gave it your all didn't you?"

A smile was probably more than enough of a reply, "Probably" she began, "I never expected someone like him to out class my Glameow. If I didn't move at the last second, I would've lost for sure"

The two of them chuckled for a short while till Ash remembered something, "Oh yeah, do you still want your cake? I can get you one, it'll on me" he offered before dashing back. "Oh no that's ok I was…" she didn't get to finish when Ash suddenly tripped on a box which was clumsily placed there by someone. "Waaa? Whaaaa!!!!" but before Ash's head made contact with the floor, a pink flash suddenly came over, catching the boy on his back. _"Are you alright sire?"_ said the pink Lucario in a telepathic communication. "Oh… yeah… thanks Rosa"

Zoey immediately poked her head in to see if he was alright, "Ash, are you ok?" she said a little worried, "Yeah, I'm fine" came his relieved reply, "I just fell, that's all. Hey Dawn, can we have one order of long cake and a bottle of soda?"

"Sure thing. Just wait a moment!" came the girl's muffled voice from behind a stack of boxes with her hand waving just barely visible.

The two trainers giggled, "I guess she's still as hard headed as before" said Zoey, "How about you Ash? Have you been training well?" the boy grinned from ear to ear, "Absolutely! Me and my Pokemons have been training all over the world. I even forgot how many cities I've been" the boy sparked out his confident aura all around spreading that warm fuzzy feeling to others next to him. Even Zoey could feel that aura even at her distance. "What about you Zoey? How've you been? I haven't really heard of you since the grand festival"

"Oh well, I've been doing a little training on my own for awhile" she put down her Glameow on the table and rubbed its fur as it gave out an affectionate purr. "I went to Kanto a few months ago to try out for the grand festival there. I made it to the finals, until I lost to someone stronger than me"

"Huh? Really? Who?" it was probably three questions put into one when he said that.

"Her name was Soledad… she had plenty of combinations in her belt and her Pokemons were absolutely stunning" the red head glared at the clouds as they created some shades around the village, "It was a close battle, but in the end, she beat me fair and square. That's why I came back here to train. But it wasn't long till I got an invitation to go and compete in the Valmarian league"

"Soledad… hmm that name sounds very familiar" Ash placed his hand on his chin as the mere mention of the name seemed to have struck an old bell in his memory lane. But before he could figure it out, Dawn finally returned with a tray full of new long cakes. "Sorry for the wait. Mom was getting some new stacks ready so I had to help out" but then the blue haired girl noticed the Glameow and the one rubbing its fur, "Oh hey there Zoey, long time no see!"

"Nice to finally see you too champ" the red head replied with a smile, "You're helping out with your moms bake sale? (nod) Well that's a shame. I really believed that you were going to compete in the contest"

But Dawn simply stuck her tongue out with a laugh, "Maybe next time. Oh and here's your order" Dawn gladly handed a small plate of her mom's delicious cake and a bottle of soda. "Thanks Dawn"

As things finally began to cool down, Ash rechecked the area to see if there were any customers left. There were still four hours left on the clock, but after such a long and intense moment of nothing but eating, gulping and chewing, it was not surprise to see so many stomachs full.

Growl

Well… I guess they did miss one.

Ash quickly rubbed his stomach and motioned it to calm down, "Keep quiet silly tummy, I'm the one that's hungry" Dawn broke out a small chuckle at his gesture. The boy never failed to make her laugh. Even though it was unintentional, the boy can really be a clown at certain times. "Pfftt" she held her laugh behind her hand and mouth.

Ash noticed this and smirked. He soon began pretending that his stomach can talk, "Oh come on Ash, I'm the one who's digesting them, you're just getting the good part" he said in a lower toned voice. "Oh be quiet stomach! I'll find you something to eat soon, besides, you're a part of me! Now sit back and pipe down" he snickered in a chibi manner which made Dawn burst out a laugh. "Ahahahahahaha! Stop it Ash, you're gonna laugh me to death ahahahahahaha!"

But the boy refused to stop, "Well if I'm gonna be quiet, then may be you should stop talking and start eating!" said the stomach, "Alright, I had enough of you! Why don't we try a broccoli for starters?!" Ash threatened himself with bunch of greens on his hand. "Oh no Ash! Don't do it! It's not worth it!" the stomach panicked.

As Dawn continued to watch the hilarious scene, she placed her back on the side of table and laughed till her gut spilled out (not literally!)

"Hey you two" came Johanna along with Cynthia, "It looks like you're all having a good time. Wanna take a little hot coco break?" the two of them nodded and quickly took a seat on the nearest table. While Brock and Tracey manages the store, the four of them could have a little moment of R&R.

"So… how's the first day of work?" Cynthia chuckled as she took a sip off her mug of hot coco.

"It was hard, but we got through it" Dawn explained the results, "Thanks to Ash and everyone, we were able to things done on time" but Ash simply waved it off, "Oh it was nothing" he was being modest, that much was for sure. "Besides, everyone participated, right?" the two of them laughed together.

As Johanna sat quietly on her corner of the table, she couldn't help but dart her eyes as her daughter laughed endlessly at the boy. She definitely emphasized Ash's name, but not obvious enough for anyone to know. Of course… since she was her mom, she could tell how she was feeling and how her every reaction matches up to him. The boy was a perfect match… she was now completely… absolutely convinced that Ash would be a suitable husband. All her life, Johanna had been afraid perhaps even terrified on who Dawn would pick in the future. She was always worrying about her son in law and perhaps she was probably not the only one. A lot of parents are afraid of who their children would bring home. But… sometimes you should let things flow and let the wind takes its course.

As Johanna analyzed the boy even at a closer perspective, she was already prepared to offer Dawn up to him. The boy was sweet, too sweet for her to hold back. He was not only kind, but gentle… to well… everything! His Pokemons, his friends, even his enemies. If that's how he treats those close to him, she can't imagine how well he'll treat his wife.

With wedding bells ringing in her head, and flower bushels beings tossed around, Johanna had to be brought back down to earth before she moves on too far into the future.

"Mom?" Dawn waved her hand in front of her face, "Huh? Oh what? What is it honey?" the mother looked rather fazed by that little stunt for a moment, "Is something bothering you mom? You were in the zone for a moment there"

"Oh it's nothing, I was just one of those, daily dreams. Well let's get back to work shall we?" but before they could stand up from their seats, Tracey came by looking like he just ran through a marathon. "Guys, sorry to barge in, but do you have a minute?"

"Uh sure Tracey, what is it?" Ash motioned as he took the last sip of chocolate from his mug. "Well right now, we're getting no customers at all!"

"WHAT?!" they all said in unison.

"For how long?" Johanna added. Tracey thought for a moment before answering, "About thirty minutes now. They're all at the Rooster ranch. It looks like they have themselves a personal mascot" he pointed towards a large crowd gathering, which was obviously getting more attention than they were.

"Well that's not fair!" Dawn stood up from her seat spilling her coco on the table. "You can't attract customers using Pokemons!" but Tracey clarified it for her, "Ummm… actually, it says here on the rule book. You can…"

Dawn's anger soon rose. Without warning, she smashed her fist on the table and turned her head to her mother, "Mom, we should do something about this!" even though everyone seemed ticked off, Johanna kept a stern steady face, "Oh we will Dawn… but if we're gonna win… we're gonna have to do it… our way… and a little help… hehehehehehehe" she grinned from ear to ear, sending chills down their spines. If

**(Five minutes later)**

In just a matter of minutes, Ash called up all of his friends to meet up at the stands for a little briefing. Brock once again took the role as their commander. "Alright everyone" the squinty eyed boy began, "It appears that Rooster ranch stands are selling more cakes than we are. If we don't find a way to attract more customers here, it'll be a sure lost for us. So here's the plan: Ash, May, Dawn, Drew, you four have the most experience in appealing contests. I want you to set up near the stands and perform the best you can. The rest of us will help around the customers arrive. Everyone got it?"

"Yes!"

"Good…………… now get moving!"

By the time everyone managed to set up their own position, the attraction became more ecstatic than one would actually believe. Pikachu was firing lightning bolts into the sky to create a small spark of fireworks. May's Squirtle was shooting water gun on Dawn's Buneary's ice beam attack creating a long stone ice bridge. Drew on the other hand, didn't need to do a thing. He just sits around on the table wearing his white tuxedo then BANG, every girl wants to be with him. I guess that must be one of his natural talents.

**(With TR)**

All was quiet in the TR branch. With no customers coming in for a whole hour, Jessie and James decided to take a little break. "Hmm… I wonder where all the customers went" James wondered as he looked around for anyone who might be desperate enough to buy some leftovers.

It wasn't long then till Meowth arrived with the big news, "Hey guys we got ourselves a problem?"

"What could be worst than my grandmother's cake not selling?" James added, completely ignoring his feline friend, "Your gonna lose your dignity if you don't straighten up ya wit!" Meowth snapped, "The other shops are selling big cuz they got themselves Pokemons doing some stunts! If we don't get some customers soon, we'll be the laughing stock of the century!"

"And my grandmother's cake will lose its reputation!? NOOOO!!!! Radcliff!" the butler suddenly appeared, "Yes master James?"

"Prepare a full scale battle! Tell the staff that they're salary will be doubled for this month!"

"Right away sir!"

"If they want a battle… hehehehe… then let's give them a battle!"

**(The Rooster Ranch)**

Things were going well at the Rooster ranch's stand. But just when things were going well for them, the line of paying customers seemed to have dropped significantly.

"Head chef, head chef!" called in one of the assistant cook boys. "What is it boy? You look like you just saw a ghost or something" said the guy with the big mustache. The assistant quickly gasped some breath before finally speaking, "It's the new kids on the north wing sir! They've got coordinators to do appeals for them! Their customer racks are reaching towards the roof!"

"What!? They must be trying to win the trophy as well! That Johanna… she's won two of them in a row… and she thinks she can win another? Well... I an't sticking around to let her! Get your medals in gear people! We've got ourselves a fight to win! Call in the reserves! 20 percent discount!"

The crowd gasped...

**(Back at Johanna's stand)**

With the numbers of sales increasing on Johanna's side of the force, everything seemed to be turning out quite nicely. The Pokemon appeals were a great attraction to the kids…… and where there are kids, there's always an adult to supervise them and when there's an adult, there's a customer.

"Phew… I'm beat…" said Anabel as she slouched back down on the table, "All this working is really wearing me out"

"Your not the only one" that was Ash who spoke after he finished his routine of appeal, "I feel so tired, I think I might just sleep when I take my next eye blink ahehehe" even though Ash was exhausted, he was still able to force out a smile.

"May be you should take a break Ash" the frontier brain member suggested, "You've been working pretty hard, and a little rest can go a long way"

"Yeah, but Johanna is gonna need all the help she can get" Ash then turned to his tired little electrical buddy, "You take a break Pikachu, I'll ask Swellow and Cyndaquil to help me" (Pika… chu…) the little one looked pooped.

But as Ash wandered off, Rosa followed not far behind remaining in telepathic communication. _"I hate to say this your majesty, but I believe your friend is right. You seem tired"_ but Ash just returned a smile, "No, I'm fine Rosa. I can stand a few more hours" Ash wasn't lying though. He may have the stamina of Tauros, but he was still human.

But Rosa was not one who would defy her king. It was not in her nature to defy, but sometimes, she just wished she could knock some sense into that boy. Instead, she just stood back and let him do what he pleases. With the boy gone in the distance, performing his appeals to everyone, the pink Lucario could only wonder on where the boy could get such strength and stamina. She had remembered on that time back in fort where they fought. She remembered how the boy was battered, broken and beaten. But even though he was suffering from so many injuries he was still able to stand and walk up like none of the wounds exist.

But just when Ash was about to continue his appealing show, Tracey came by with more updates on the sales. "Great news guys, we're beating all the other contestants by a huge margin! If we keep this up, we'll definitely win for sure!"

Brock agreed, "Yeah, but remember: Only Mr. Franklin, the master chef can choose the winner. We've got to be prepared"

"Hey guys!" came Todd's voice from behind, "We got a problem! Rooster Ranch and Rocket Restaurant are using Pokemon appeals as well! They're hiring coordinators from this morning's contest!"

"WHAT?!"

"Those low down… cheaters!" Dawn fumed, "They're stealing our idea! Come on gang, we need to pump up the heat!"

"Now now dear" Johanna calmed them, "There's no need to go that far" but her daughter was much too competitive to let some Rooster beat her mom. "No way mom! If we let them steal the spot light, the judge might think that they're better than us! I'm gonna show them who's the boss around here!" and with that, Dawn immediately dashed off with May, Duplica, Drew and Richie to fight a silent battle of attracting customers. "Oh dear… there she goes" Johanna sighed.

"Hey Johanna" came Ash's tired voice. "Where did Dawn and the others go?"

"It looks like they're gonna try and develop new ways to appeal for customers" came the mother's unnerving reply, "That daughter of mine can really get competitive during a Bake Off and she'll do absolutely anything to win"

"Really?" Ash wondered before taking a look at the gang as they tried different ways to appeal for best Pokemon shows, "I know being competitive is a good thing, but at some point, you gotta watch out. Being too competitive can really turn ugly" the boy knew this because his first rivalry made him lose someone precious to him.

"I know what you mean Ash" said Cynthia as she stood next to her old childhood friend, "J.J and I have been rivals for years now and trust me, it hasn't really worked out well for our friendship"

After hearing this, Ash became quite curious, "Really? So what happened?"

"Oh let's just say 'things got out of hand' ahehehehe" Johanna answered with a giggle equal to her blonde friend.

"You wreck my whole lab that's what happened" the three champions soon turned to meet the face of professor Rowan who seemed to be enjoying just listening to their conversation, "Hello again Johanna, Cynthia and Ash. I'm quite surprise to see three top trainers hanging around in one place. If one of your fans should recognize any of you, I have no doubt it will cause trouble" it was probably a logical warning to give. If one the major Ash or Cynthia fan clubs should see this sight, neither of them would be surprise to see them all faint.

"Hey there professor" the two girls said in unison.

"I see you're just as young as ever" Johanna added with a chuckle. Rowan flashed out a slight blush of embarrassment. "So what brings you all the way here? I thought you'd still be locked up in that lab of yours"

"Well part of being a judge in the Pokemon contest" he replied, "I'm also here to visit one of my brightest students. Is that wrong?" Cynthia gave out a chuckle when it was Johanna's turn to blush in embarrassment. But when the professor noticed the smell of the cake, his mind began to float, "Oh my… is that your town famous Strawberry Long Cakes? Mind if I buy one?" Johanna quickly took out one of the cakes from the tray and handed it to him. "Hmm… it's been so long since I've had this. I wonder if it still tastes the same (gulp) (silence………) Hmm…"

"Is something wrong professor?" Johanna looked worried as the professor had never been silenced by her cakes before. As Rowan kept silent during his first bite, a mixture of emotions seemed to have crossed his face causing a slight smile came upon his lips. Some of his facial expression weren't bad or good, but the three trainers couldn't tell either. Once he was done the old scientist put down the plate and reopened his eyes. "Hehehehe… Johanna… you truly made it this time. I expect great things…" was all he said before leaving the table. If the three trainers could get anymore confused that, then there would be question marks coming out of their heads. "Hey uh… what did he mean by that?" Johanna questioned getting no answers from either Ash nor Cynthia.

"Well, that was weird" Ash said finally. "Hey Johanna, you mind if I take a little break?" the woman simply nodded back in reply. But for Ash to take a little break every now and then was extremely rare these days. Heck, if you know this boy as much as his Pikachu, you would know that this boy would work his organs off till the break of New Year's dawn if had to.

**(Twinleaf town park) (06:30 PM)**

With all of his friends either working or helping out with the bake sales, Ash decided that he had a little down time with his Pokemons. Ever since he came here in the Shinou regions, the boy had just been swarming with so many errands and works that he barely has enough time to spend with his Pokebuddies. But now that he's off the hook, he finally found some time. Now…if only if he wasn't tired… then the moment would be perfect.

"Here everyone" Ash said weakly to all of his Pokemons, Pikachu, Totodile, Cyndaquil, Swellow, and Turtwig. "I bought you all some of Johanna's long cakes, but I wasn't able to get enough for all of you, so you guys are gonna have to share" he quickly broke two pieces of each and put them all on each of their respective bowls. After the last of them were beginning to dig in, Ash broke his half and offered it to the last person they would expect…… Rosa. "Here Rosa"

The pink Lucario was startled for a moment, "Oh no your majesty" she rejected, "You need it more than I do"

"No Rosa. I bought these for all of us, and that means you got to have one too" Ash explained holding his half with one hand and the other half on the other hand. As Rosa looked upon his face, she could see the boy smiling even at such a weakened state. His muscles were waning so weakly that it looked like they belonged to a person who hasn't eaten in weeks, his eye lids were on the verge of collapsing, his knees were too weak to move and his stomach growls were getting louder by the minute.

"But…" Rosa spoke up, but soon began to realize that arguing with Ash was probably just gonna be a futile attempt. "(sigh)…… Very well" she took her half of the cake and started chowing down along with the boy. Surprisingly, she found the cake to be very tasty. May be before she leaves, she'll remember to bring some of these tasty treats back to her companions in Fort Gregro.

As the small band of Pokemons and one human slowly consume their treats, an awkward silence seemed to have loomed over them. A long eerie silence… like one you would see in a romantic scene where the lovers confess to each other, but that's probably just my imagination.

But even though there weren't any music, TV or any other sorts of entertainment, Ash and his Pokemon seemed to be enjoying themselves quite well. With a cool breeze in the air, a warm jacket to keep the cold away, and friends to keep you company, there was nothing on this planet that could be anymore perfect. (Well… except for a pepperoni and cheese pizza)

As the time continued to pass by the beauty of nature, Rosa looked up to the stars and began to reflect on what has happened these pass few days after her old king had vanished in the void of time. After awhile… she began to think… what was she doing here anyway? What imbecilic mind would force her to go all the way from the safety and comfort of home to… to… to here? Was it a sense of duty? Loyalty? Or was it her own personal feelings? She could not tell. In fact… the more she thought about it… the more confused she got.

With the massive intensity of her brain working on overdrive, Rosa decided to chill out a bit and knock that thought off her mind,_"Focus Rosa, FOCUS!"_ she screamed at herself telepathically, _"Remember your duty… stay on track and don't lose sight of your goals"_

Ash quickly noticed the slight change in the Lucario's face. "Is something wrong Rosa?"

"Nothing…… I was just… thinking about……… never mind… it's nothing important"

"Rosa… you know that if there's something bothering you, you can always talk to me" Ash reasoned his way into her mind. "Besides, you…"

"IT'S NOTHING!!!" she snapped at him, locking their faces together. As both their eyes locked onto each other, something inside Rosa seemed to have clicked. Like a button that has not been pressed in millenniums.

Thump…

Her heart began to beat faster…

Thump thump…

Her eyes began to grow swollen

Thump thump…

Her breathing rhythm started to become irregular

THUMP!

"I… I'm sorry" she quickly forced every ounce of her mental and emotional strength she had to pull her eyes away from him, "I shouldn't have snapped like that"

"No… it's my fault. I was probably being too nosy" Ash scooted away from her taking his eyes off her face as well. "Sorry…"

Again… another silence came by. The sound of laughter and yells from the town square seemed to have died down for some reason. With no noise but the wind blowing through the trees, it almost seemed like they were the only living beings left in the entire village.

After a few minutes of nothing but silence and boredom, Rosa decided to break the little chill with a little talent of her own. Picking out a leaf from the bushes, she slowly put it against her lips and began playing a song. (I kinda imagine it as Final Fantasy 9 title intro music in flute)

As the melody began humming in, every other sound around them seemed to have been silenced indefinitely. The bugs in the woods stopped making their noise, the wind halted in its wake, the sound of dripping water faded as if it was never there. But amidst all the horror of this silence, Ash and his Pokemons seemed to enjoy it very well. The song was like that of an old lullaby that would lulge anyone to sleep in a matter of minutes. It wasn't as powerful as Jiglypuff's sleep song, but it was definitely still very effective.

When Ash listened to every tune of the song, he felt like all the weight of the world began to lift away from his shoulders. His body felt like a feather and he believed that this song could stop a rampaging Groudon from attacking.

By the time she was about half way through the song, she placed the leaf at the center of her paw and let the winds take it away. "That was great…" Ash complimented, "Where did you learn how to play like that?"

Rosa closed her eyes and slouched back on the bush she was lying on earlier, "Oh it's nothing…… his maj…… I mean… 'he'… taught me how to play it…… a long time ago" she explained slowly, "It's a song of eternity. When you finish playing this song, you let the winds take it to the stars… and if you're will is strong enough… then those that you play this song with… will remain together… for all times" she paused for a moment, making herself believe that it was true, "But… it's all just plain superstition. It's nothing more but a horrible sound"

"I like it" Ash said suddenly, catching her off balance, "Can you teach me how to play it? (pika pika?)"

Rosa paused for a moment before looking back at the boy as he carried a leaf from the bushes. His smile was still as wide as before, but this time, it seemed to be a little more forced out. It was obvious why, since his fatigued seemed to be catching up onto him. "Are you sure?" she asked, which was only replied with a slight nod. "Very well…" she sighed, "You first take your instrument and puck your lips like this. Then you blow through the lower part…"

**(Back in Johanna's stands)**

"It looks like that's the last of them" Cynthia declared as the last of Johanna's cake trays finally emptied out. "We'd better close shop now J.J unless of course you want to sell invisible cakes to your customers"

The mother just laughed, "Well it looks we were to sell everything after all. I'll go get Brock and he can help us" but just when things were finally going their way, Todd came by her side looking like he just ran around town, "Johanna, where's Ash?"

Johanna was startled by the phtotgrapher's yell for a minute before replying, "I sent him on a break about fifteen minutes ago. Is something wrong?"

"We need his help! Dawn's in trouble!"


	46. Bake, Take and Roll!

**Chapter 46: Bake, Take and Roll**

**(Twinleaf town park)**

Ash and Rosa were practicing the song of eternity with leaf-whistles at the nearby meadow along with several of Ash's Pokemons. Though the boy still got some of the notes wrong, he was doing much better after each attempt.

"Ahe… it looks like I'll need a lot more practice than I thought" the boy chuckled out along with Pikachu and Turtwig. "Don't worry your majesty" Rosa cheered him up, "If you keep playing it for a few more days, you'll master it in no time"

"Rosa, you don't really need to call me that you know" Ash motioned which caught her attention. "I'm not really king material and I don't control anyone. So just call me Ash… ok?" Rosa gave him a look, "I'm afraid I cannot do that your majesty. You are the king and I am your subject. I can only follow your orders, but I cannot refer to you as a closer attachment"

Ash thought for a moment before deciding to trick her in the girl's own trap, "Alright then. As king, I hereby order you to call me Ash from now on"

"WHAT!?" the pink Lucario stood up in shock and surprise written on her face, "You can't do that sire! That's… that's…"

"Ah ah ahhh" Ash waved his finger left and right, "You said that you will follow my orders right? So you'll have to follow them. Unless of course… you don't want to…" Rosa would've grinded her teeth to dust if she could, but seeing that there was no alternative route, she sighed, "Very well your maj… I mean… Ash. I will try to fulfill your first order… as best I can"

"Great… now why don't we all go back to the stands. I think Johanna must've sold out the whole store by now" his Pokemons squealed with cheers all around.

But when they returned to the town square… something strange seemed to befall the town. The place was in a total state of a rampage! A condition of utter chaos, a menace of all school cafeterias, a disaster of all disasters, a calamity worst than the black plague, like bread without jam and (OK WE GET IT!!!) Ahemm…… to put it bluntly… there was a…

Food fight!!!!!!

Cakes and pastries were being tossed left and right. Spaghetti bombs were being launched into the air only to land on several poor victims. But even with all the fighting going on, some of the victims seemed to be enjoying themselves. What better way to enjoy something that's free than to have it lodged onto your face.

Not wanting to get caught up in the mess, Ash decided to turn to Johanna's stand for some answers. Luckily, Cynthia and Todd were there too. "Hey guys, what's going on here!?"

The photographer sighed, "It's a long story…"

"(splat!) Well… it's not like we're going anywhere" the boy was nearly hit by one of the custard cakes that was fired from a distance. Seeing that Ash had a point, Todd decided to explain what happened. "I think it was about twenty minutes ago…… Dawn and the others were doing some high appeal routines at the center of town to get more customers. Everything was going great until… one of the Rooster Ranch chef decided to throw a pie at her. The pie missed, but then it landed on Pachirisu… and you know what that little guy can do"

Ash sweatdropped a mother of all sweatdrops as he remembered the energetic little munchkin. That little squirrel can cause so much trouble the size that's never been seen before in history. It wouldn't take a genius to imagine how Pachirisu can cause all this chaos. "I think I can imagine…" Ash replied with a small laugh. But then suddenly, Johanna finally appeared after crisscrossing through the firing range carrying a single plate of her Long Cakes. "Johanna! Are you ok?"

The mother sighed out in relief, "I'm ok… I just had to save this last cake for the judge"

"Do you know where the others are?" Ash motioned as another plate of spaghetti splatted on the stands. "Brock and Misty are on the east wing right now with Richie. Drew and Tracey are currently in the Rooster ranch. But I'm a little worried about Dawn. Ash, do you think you can go look for her and bring her back here?"

Ash looked outside for a moment before turning back to her, "Sure thing! Pikachu, you stay here and take care of everyone else. I'll go out there and bring them all back here ok (Pikachu)"

**(On the other side of the town square)**

Max, May, Duplica and Anabel were hiding behind a shop stall after the horrible incident with the food fight. The place was in such a mess, that it would take a whole battalion of janitors just to start making the place look clean again. But as Max and May decided to take a little peep… a banana cream pie misfired from one of the patrons and slammed right onto May's face. "Haha!" Max laughed, "Serves you (splat!)" another pie misfired and landed directly on his nerdy face. "Hmm… I like blueberry" the boy chuckled until he saw a volley of cakes coming straight at him. "Incoming three o'clock!"

But May wasn't exactly fast on the count. Before she even knew it, two packs of pies landed on her face and three more on her dress. Her eye visibly twitched as she tried to decipher the flavor on her mouth. "Hmm… butter cream?"

With the increase number of food being thrown at them, Anabel took cover behind the stands, "Well if we can't stop them… we'll just have to join'em!" she grabbed a cake from the table and quickly flung it afar, only to counterattacked with several dozen more pies. "Eyyaaaahh!" she screamed. When the Salon Battle Maiden returned to her cover, Duplica couldn't help but choke a laugh, "Now that was funny" the rest of the gang agreed.

It wasn't long then till, Munchlax came out from May's Pokeball. As it looked around, the little large mouth Pokemon began to think that it died and went to Pokechow heaven. (Munch? Munch munch munch munch!) before the gang knew that it got out, the little monster began eating things over and over as food kept flying in the air.

But just as they were laughing their heads off, a creamed figure (literally creamed) appeared from the battlefield and sat right next to them. "Hey guys" the others perked up an ear before saying, "Richie?"

"The one and only" the boy wiped off the flavorings on his face only to be suddenly slobbered by Munchlax, "Hey! Cut it out! Hahahaha! That tickles hehehe!"

"Munchlax, get back into your Pokeball!" May ordered. But the little guy was too hungry to follow orders from her. It then took off, only to be bombarded with a five ton weight worth of cake. But like all Munchlaxes, nothing can fill that empty hole in its stomach. "Munchlax! Get back here this instant!" May demanded, but she quickly ducked back down when another pie was thrown at her.

"I guess the guys throws at anything that makes a sound" Max chuckled as he began eating the cream off his face. "Hey… this side taste like strawberry and this side taste like chocolate (yum) I never knew I could actually taste so good!"

But as the members of the gang sat there while calming and eating themselves, a voice came out from the outside, causing them to flinch. "INCOMING!!!!" in an instant, a barrage of cakes suddenly splattered all over the field causing the other patrons to take cover. A series of charge, laugh and charge were heard throughout the night. It was as if the whole festival had just been prepared for this incident especially. While the gang flinched on every pie/cake or any dairy products thrown at them, Munchlax seemed to be having a time of its life. Limitless treats to its stomach and multi-flavored food, it was a paradise in disguise of a warzone.

"How long do you think this battle will last?" Duplica ducked and cover as her leg got caught up with some spaghetti. "As long as there's something to throw I guess" Anabel replied as she grabbed a tissue off the counter to wipe her face. "I wonder what they're throwing now?"

"I'll check" Max volunteered, "Hey guys, over here! (splat splat splat SPLAT!)" the kid was bombarded with a series of food for a whole ten second until he ducked back down, "Hmm… they have cherry pie, cakes with chocolate icing and… hmm… I think this is cranberry pie" the boy was practically licking himself clean like a cat taking a bath. The gang gave out each a sweatdrop as they starred oddly at the nerd boy. Heck, the kid was practically having a blast getting himself creamed like that.

**(Back with Ash)**

As our young hero made his way through the ragged spaghetti splattered, pie creamed, cake battered battlefield, he took cover behind a small block of crates to shield himself from the food fight. Rosa was not far behind and to say the least, none of the foods were able to hit her. This was probably just a routine training for her back in the old days. "Man, there are too many people out there" Ash mumbled, "I can't tell who's who and which of them is Dawn"

"Allow me to find her you your highness" Rosa immediately began using her telekinetic abilities to scan the area of the boy's friend. But with so many noise going all at once, it was hard to pinpoint the exact location. After a few more minutes, she found her. "She's over there, behind those boxes!" with a speed that is almost comparable to a Ferrari cruise liner car, Ash dashed off from his cover spot right to where Rosa pointed out.

And true to the pink Lucario's words, there she was, hiding behind several boxes of icings and cakes. The girl was shivering, slightly frightened by the fact that everyone was fighting. "Dawn, are you ok?!" the girl lifted her head to see the smile of Ash and his Lucario. "Ash?"

The boy bent down to her level and removed the strain of cream off her hair, "There you are. I was worried about you so I came looking. Come on, I'll take you to Johanna back at the stands" he openly extended his hand to which the girl grabbed immediately. Ash could already see that she was a bit frightened by this, so he didn't want to move too fast. "Ok… now that we're here……" he looked back at the battlefield and began to notice the increase of fruits and ice cream being thrown. "The hard part would be getting back there"

"_This way your majesty"_ Rosa spoke in the boy's head, _"We can take an alternate route through here. We can avoid most of the barrage, but it will still be dangerous nonetheless"_ the boy nodded and quickly pulled Dawn gently with a slight force.

But just when they were about to take the passage, a banana split bomb suddenly splated on one of the boxes, causing Pachirisu to jump in panic. "Oh no Pachirisu, come back!" Dawn quickly unhooked herself from Ash and gave chase to her little squirrel Pokemon. "Dawn, wait! It's too dangerous out… (splat splat splat!)…… there" Ash was hit by two scoops of vanilla and a chunk of choco cream. "Hmm… my favorite flavor"

But as Dawn traverse through the crossfire of ten (or more) restaurant factions, she was able to grab her Pachirisu just before it got slammed by a bunch of cheese cakes. "There you are you little rascal" she scolded, "Come on, return!" she quickly place the little Pokemon back into her Pokeball. But just as she was about to head back to Ash, her eyes caught sight of several other dishes coming her way. "Wahhhh!!" with cat like reflexes, Dawn acrobated (acrobatics) her way out of the crossfire, but with so many people aiming for her hide, it was undoubtedly gonna be a close call. She tumbled and rolled and ducked and jumped, but the more she dodged, the easier it was for her to get targeted by the bigger throwers. "Hey watch it! I just had my skirt dry-cleaned!"

Not long after that, Ash arrived by her side with a towel over his head. "It looks like we're gonna have to make a break for it" but then he noticed Munchlax munching its way through the battlefield, "Hey… aren't you May's Munchlax? (Munch?) I got it!" a light-bulb appeared on his head signaling that he got an idea.

A few minutes later, he grabbed Munchlax by the head and pulled him in front of his face. "Ok Dawn, stay close. I'll use Munchlax as a shield. Ready? Let's go!" with an instant dash off the covering area, the food throwers began bombarding the two trainers with a variety of food. But Ash had planned ahead. With Munchlax as his shield, the eating Pokemon began chowing everything being thrown at it. It didn't matter if it was cake, spaghetti or just plain ice cream toppings; the little guy ate it all.

After getting through that horrible area, Ash finally made it back, amazing…… unscathed by any of the things thrown at him. However… it seemed like Munchlax had enough for one meal tonight.

"Dawn, there you are" Johanna hugged her little girl tightly. "I was worried that you got hurt"

The girl pouted, "Mom! I'm old enough to take care of myself. Besides, Ash was there to help me" Cynthia cracked out a small laugh along with Todd. But they were more concerned about the fight rather than their own safety.

"Well anyway. It looks like this food fight isn't gonna stop anytime soon. We might as well find the others and look for some cover"

But just when the five of them were about to agree, the mayor of Twinleaf town pulled out a gong out of nowhere and banged it so hard that the whole town nearly went deaf. Apparently it was something that the mayor would call an 'electric gong' since it was connected to several giant speakers that were supposedly used for the microphone.

"Ahem… sorry to bother you everyone, but it now eight o'clock. If none of you are too busy, it is now time for Mr. Franklin to taste your famed products. Please bring your cakes up front"

Ash quickly motioned to Johanna, "Hey Johanna, quickly! Where's that last plate you saved?" the mother quickly began searching for it. "Eh? I remembered that I put it here somewhere" the others quickly began searching through the stands to find that last Strawberry Long Cake. But just as they looked around deeper and deeper, a familiar sound caught their attention. (Munch------lax) the eating Pokemon was holding the cake right in front of his hand.

"Munchlax NOOOO!!!!" Ash and Dawn quickly tackled the little monster down, but it was already too late. Munchlax had already taken a bite off of it. But at least half of the piece was saved… that counts too… right? "Ash, Dawn, are you two ok?"

"Yeah" the boy replied, "But we weren't able to save the whole cake"

Johanna quickly picked up her last plate and took a deep sigh, "Don't worry about it Ash. I think this will be more than enough to please the judge. Now come on. We need to get up there fast!"

**(Five minutes later)**

After all the mayhem ceased, twenty cakes were immediately lined up in front of Mr. Franklin. Johanna was the last to be tasted since she was the last person who made it to the stage. As the master cook began strolling left and right, he began to take sample of each and everyone. He started out on the far right, looking at each of the cake designs. There were some that even went in length to put candles and other decors to make their dish even looked good too.

"Hmm… this is going to be a hard choice indeed" Franklin began, "They all look tasty. What do you think mayor?"

"Hmm… all their designs are purely original. But the only question is… do they taste as good as they look?" the mayor replied holding a fork in his hand. Franklin agreed and quickly took a small sample of the first one. He took his time in chewing every bite, getting the flavor all over his tongue. After a whole minute, he smiled at the first chef, "An excellent use of icing chef Kada. Putting that extra seasoning and flour really did the trick on the thickness of the cake. A very good combination indeed" the chef was satisfied with his first impression and bowed back in respect.

Then came the second one, "Hmm…a wonderful use of the chocolate cream, chef Jundo! It really does add to the taste"

Then came the third, "Oh my my… fruit toppings? This is unheard of"

Then came Rocket Restaurant, "Hmm… vanilla fillings… my favorite! This is stunning indeed" James smiled in reply, "Why thank you! It's old James grandma's secret cake recipe. I made this one perfect beyond belief!"

Then came the Rooster Ranch, "A perfect combination using visual and cooking arts. Having all these Pokemon cookies on top really makes the cake more appetizing than ever. And not to mention the extra secret flavor deep inside" the head chef of the Rooster Ranch smirked and smiled along with his two hundred assistants.

And with this, the compliments and comments went on and on. But as the master chef continued with each and every one of them, Ash begins to notice the sigh that he's been giving after each compliment. It was as if the master cook was disappointed about something.

After finally tasting the last one, Mr. Franklin finally arrived at Johanna's group along with the mayor. But as they came across the final plate, the two of them wondered why there was only half and why it was so messed up. "Hmmm… chef Johanna, can you explain why your cake is in such a shape?" the woman gave out a sweatdrop as she turned to her daughter's friends who seemed to be restraining Munchlax. "Well… let's just say 'it was too good to pass up' ahehehe"

Not really satisfied with the answer, Franklin decided to try the half cake anyway. Just for show at least. But when he savored the bite in his mouth… something deep within his head seemed to have clicked. Professor Rowan noticed this and smirked.

Franklin really took his time when taking a sample of Johanna's cake. He seemed to be enjoying every bite and making every moment count. After about two or three minutes, he put the plate and smiled. "That was very good Johanna" he then walked towards the microphone. "Attention everyone! I have made my final decision" all the chefs seemed to have stiffened up their pose as Franklin prepared his announcement. "I have sampled each and every one of the many fine cakes given to me today and I must say that they have been the best I've tasted in years. I know that you have all put your efforts into making these delicious treats…… but I must say… that only one of them has managed to catch my attention" the whole crowd silenced themselves instantly, not making a single noise in the vicinity.

The mayor quickly gave a hand signal to the band and soon began the drum roll, "And the winner of this year's Twinleaf town annual Bake Off contest is…… (drum roll)" the whole town held their breath while some began chewing their nails off. It was such an intense moment that even the gods themselves seemed to be excited. "… Johanna and her Strawberry Long Cake!" the spotlights immediately shifted to Johanna and her friends as they've just been announced the winners.

Ash froze for about ten seconds until the info began to sink into his brain. Once he understood, the whole gang erupted into a series of cheers! "Yes! We did it!" but that cheer didn't last long when a bunch of sore losers rose up to protest.

"Now just hold on, one second there!" James shouted out, "How can her cake taste better than my grandmother's secret recipe!? I most certainly have more flavors in this piece than a full load of that! I should've won this contest!" it wasn't long till the other chefs began to protest as well. "Nonsense!" said the head chef of the Rooster Ranch, "I'm the one who's supposed to win! I've put more seasonings and taste into my cake than any of you!" before the gang knew it, all twenty chefs began shouting and cursing each other in an intelligible way. Heck, some were even ready to kill each other to win that trophy.

Seeing such a pathetic sight unfold in front of him, Franklin concluded to himself that he have had enough. "SILENCE!!!" the mere shout of his voice quieted the whole crowd before they began to strangle each other. "I will not lie to you Chef James. But yes…your choco crinkled cake does taste better than Johanna's" the others were now confused at this and decided to listen, "Perhaps even all the cakes here tastes better than Johanna's Long Cakes. But I did not say I was going to compare the taste of each cake. If you are wondering why I choose Johanna's then allow me to show you"

The crowd suddenly began to gather around Johanna's messy piece of work. At some point, the woman seemed kind of embarrassed to have so many people look at her work at such a close proximity. It was like her cake was being shown in a museum gallery or something.

Franklin gladly picked up the plate and pulled a fork from the sides. He cut out a small piece and fed it to James. "Now… try it and tell me what you feel" the blue haired villain took a bite and swallowed it instantly, "It's not really as good as it looks" but this only earned him a smack on the head. "What kind of a chef eats a food without tasting it!?" Franklin yelled out, "Try again… now this time… chew it slowly… and tell me what you feel" James now slowly took the bite and dangled the piece around his mouth. As the flavor began to sink into his taste buds, a smile seemed to have crept upon his face.

"I… I don't know… I feel so… happy all of a sudden"

The master cook smiled, "Precisely. That is because that was how this cake was made (huh?) Allow me to explain to all of you. When a meal is prepared, the reaction and emotion of the cook is put into the meal. It is like an art… the plate is your canvas… the utensils are your paint brush… the ingredients are your colors… and the kitchen is your workshop. But no meal is perfect, without motivation…" he let out a sigh so deep that it seemed to have an effect on everyone near him. "Back when I was in school, all my friends used to love cooking and we always laughed on our own mistakes. But now… when I look at all of you… I feel so disappointed. When I took a sample of each of your cakes, I did not feel one slight bit of happiness. Instead… I feel the greed and desire of your cooking. You should all be ashamed of yourselves for wearing those hats. Cooking was supposed to make people happy… but you have turned down that rule and instead… you took advantage of it. Instead of using these talents for the benefit of man, you abused it and turned it into an art that profits only to you" the chefs lowered their heads in shame as what he spoke was true.

"But Johanna's cake is different. She did not make this out for the prize… but instead… all of these were made with the sign of joy! With every bite I take… I can even hear the laughters of those who helped her. This is how cooking should be done. The best seasoning for any dish…… is purpose…" he then gaze back at the crowd of protesters, "Now… does anyone still disagrees with me?" no one said a word…

-If you keep your eyes on the prize… you'll soon lose your way-

-Mr. Tony Franklin (my school chef)

**(A few moments later)**

After getting all the mess cleaned up and things reorganized, the mayor finally declared a winner. "Johanna…" the master cook began, "For showing excellent talent and skill as a true chef. I am proud and honored to present to you… the Golden Leaf trophy!" with the trophy handed and a little friendly handshake, the crowd roared out in cheers all together, giving the whole town that pumped up spirit. "Thank you Mr. Franklin. It is an honor to meet you" Johanna bowed in respect.

"Hahahaha! No need to bow there" the master cook laughed out, "But please, why don't we have a drink? We can talk about a lot of things you and I"

The woman was about to accept it for a moment, but she had to decline, "I thank you Master Franklin... But I must decline. My place is with my friends… and I think they deserve some of the credits too" and with one last bow, she dashed off towards Ash and the rest of the gang where they cheered along with a toast of victory.

But as she left, Franklin and the Mayor couldn't help but smile…

"Congratulations Johanna!" Ash cheered along with his Pikachu and the others. Dawn gave her mother a hug of a life time and smiled and laughed all together. "Thank you everyone" Johanna returned her cheers, "But I wouldn't have made it without your help. Especially you Ash" she gestured to the tired looking boy, "You were the one who worked the hardest. Perhaps even harder than me" surprisingly, the others seemed to agree. "And for that reason, I want you to keep the trophy"

Ash was in shock for a moment. He never expected that one coming that's for sure, "But Johanna, this is your trophy. You earned it" but she just waved it off, "And for that, I am giving it to you Ash. Take it as a… wedding gift in the future" Dawn would've choked on her own saliva if it weren't for Kenny to pat her on the back. Ash just gave out a confused look since he doesn't really understand these things completely.

Not wanting to insult her generosity, Ash gladly accepted the trophy and placed it on his shoulder. But just when he was about to put it down, he began to hear small rattle inside the cup. At first he thought there was a piece loose since it did look kinda old for some reason, but after he checked the inside, his eyes made contact with a strange medallion. It was similar to the one he gave May a few months ago back in the Hoenn region, but except this one had an Articuno. "Hey… what's this?"

"It looks like one of those old medallions they sell in town" Cynthia analyzed it with just one blink of an eye. "They're really old, and you don't exactly find them everywhere nowadays"

Smiling at his new prize, Ash knew exactly who to give this to, "Here Dawn" he presented, "I'd like you to have it. You helped me back in the stands, so it's only fair you get to keep some of the prize, right?" the blue haired coordinator smiled back and gladly took it into account.

Articuno… the symbol of grace and beauty

To May: Love is hot

To Dawn: Love is embarrassing

To Duplica: Love is sweet

To Anabel: Love is illusion

To Brock: Love hurts (literally)

To Ash: Love is blind

To Misty: Love is complicated

To the other guys: Love is just simply not their thing

**(The town Pokemon battlefield)**

After getting themselves cleaned and refreshed, the mayor decided that the people should end this festival with a good bang. With the whole village behind him and the stage repaired, the final round of the Twinleaf Bake Off contest was now in session.

Zoey was still in her traditional divine coat while May decided to throw in the dress and move on with her original outfit. As both trainers stood ready on each of their respective battle zones, Bunny stepped up into the ring to give her comments, "Ok ladies and gentlemen, I hope you're all full, because it is now time to begin the final round of the Twinleaf town Bake Off Contest! (cheers) Right now we have two top coordinators who battled their way through difficult times, but only one of them will leave this arena with… the Twinleaf town ribbon! Will it be…… May from the Hoenn region? Or perhaps Zoey from… (microphone static) Let's find out who! Trainers, are you ready!? (nod) Ok then… five minute on the clock… and……… begin!!!" with the timer counting down, Zoey moved into position, "Let's go Glameow!" the cat like Pokemon appeared.

May smirked, "A Glameow huh? Well then I guess I won't be holding back. I choose you Blaziken!" A humanoid bird Pokemon appeared, ready for a fight. "Let's end this quickly! Use ember, let's go!"

"Attacking first huh?" How quaint" Zoey muttered under her breath, "Glameow, counterattack maneuver!" the cat like Pokemon quickly leaped off the ground then unleashing a powerful shadow claw at Blaziken, causing it to flinch back. "Good, now use thunderbolt!"

"Blaziken, use flamethrower!" the two ranged attacks met on the spot creating a wide array of lights, awing the crowd with its splendor. "Ok Blaziken, go for it! Sky uppercut!" but Zoey wasn't called an ace coordinator for nothing, "Glameow, use iron tail!" again their attacks ranged in even power causing them to lose equal points. But with Zoey still in the lead by a small margin, it was hard to tell who was gonna win. It was going to be a close match, that much they were sure.

"Whoa… that Glameow can sure pack a punch" Max said in astonishment as the battle raged on. Ash simply chuckled, "You haven't seen anything yet. Zoey has more combinations up her sleeves than I have with my whole body. Trust me… this is just the beginning" Dawn nodded in agreement. After fighting with Zoey and traveling with her for awhile, you'll actually know that the red head can pack a wallop harder than Misty's magical mallet!

"Now Blaziken, use overheat and let her have it!" the fire bird quickly followed its master's orders and soon unleashed a powerful fire attack off its mouth. Zoey definitely didn't expect her to use such a powerful attack so quickly so she didn't have enough time to organize a defensive maneuver.

"Oh wow" Bunny perked up, "May's Blaziken just let out a powerful fire attack! And that's gonna cost Zoey some points. Will her Glameow still be able to stand up?"

"Glameow focus! We can't lose our concentration yet (meow?)" Zoey turned to May as he readied for another attack _"It looks like that Blaziken is stronger than I thought. Who knew that Hoenn had such great coordinators?"_

"You've seen nothing yet!" May countered, "Blaziken, let's show her our full power! Blaze kick!"

"Glameow, shadow claw!" but as the two of them continued to dish out attacks of all sizes, there was still not figuring out who could possibly win the battle. May was having wonders giving out large assets of combination attacks, but Zoey seemed to holding something up her mind. Sure she was putting up a good fight using a large variety of tactics and skills, but somehow, May still believes that she wasn't going to show it until the last possible moment.

With two minutes and thirty seconds left on the clock, time was running out for the both of them. Zoey was still behind by a few points, and if she keeps this up, she won't have enough time to even the odds. "Glameow, quick attack!"

"Dodge it Blaziken!" again May showed her unique talents by going on the defensive rather than the offensive. She knew that if she had the lead in points, she had to go defense to get the most out of the battle. It was probably just the basic guide of the trades. _"I'll have to wait for Glameow to wear out… then we'll hit it with everything we've got!"_

"Glameow, agility and move in!" following its master's commands, Glameow leaped off the ground and began charging at Blaziken in full speed. "Now use scratch attack!"

"Blaziken, use endure!" the fire bird quickly blocked the attack and parried each blow with its arms. And just as the Hoenn coordinator predicted, Glameow seemed to tiring out pretty well. With each blow it dished out, it seemed to be getting weaker and weaker. "Good! Now use sky uppercut!" with a quick jab from below, Glameow was sent to the sky flying like a pullet fired from a pistol. "Alright Blaziken, let's wrap this up with fire blast, full power!!!"

But Zoey was not done just yet. Her ultimate combination was just about to be unfolded! "Looks like I have no choice but to use 'that' now" she held her breath for a millisecond before waving her hand and shouting out her final command. "Glameow, hit and pierce combination! Shadow Ball and lightning bolt!" with the speed and grace of a feline cat, Glameow reformed its poise in mid-air and charged up an attack combination so powerful that it would've shaken the very foundation of this town. The cat Pokemon unleashed a shadow ball attack from its mouth and a thunder bolt attack from its tail. The lightning attack hit the fire attack first, causing it to falter and weaken… and when the shadow ball followed…… it pieced through attack, catching Blaziken completely by surprise.

A large explosion amassed from the surface sending a shockwave of wind through the entire battlefield causing the audience and judges to cover their eyes from the dusts. The blast was so powerful, that half the battlefield seemed to have vanished from existence.

"Whoa! What a shadow ball attack!" said Max with his jaw still dangling in disbelief. But as the smoke cleared up, Blaziken was down on the ground and down for the count. Bunny hopped in and checked it out, "Hmm…… Blaziken is no longer able to battle! The winner of the Twinleaf town annual Bake Off contest goes to Zoey!!!" immediately the crowd erupted into a series of cheers and applause congratulating Zoey of her victory.

It wasn't long till the two opposing coordinators met up at the center. "You were great Zoey. I had a great battle" May extended her hand in a handshake. Zoey smiled back in return and shake back, "You too. I gave out all of my combination attacks and I still couldn't get through your Blaziken's defenses. You really had me running off with everything I got. If you're this skilled, then I have no doubt that you're a competitor in the Valmarian league… right?"

"That's right" came her reply.

"Then I hope we get to meet again. I would love to have a rematch with your Blaziken"

A few minutes later, the mayor of Twinleaf town arrived at the center of the stage, "Well that was indeed an excellent battle!" he began, "I have never seen such remarkable combinations in such a splendid way for a long time now. As mayor of this fair town, I gladly present to you the Twinleaf ribbon!" with one last round of cheers, the mayor raise his hand up into the air, "And for one last tribute to this fine evening, we shall now present this festival with one round of fireworks!" and with one swift flick of his fingers, the firework crew launched their rockets into the air and began lightning the sky with its magnificent colors.

While the others kept gawking at the magnificent lights, Ash decided to head toward the waiting room where May was resting her knees.

The girl looked a little depressed which was not such a surprising sight since she did tend to win the competition. "Hey May" he tapped her shoulder to get the girl's attention, "There's no need to be depressed. I'm sure you can do better next time. You and Blaziken can get stronger by the time we get to Valmarian city"

"Is it really that obvious that I'm 'depressed'?" she sighed.

"Well… if you stop sighing so deeply, maybe it wouldn't be that obvious" Ash replied holding a smile up his nose.

"He's right you know" came a new voice from the entryway. Ash and May quickly turned their heads and eyes to meet Zoey, who was holding her Glameow in her arms. "Just because you lost one battle, doesn't mean it's the end"

"Oh hey there Zoey" Ash greeted, "That was a nice battle you showed out there. And I see that your Glameow have gotten a lot stronger than before" as the two of them chuckled, May couldn't help but wonder if they knew each other. "Hey… do you two… know each other?" seeing the confused look on the little girl's face, Ash decided to reintroduce his old friend, "Oh… sorry May… let me introduce you to my friend. This is Zoey, she's a Pokemon coordinator. Dawn and I met her in Jubilife city back when I first came to the Shinou regions. She's an awesome trainer and a good friend of mine too" then suddenly, a thought popped up into his head, "Oh that reminds me. Hey Zoey, you're looking for a way to Valmarian city right? (nod) Then why don't you come with us? A friend of ours is taking us there on a boat"

The girl could barely even think of a logical reason to deny that offer. "Really!? That'd be great! Thanks a lot!" with a reassuring smile from all three of them, Ash realized that they weren't gonna have much fun in the waiting room. "Alright then… you guys still wanna hang around? I think there are some ice cream left in the town square" but May simply sigh and rubbed her stomach, "No thanks… just watching my brother eat himself was enough to make me lose my appetite… ohhh"

With nothing left to do… the whole town continued its annual festival until the last firework was launched into the air.

Another day was done… another day was finished. And with that… our heroes return to Johanna's place for a nice relaxing nap. Because tomorrow…… they leave… for the Valmarian Islands!

**(Valmarian city Pokemon center)**

Valmarian city was always peaceful at night. With no gang soldiers fighting around or any goons causing mayhem, the citizens and visitors of the city had a great time in enjoying the peaceful night. But not all trainers were asleep during these quiet times. One trainer in particular seemed very keen on doing a little midnight stroll before going back to bed.

Brendan, the final member of Gary's elite crew was taking a little evening walk around the Pokemon center to ease his muscles and relax his mind. But just as he was getting some snacks from a nearby vending machine, his ears suddenly perked up as two trainers began to have a little conversation in the lounge.

"Hey, did you hear about the news this morning?" said the guy

"No, what is it?" said the girl

"I heard they found three more trainers unconscious near the city slum. All of their Pokemons were beaten!"

"No way… what happened to them?"

"No one knows" the guy said in a whispered tone, "They just found them lying there in the morning. And they were just as the same as the Bicento brothers. None of them remember a thing! And get this… it looks like whoever is attacking them is only aiming for trainers that are participating in the Valmarian league!"

"Oh no! That means any of us could be next!" the girl shrieked in fear.

Not wanting to hear anymore, Brendan gladly took the snack he purchased and went back to the counter to get his Pokemons checked up. "Excuse me…" he called out to the three Nurse Joys. "Oh I'm sorry" said the first one, "Can I help you?" but just the boy was about to reply, Officer Jenny stepped in with a very serious expression on her face. "Oh hello there Officer Jenny"

"Hello Joy. I'm here to pick up the test results on the Pokemons"

"The Pokemons? Oh yes, I remember" Nurse Joy quickly ran through a small rack of folders, "Here it is… It's just as you suspected Officer. The Pokemons that were attacked were all affected by amnesia. From the test results, I'd say it was either a high level psychic attack or someone hit them really hard on the head"

"Hmm… the doctors in the hospital said the same thing" Jenny placed her hand on her chin and sloly scanned through the files for any errors. "Whoever is attacking these trainers doesn't want to leave behind any evidences… so he erases them from every Pokemon and humans"

After hearing this, Brendan decided to leave. He knew exactly who was attacking all these trainers but currently… he's still looking for the answer on the 'why' question. After he was out of earshot from the police and any other nosy trainers, he picked up his cell phone and touched a speed dial number. The phone on the other line rang for a few times before someone decided to pick it up. "Hey… it's me (intelligible phone gibber) Yeah… so I've heard… he's recruiting trainers just as I expected. (intelligible phone gibber) No… I don't think Gary is a part of it. He's got his own mission to accomplish. But something doesn't add up. (intelligible phone gibber) We all know that he's aiming to win the Valmarian league trophy, but what I don't get is why he's recruiting other trainers. I mean…… he's strong enough to take out five hundred of us in a six on six battles, so why would he need other people's help?"

The boy slowly made his way to his room where the lights were still on and where he can get the most privacy. After locking the door, he moved towards the window and took a little peek through the curtains just to make sure no one was in eaves dropping distance. "Listen……… you've never fought against him so you don't know him. It's not his style to ask others and it's definitely not his style on joining a gang like Gary's. He's planning something… and whatever it is… I have a good feeling that it's going to be big. (soft intelligible phone gibber) Hmm… you're right. If we're going to beat him… we're going to have to follow his rules. (Huh?) I got to go. I've got some arrangements to make tonight" and with that he closed his phone and threw onto the bed before leaving the room again along with his raincoat.

The Valmarian league was taking a turn…… but was it a turn for the better or the turn for the worst? Only time can tell.

**(Uno Café)**

Gary and his crew were just having a nice meal after another successful day of practice. Training so hard for a long time can really work up an appetite for your stomach. At least… that's what Steve believes. After losing a lot of pounds from the daily work out, he considers it a 'must' to regain his weight before his geographical whatyoumacall it changes or something like that. The guy practically ordered a buffet for him and him alone while the others stick to their natural balanced diet.

"Well… here's to another successful day of nothing to do!" Emma stated as she held her soda can up in the air. It had been a week since she had a real exciting battle and with good trainers showing up less and less, nothing exciting seemed to be happening around the city anymore. The true aces barely show their faces in public and Gary was no exception either. During when he was still a nobody here in Valmarian, he used to accept all challenge offered to him. But now that he has an army under his belt, no one would even think about challenging him at all.

"Yeah yeah… pipe down will ya" said Havic as he took a sip off his glass. "It's been a long day and I'd really appreciate some peace and quiet. You know what I'm saying?"

"Ahhh you're no fun at all" the girl pouted.

"Anyway… where's Jaques? I thought he ordered his meal already"

Emma simply pointed to the small table on the other corner. Apparently, Gary and Jaques were having a little game of chess on their hands. Havic sighed and simply resumed eating, "Those two really need to learn how to chill. Just watching them train all day can makes me feel tired already"

"Dats wyy yu shud eat more Havc" said Steve as he continuously stuffed his face with all kinds of food.

Havic watched him and quickly replied, "And you're making me full just by eating like a Snorlax. Don't you ever consider your weight for once?" Steve didn't reply, he just gobbled down plate after plate after plate.

But while those three were busy talking about their daily lives, a certain duo were busy building up a strategy to destroy each other's tactics. Jaques was with the white army while Gary was with the black army. (chess game) After a few minutes of waiting, the flying Pokemon trainer decided to make a move. "Check…" he said with a smirk under his collar.

Gary smirked back and moved another piece. The game was interesting with no sides backing down. A lot of pieces were already taken from the board and it looks like the loser would be the first who makes the wrong move.

But just while the two of them were enjoying the game in a nice and peaceful environment, the front door suddenly opened, causing a slight chill of the winter breeze to sooth in. Jaques was the first to notice the new intruder, but then his scowl deepened even morewhen he realized who the new 'patron' was.

"Hey look everyone… it looks like this café is available…" it was Kevin, the leader of the Bail Outs and his other four members of the Elite Five. At first the rich kid didn't notice Gary, but when Jaques gave him that cold glare he already knew that he wasn't welcomed here… at least… not by the other customers. "Oh hello there!" Kevin smiled at Gary's crew as they all shot out equally deadly glares at him. "I didn't know you came here to have your supper. Pardon us for disturbing" the other members simply let out a snicker except for Eesal, Kevin's most trusted trainer.

"Hey there oru!" the pigtailed girl put up a highfive and flashed a smile so big that you could fit a bowl in there. "I'm Eesal, nice meet you oru!" the girl was acting so innocent and so chibi-like that it seemed impossible to resist cuddling her like a teddy-bear.

"What do you want Kevin…?" Gary spoke finally, ignoring the loud girl's ranting. "Oh nothing" came his calm and timid reply, "My friends and I were just in the neighborhood and we thought we could pick up something to eat. Our meeting here is quite coincidencial…… small world… isn't it" it wasn't a question… it was a statement.

"Just get your food and get lost" Havic openly stated. "Just seeing you guys here makes me wanna lose my appetite" But it looked like Binor didn't take that last comment very nicely. "What?! Why don't you come and say that in front of my face!" but Kevin stopped him, "Now now Binor… we don't want any trouble in a public area. It would ruin our…… reputation… teehehehehe" he then turned back to the door, "Let's go everyone. The food here smells like manure with these barbarians around" Jaques stood up from his seat in anger and was ready to beat the guy to a pulp, but Gary gestured him to calm down.

With a satisfied smirk, Kevin and his team left, but Eesal stayed behind for a little while longer. She then turned to Jaques, "Hey there oru! You have the same medallion as me oru! I have a Jigglypuff oru!" she gestured to the Arcanine medallion on Jaques wrist and compared it with hers.

"Eesal…" Kevin called out.

"Coming oru! Bye bye oru! See you again oru! Tee hee hee hee" and with that, she left the café, leaving behind a bunch of people to fiddle amongs themselves.

**(Johanna's house) (After the festival)**

Johanna and the rest of the gang were tired beyond belief when they arrived at the house. With nothing much to say, everyone quickly headed towards their respective rooms and went straight to bed. But before Ash could take up his sleeping point at the living room, he had to say farewell to his old friends first. "So Paul, Zoey, I'll see you guys tomorrow right?"

They both nodded, "Yeah… I still need to check with my friend at the docks first" said Paul, "I'll give you guys a call when we're ready. Just be sure not to forget anything" and with that, the boy left back to his inn, to get a good night's rest.

"Well I guess I'd better head back to my place too" said Zoey, "I'm staying at an inn in town. I'll come and meet you guys tomorrow. And say good night to Dawn for me"

"We'll do… bye Zoey. See you in the morning" with their farewells finally said, and with no one but Pikachu and Rosa to keep him company, Ash decide to do a little star gazing before going to bed.

Billions upon billions of glittering star were showing out their flares tonight. And with the moon shining brightly in the sky, it sure was romantic scene for any couple. Too bad Ash didn't have a girlfriend yet, or this would be the perfect place to court that girl. Instead, the boy decided to enjoy the beautiful scenery with Pikachu and Rosa.

"Your majesty" the pink Lucario spoke up, "You should get some sleep soon. You might not have enough energy for tomorrow" but Ash simply smiled, "Ok… just five more minutes Rosa. I'd like to enjoy this place for a moment longer" Rosa was astounded by the boy's love for nature. He not only loved his friends and his Pokemons, but he also seemed to love the world around him.

But after they continued to gaze upon the untouchable stars above them, Rosa decided to play her song of Eternity again. The melody was soothing and it was sure to put Pikachu to sleep in an instant. But when Rosa was in the middle of the song, Ash decided to play in tune to synchronize their melodies together.

Rosa never felt more perfect than this moment. When she closed her eyes, she began to imagine herself back in the old days, when the empire was still intact. She could see herself holding a leaf and Hsa teaching her how to play the song of Eternity. It was probably the happiest moment of her life when the two of them were alone together. It was as if the world outside didn't even exist when the king was teaching her. At first she got the tune wrong, but after a little bit of practice, she seemed to get better.

By the end of the song, a silent tear seemed to have slid down her eye. "It seems like you've perfected the song your majesty" she began, "You've only been practicing for a day and…" she then noticed that the king… was already snoring asleep like a baby. Feeling a little embarrassed on talking to the air, Rosa simply let out a smile before tucking the boy into the couch back in the house. She patted the pillow and folded the blanket neatly. With Ash sleeping peacefully in a comfortable position, Rosa took the guts to kiss his forehead before saying… "Good night Ash…"


	47. A Hint of Jealousy

**Chapter 47: A Hint of Jealousy**

**(Twinleaf town, Johanna's place) (1 week and 4 days before the Valmarian league)**

Morning couldn't be any better than this. With a perfect blue sky, a shining sun, birds tweeting in the distance and what better way to start the day, with a warm breakfast meal to treat the nose. But while the rest of the gang were busy eating, the phone suddenly began to ring causing Johanna to come and pick it up. "Hello, this is Johanna speaking" the video screen quickly popped up, "Oh hello there Paul, I'm guessing you want to talk to Ash" the boy simply let out a small smile and nodded, "Ash, there's a phone call for you!"

The boy immediately stopped eating and went to pick the phone, "Oh hey there Paul. You're up early"

"I'm just here to tell you when we're leaving" the boy implied as he checked his watch, "My friend is already making his round trip and he said he'll be ready to leave by 5 PM tonight. I'll be waiting for you guys in Sandgem town dock number 45. Don't be late……… later"

"Ok, thanks Paul, you're one heck of a life savor (Pika pika)"

"Yeah yeah… I wish I had a token every time I heard that" and with that Ash hung up and returned to the dining table to report the news to everyone.

"Hey guys. Paul just called a minute ago he says our trip will be leaving tonight at Sangem town about seven o'clock"

Ting……

Something seemed to have clicked… on Misty's subconscious

"Then that means we have the whole day to ourselves!" May squeaked out, "That gives me plenty of time to do some shopping! I haven't been able to have nice relaxing vacation ever since we got to Shinou"

"Well… I'm going to check our supplies before we leave" Brock volunteered, "You can never be too careful on what you pack" Tracey then joined up as well to help carry the provisions. With a whole day ahead of them, the gang decided to spend this day wisely and make use of the time they have now, before it's too late.

"Wonderful, I'll go pack up right away" Johanna clasped her hands together and grinned. Her daughter gave out a confused look, "Oh mom, are you coming too?" Johanna shot out a look, "And why shouldn't I? If I want to compete in the Valmarian league, I need to be there… not here"

"Ohhh" the gang said in unison completely oblivious to what she just said. After a few seconds, they all perked their heads up and shouted, "WHATTTTTT!!!!"

"Wait! Don't tell me…… you're joining the Valmarian league too mom?" Dawn slammed her hand on the table and shot her eyes in disbelief. Johanna simply sighed, "I guess you never really noticed when you got the letter of invitation. There were actually two letters in that envelop sweety" the mother quickly picked out a pink letter from the cupboards and showed it to them. "You're not the only ones participating in it"

Dawn quickly pulled out her letter and compared it with the one on the table, only to find out that they were completely identical, except for the name of the ones invited. "But why didn't you tell me mom?"

"I thought you already knew dear" she replied taking a sip from her cup of coffee. After recuperating from the minor shock, Ash chuckled out, "Well I guess the world is just full of surprises isn't it. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, since Johanna was once an excellent trainer herself back in the days. Who knows? We might actually learn a thing or two from her" the mother blushed to his compliment. I guess Ash can be a real lady's man without even knowing it fully. "Why thank you Ash. That is so sweet of you to say"

But just as they were laughing happily together, Misty stood up from her seat, "I'm sorry… I need to use the bathroom for a minute" without even waiting for a reply, the orange clad girl left the room, completely ignored by her friends. Just as she made her way to the rest room, she locked the door behind her and place Togepi on the sink. She checked her face on the mirror and washed the sand in her eyes with some water.

After making sure her hair was neatly tied with her hair band, she let out a sigh. She couldn't explain why she was sighing so much nowadays, but it really seemed to be affecting everything she was doing. This wasn't probably the first time either. Ever since she went to the Hoenn she's be feeling a little… depressed lately. Again… she could not explain why. All she knew that it had something to do with the gang. "Why do I feel so down Togepi?" she asked her little egg like Pokemon. Though she knew that she wouldn't be getting an answer, she just really needed to ask someone that simple question. "Ever since we started this journey, I'm beginning to feel so… out of place"

Togepi knew instantly why she was down. Ever since the two of them started this journey, Misty had been sighing over and over, like there was something on the back of her mind ruining her concentration. It was probably because she believed that she was feeling sort of left out of everything. Sure she helped out once in awhile, but ever since the group got larger… something just didn't feel right. When Richie first came aboard, it was fine. But when May Max and Drew came along, the air around the group seemed to have tightened a bit. Then came Dawn, then Duplica, then Todd and Tracey… then Anabel and now…… a few more were bound to come up sooner or later on their way.

When it was just Ash, Brock and her, she didn't have any problems at all. She didn't have to worry since all attentions were divided equally among three people. But now that more and more people came along, she began to feel somewhat… ignored… by her friends. It was like she was no longer one of a kind, but rather a part of a larger set.

But soon her chain of thoughts were broken, when a knock came through the door, "Misty" that was Duplica's voice on the other side, "May, Anabel and I are going to the flea market in town. Wanna tag along?"

"Sure" she forced out her reply. "Just let me finish washing up first" with the ace duplicator gone, Misty returned her attention to the mirror to finish washing herself. But just when she was about to grab the soap bar, something seemed to catch her attention. A single stream of tears were falling from her left eye, as if the emotion deep within her heart was pouring out. "What the? A…… am I… crying? (chu ki? Preee…?)" she quickly rubbed her eye and made it go away. What could she be crying about? _"It's probably just water… hehehe" _she thought to herself as she picked up Togepi. Little did she know… that she was lying to herself.

**(Living room)**

After packing most of her clothes onto her knapsack, Dawn decided to join the girls for that trip to the super market. "Hey mom, I'm going out with my friends to town. We'll be home before lunch!" her mother simply smiled back in return before implying, "Ok dear, have a safe trip. And watch out for cars along the road" Dawn then consider in inviting the boys for a change. "Hey Ash, wanna come with us? I bet there's something in town you might want"

But the boy simply shook his head, "Nah, I'm ok. I think I'll take a little break before we head off for Valmarian" the girl looked a bit disappointed but then decided to leave it.

"Hey Ash" Richie called out, "Would your Pikachu like to have a little practice match?" the sound of a challenge is always an acceptable to the boy. "Sure! I'm ready for a battle anytime anywhere!" and before the gang knew it, they were already at the backyard preparing for a spar. "Alright Richie, I hope you're ready, because I'm not holding back!"

"Ha! My Pokemons are a lot stronger when we last battled Ash" Richie countered holding his fist and Sparky cheering beside him. "Let's make it simple. A three on three match! The trainer with the most wins, wins the battle!"

Ash snuffled his nose and smirked, "Ha! Bring it on! I choose you… Turtwig!" a grass type Pokemon appeared which surprised Richie a little bit, "A grass type huh… ok then… I choose you! Zippo!" a Charmeleon appeared, readying itself for battle. "Hey Todd" Ash called to the photographer, "Mind refereeing this battle for us?"

"Ok, one minute" the boy quickly put down his camera and head towards the side of he battle area. "Ok, this is a three on three match between Ash Ketchum from Pallet town and Richie from Goldenrod city! Trainers…… BEGIN!" with one motion of the hand, Ash decided to throw in the first punch, "Turtwig, razor leaf! Let'em have it!"

"Zippo, use flame thrower and burn those leaves to bits!" the fire Pokemon quickly obeyed and launched a fire attack that destroyed all the leafs coming at it. "Good work Zippo, now use skull bash and take it down!" but Ash was still far from finish. The boy still had an arsenal of combinations stuck in his head and he wasn't gonna show it all in one blow. He was going to save it for the last moment. "Turtwig, jump over Zippo and spin!" once again the spin move proved very effective for Ash and his Pokemons.

However, Richie was just starting, "Zippo, let it catch you off guard! Turn around and tackle!" the Charmeleon quickly recovered and smashed its body against Turtwig, sending the little turtle like Pokemon to the side lines. "Ok, follow it up with a skull bash attack!"

But before the attack hit, Ash unleashed one of his deadly attacks. "Turtwig, don't get caught up! Use leaf storm and hurry!" Turtwig quickly complied and showered its opponent with a storm of leafs that left it temporary immobilized. But Richie wasn't gonna get caught with a simple move like that. "Zippo, use fire spin and defend yourself!" with a blow from Charmeleon's mouth, a stream of fire ensued the entire area, creating a fire shield around its body.

"_Hmm… a great way to use attack move as a defensive move"_ Ash thought to himself, _"Looks like I might have to go all out with Turtwig's ultimate attack"_ with his previous attack failed, Ash decided to make another kind of maneuver. "Turtwig, go around Charmeleon and attack it from behind!" the little turtle Pokemon began moving faster than a toy car made its way behind Zippo's shield.

"Zippo, use flamethrower quickly!" the fire Pokemon immediately released a powerful fire attack from its lunges and barbequed Turtwig in a puddle of flames. But Ash wasn't done, "Now Turtwig, jump out and use razor leaf!" the grass Pokemon hastily made its way out of the fire unscathed, surprising everyone in the field. But Cynthia only smirked back as she knew that the boy had been training a lot to make his Pokemons resist their weaker elements.

"Looks like Ash has been working hard"

Drew nodded in agreement, "I guess his Pokemons must be in their highest possible level now. But I doubt Ash would stop there"

The razor leaf attack hit, but it only caused minor damage due to the fact that Richie had been training Zippo to endure range attacks. "Zippo, get close and use skull bash!"

"Turtwig, bite!" as Zippo moved in closer, Turtwig quickly took the opportunity to get above it and bite its tail, causing it to flinch. "Oh no!" Richie panicked. And with Charmeleon temporary paralyzed by the attack, Ash set out the finishing blow… or in this case, the finishing throw!" Alright Turtwig, send Zippo flying into the air and use leaf storm!" with a simple basic combination attack maneuver, a little slice of luck and full pie of power, Turtwig sent Zippo right in the sky and knock it out with a leaf storm attack, unabling it to properly land.

Todd checked Zippo's condition for a moment and quickly raised his arm when he was sure that he wouldn't get up. "Charmeleon is no longer able to battle! This round goes to Turtwig!" Ash congratulated his Pokemon and quickly returned it. "You did great Turtwig, I'm real proud of ya" he then took out another Pokeball, "Alright then, I guess I'll go with…Swellow, I choose you!"

Richie hastily pulled Zippo out of the battle, "You were great Zippo, and you deserve a good rest. (picks out a Pokeball) Ok then, I guess it's my turn! I choose you, Rose!" a Taillow appeared in the air, with wings as strong as the land themselves. "I guess this is a battle between Pokemon evolution, Ash. Let's see what happens!"

Max saw this and quickly became excited, "A flying type versus a flying type! An aerial battle!"

"And probably an interesting one as well" Cynthia stated as she folded her arms in excitement of the match. "I've seen Richie's Taillow in the Johto league a few months back and it can really pack a punch for a size that small. However… Ash's Swellow seems to have the overwhelming advantage. But who knows"

And with both trainers ready, Todd signaled the next round to begin. "Ok Rose, quick attack along with aerial ace!" the Taillow quickly complied and with both attacks combined together, it was like moving faster than a living bullet. Swellow was hit, but not off the sky. "Swellow, fly high and show them how fast you really are!" with strength returning to its body, Swellow unflopped its wings and flew back into the air faster than time could move in a millisecond. The others were mildly intimidated on how fast Ash's Swellow was but Richie wasn't gonna turn tails and run. He came through this far and now, and he's gonna go all in.

"Taillow, follow Swellow and attack it from behind!"

"Just what I thought you'd do!" Ash smirked with victory, "Swellow, double team now!" Swellow quickly multiplied itself causing confusion to Taillow. With Richie unable to coordinate an attack at such altitude, Swellow had its chance to turn this battle into a single one hit win. "Alright Swellow, now use aerial ace all around!" using its clones as cover, Swellow managed to attack from all sides without being seen where it would strike next. Unable to protect itself by such a devastating attack combination, Taillow finally gave in and fell to the ground. "Oh no! Rose!"

Ash quickly began to panic as well, "Whoa! Not good! Swellow, grab Taillow now!" with speed faster than light itself, Swellow was able to catch Taillow just seconds before it slammed against the ground. But even though it was saved, Todd still knew who the victor of this battle was. "Taillow is no longer able to battle! This round and match goes to Ash with two wins in a row!"

With a cheer of victory from Pikachu, Ash gave Swellow a pat on the head and put it back into its Pokeball. "Great work Swellow, return" he then turned to Richie, "Hey Richie, still wanna have one more battle? I'm still ready!" but the boy simply shook his head as he returned Taillow into its Pokeball, "No thanks Ash. Fighting with you like this has taught me that my Pokemons still need more training than I thought. I'd better bring my Pokemons to the Pokemon center. I'll catch ya later" and with that the boy dashed off with a satisfied grin plastered on his face.

But as Ash raised his fist up high to declare his victory, Cynthia and Max began to give him a small round of applause. "That was an excellent battle Ash" the blonde champ began, "I can see now that your victory against me in the Shinou league was no mere luck"

"Of course not!" Max added sarcastically, "Ash here can take down a hundred trainers without even breaking a sweat!" the raven haired trainer simply smiled softly at Max as he didn't know if he said that truthfully or made it up for a popularity scandal.

But just as they were about to celebrate, Johanna came by, "Ok boys, lunch will be ready in an hour so don't forget to get yourselves clean before meal"

"Yes Johanna" the gang said in unison.

**(Twinleaf town flea market)**

As Ash and his friends were still having fun back at Dawn's house, the girls were picking out some supplies of their own. Though the place offered a wide selection of inexpensive goods, it was still a hard choice on which to pick. Dawn bought some new clothes that went great with her eyes and hair, May was scrolling through the selections of perfumes, Duplica was taking on some accessories for her hands while Anabel went on to see some of the minor trinkets and lucky charms they had for sale.

Misty on the other hand, just decided to look around. She barely had enough money to buy herself a decent meal, let alone waste it on unnecessary items. Apparently, her sisters forgot to send her, her paycheck for running the Cerulean city gym for four months. She quickly took down a mental note to scold the three of them later when she sees them again in the future.

"Hey Misty" Dawn called out, "Great timing, I need you to pick something for me" she quickly showed her a small selection of clothes. "Now tell me honestly. Do you think I look good in pink… or do you think I would look better in bright red?" the pink one looked more in a casual type and the blue dress she had in hand looked like it was more for a formal ball. "Hmm… I'm not really sure" Misty never really thought much about her outer appearance before so she doesn't really know which one is good and which one is bad. "I'm sorry; I'm not really good with fashions of today ahehehehe"

Dawn sulked, "Aww… I really hoped to buy one. I wonder which one would Ash like…" this perked Misty's ears and eyes along together, "Hold on, why are you buying those for Ash?"

The blue haired coordinator quickly clasped her hand over her mouth, "Di… did I say that out loud!? That was supposed to come out as a thought bubble!" she had to make up an excuse fast or risk being exposed to everyone around her, "Umm… I was just uh… thinking what uh… Ash would comment on which one I wore ahehehe. Yeah… that's it ahehehe. Oh! Let's see what's over there!" before Misty could even comment or reply to her, the girl was already long gone. "Geeze, what's up with her?"

But just then, Brock and Tracey came into the scene, "Huh? Hey there Misty, what are you doing here?"

"Huh? Oh hey Brock. Me and the girls just stopped by to do some shopping. Are you and Tracey done with the supplies?" the two boys nodded and showed her two backpacks full of food ingredients and snacks. "Wow! That's a lot of food Brock!" Misty commented, "Do you really think we'll need that much for the trip?" the boy nodded back in reply. "Most definitely… now that there are more of us in the group, this will probably last for a wekk" He was right. Normally, when they have this much provisions with them, it would usually last about a month or two, but now that the group has expanded itself to a small army of both humans and Pokemons, it would probably last for about a few days the least.

But just as the three of them were about to resume their conversation, another voice came by from behind, "Hey, you there" Brock turned around only to set his sights on an orange, "You dropped this on the floor" it was Zoey, the ace coordinator. "Oh… thank you" Brock appreciated the gesture until he realized who he was talking to, "Oh… Zoey, how ya doing?"

"Ahe… oh you know. Same old same old. I was going to Dawn's place an hour ago, but seeing you here must mean Ash hasn't left for Valmarian city without me"

Misty noticed that they were talking in a casual manner so she believed that the two of them knew each other, "Brock, who's this?"

"Huh? Oh allow me to introduce to you to one my friends" Brock bellowed, "This is Zoey, she's a coordinator like Dawn and is one of the best Pokemon trainer I've known" Zoey flushed in embarrassment, "Ahehehe… I'm not that great"

After the introduction inchalada, Brock decided to bring all the supplies back to the house before they get spoiled. A good breeder must always know how to keep food in good condition otherwise he can kiss his stomach goodbye to the hospital.

**(Back in Johanna's place) (12:45 AM)**

After getting themselves cleaned and having their Pokemons checked up at the Pokemon center, Ash and his friends arrived at the dining table only to see once again the magnificence of Johanna's cooking. What was supposed to be a simple normal, none of the ordinary lunch, turned out to be a feast fit for a king and his royal subjects. This earned a lot of confused glares from the gang but a little less from Ash since his sights were mostly focused on the main course.

"Wow J.J, you really outdone yourself this time" Cynthia implied as she took a seat at the side chair, "What's the occasion?" the mother simply smiled back, "Oh I was just thinking of a little going away feast. Since we won't have a chance to have dinner here, I thought we should all leave with a full tank. Don't you agree?" the others hastily nodded and began taking their seats all around the dining table. After awhile, Johanna thought it was kind of getting late for her daughter, "Hmm… where could Dawn be? She was supposed to be here before lunch. I hope she didn't get herself in trouble again"

Pikachu and Ash quickly let out a sweatdrop as they remembered how easily that girl was to get in trouble. Hopefully, Pachirisu would be a good little squirrel today and stay in its Pokeball. "Ahehehe (pikachu…) Don't worry Johanna" Ash reassured her, "I think Dawn can take care of herself. She helped me a couple of times when I in trouble too" but then suddenly the door bell rang.

"Oh that must be them now" Johanna clapped her hands together as she approached the door, but sadly it seemed like the person outside wasn't the one she was expecting, "Telegram for Ms. Johanna" said the mailman. The woman gladly accepted the mail and decided to head back to the dining table. The girl will come, eventually. She just needs to learn how to be patient.

**(Valmarian city Pokemon center)**

Brendan, the white haired Pokemon trainer was waiting in the lounge eating some of his favorite snacks while watching the weather news on TV. Apparently the Pokemon center was empty today except for a select few newbies who didn't dare to go out during broad daylight. During this time, every square inch of the city is a battle zone. Trainers challenge other trainers for supremacy over the other. Territories are made and borders lined up on every corner. Major gangs hold these areas with stiff resistance and they make sure whoever invaded their turf paid a high price. The smaller gangs like the Voltegoths were now in the brink of disbanding, since they lost all their power during the first initial start up of the war. Though most battles just seemed to be nothing but of the ordinary, Gary's crew and the Bail Outs seemed to be the most obvious gangs were battling out.

Hundreds of thousands of trainers from both sides challenge each other days after day with no side backing down from any fights. Even though this war threatened the safety of everyone in the city, the police forces are powerless against them. Even with the increasing numbers of Jennies in the vicinity, the two gangs seemed to have a system that bypasses all of their security and intelligence.

But just as Brendan continued to wait along the line, a small band of trainers suddenly popped in at the entrance, catching the attention of all the newbies in the area. "You're late…" Brendan said not even turning around to look at them. There were two girls and one guy.

The first guy looked one of your modern day hip hop fan. With baggy blue pants, a baggy green jacket, a fluffy looking hat, the guy looked like he could break dance his way to the top of the charts.

The girl on his left side was probably a duplicate of himself. A wild guess would probably say that she's the guy's younger sister. She practically looked the same in a sense of fashion except for her long blonde hair do. Also… this girl has a knack for chewing gum as well.

The second girl on the right was definitely a smart one. With those thick lens glasses, that super computer she calls a lap top and that calculator on her shoulder, it wouldn't take a genius to say that she was definitely a smart one. But looking deeper through the girl's equipments, she didn't have a bad sense of fashion at all. With a short mini skirt, and a blue top that exposed a tiny bit of her belly, some people had to say that she was a jack of all trades: A girl with a good sense of fashion and the brains to prove it. Though her pigtailed hairstyle leave much more to be desired.

It wasn't long till they noticed Brendan talking to them. They immediately sat on their respective sofas silently and awaited for the boy's attention. "Sorry Brendan, we got caught up in traffic" said the guy with the funky hat. "So what's the emergency? You called all three of us, so I'm guessing this must be something big… right?"

The white haired trainer smirked, "I wouldn't be calling the last three years champions of the Indigo league just for a simple daily routine" he then dropped his snack on the table and turned to his newly found companions. "I called all of you here because……… Red… is back" the three of them all had the same reaction. Wide eyes, jaws gawking and a stiffened skin.

"Red…" said the hip hop guy. "You mean that guy again?"

"The one and the same… Frank" Brendan replied to his male companion now known as Frank. "Right now, he's a part of a large gang. The same one I'm in. I don't know what he has in store, but I'm quite sure it has something to do with the Valmarian league. I want each and everyone of you to keep a close eye on him. Griselda…" he turned to the bubble gum chewing girl, "You're with your brother on this one. I want you to find out what you can on the streets. Nobody knows you, so you have the advantage. Rika" he turned to the smart girl, "You're the smartest girl I know so I want you to find out anything and everything Red has been doing. He's out there looking for members… and I don't know why" the three of them nodded back in reply, "If we can get close to hi, then all the better. Now go… before we all get suspicious"

With one bark of the order, Frank, Griselda and Rika stood up from their seats and left the Pokemon center in a jippy. Only time can tell what is going on.

**(A few meters away from Johanna's place) (01:30 PM) (Scene inspired by the song 'At The Beginning')**

"Awww man! I can't believe I'm late for lunch! Again!" said Dawn as she dragged a whole basket full of clothes. Since she couldn't tell which one was good and which one was bad, she simply decided to buy the whole stall with her. The other girls already made it back to the house, but due to her large package, she seemed to have lagged behind. After a few minutes of pushing and pulling, she finally made it back. "Finally… I'm home…" she sighed in exhaustion before ringing the door bell. When the opened up, Kenny was there with a confused look on his face, "Dawn? What took you so long? The others are already ready to leave for Sandgem town"

"What?!" the girl shrieked, "But I just got here!"

"That's what you get for being late young lady" said Johanna in her new outfit. When Dawn saw her mother, she was probably astounded on how cool she looked. She always saw her mother as a graceful type, but now that she was in her traveling outfit, some guys on the street might actually mistaken her for a college student.

Her outfit was similar to Zoey's except in a more feminine color. Her hair was still practically the same, and unlike Zoey, she likes to keep Glameow inside a Pokeball during her travels. "Mom? Is that you?" the mother smirked, "The one and only! Gosh, I haven't worn these since the Shinou grand festival three years ago. I'm surprise it still fits like a glove. Now come one dear, the taxis will be here to bring us to Sandgem town in an hour. Take a bath, pack only the things you need, and brush your teeth before you go. Come on chop chop!" Johanna began pushing her daughter towards the top of the stairs to quicken her pace.

When Dawn was now in the baths, Johanna turned back downstairs to see everyone helping out. Ash was making sure he carried his own weight. May and Max were packing some souvenirs for home. Todd was busy rolling in the films for his camera. Tracey and Brock were busy fitting all the supplies in their packs. Duplica, Anabel, Zoey, Drew and Richie also helped out by helping with the extra packages. Hopefully there would be enough space in the boat for all of these provisions.

"Hey Johanna" Cynthia called out, "Can you help me with these luggage? I don't think I can carry them all myself" the two of them quickly helped out and began moving all the heavy loads out of the house.

At the back of the house, Ash decided to bring the Golden leaf trophy along with him. Sure the thing did take a lot of space, but still, he was gonna carry his own weight and nothing was gonna stop him. "Alright… that's the last of them" he said to himself before zipping his backpack up. "You ready Pikachu? (Pika pikachu!) Great! How about you Rosa?" the Lucario simply nodded in reply.

"Alright then…" the boy took in a whole gasp of air and exhaled, releasing some stress off his shoulders. But just when he was about to say something important, he noticed that some of the members were still not there. "Hey… where's Misty?" to the boy's truth, he was right. Misty was not anywhere to be seen at all. A moment ago she was standing there, then suddenly she just… disappeared. "I think she went to the backyard to get some fresh air" Brock stated as he finished sipping the packs together and placing a 'fragile' stamp on the box.

Ash quickly made his way to the backyard, and to the squinty eyed boy's words, there she was. Just right in the middle of the empty backyard, gazing endlessly at the sky above, holding her Togepi in her arms and still wearing her traveling outfit was the orange haired girl that the boy had been looking for. "Hey Misty, we're about to go in a few minutes. Everyone's waiting for you"

The girl was silent for a long time before she spoke up a word, "Yeah……" her voice was so dead plain that you would find more cheers in a graveyard. Something was on her head, but Ash couldn't tell what it was. She just continued to stare blindly at the passing clouds as the snow suddenly began to fall once more. It looked winter was resuming its course through the world. "Hey Misty… are you…"

"Hey Ash" the girl cut him off, "Do you remember that conversation we had that night before we left Pallet town?" As could only give her a 'huh' sound which implied that he could not really remember, "You know…… the time when you said that you were afraid on what would happen after the Valmarian league?" Ash then remembered immediately, "Oh that… yeah I remember. Why?"

She turned a smile, "Well… now that I think about it. What are you going to do after the Valmarian league?" Ash would've froze to ice if it weren't for Pikachu on his shoulder. Asking the boy that question was almost like asking a two year old which one came first? The chicken or the egg? The only thing that was similar to those two questions was the fact that any of the answers could be right. But Ash did not know the answer. There were probably more than two answers to that question, but either of them could be right or wrong.

Ash was silent for a long time before he was able to recuperate from the shock, "Umm… I don't know… what about you Misty? What are you gonna do after the Valmarian league?" Ash turned the 'arrow' around and shot it right back her causing the girl to froze in shock in return. Unlike Ash, the girl already had plans after the league. Many plans actually. She had the choice to go back home to Cerulean city and run the Pokemon gym there in her sister's stead. She could start on her own journey to become a water Pokemon master. But no matter what decision she chooses, one single word seemed to haunt all of these choices.

Alone…

She had no doubt in her mind that Ash would have a strong chance in winning this league. He had faced one opponent after another and defeated the Elite Four of every region and still he came out victorious. But what will happen after that? When Ash becomes a Pokemon master, there's no doubt that the boy would have more than enough money to buy her a trillion bikes. With so much money in hand, he'd probably settle down back home with his mother and one day have a family of his own. She could already imagine a little Ash walking down the stairs and falling down crying to its pappy.

"I'll probably go back to my sisters I guess" she said finally trying to urk a smile. "But sometimes, I don't feel like going back there right now"

Ash flashed out a grin, "Hey come on now. Don't you remember that advice you gave me?" the girl turned an odd look, "Don't worry about it. When the time comes then the time will come. There's nothing we can do to stop it right? And even if I don't win, there's always next time!"

And that's an evil thought returned to the girl's head. He was right… even though Ash may be the most experienced trainer in the world, there was still a slight chance he could lose. And if he does lose… then he will probably begin another five year journey! With this thought in mind… Misty began praying for something she never thought she'd do in a life time. She began hoping for Ash's defeat… hoping that there is a trainer out there in the whole Valmarian league that can out match the boy.

"Yeah… you're right" Misty smiled back.

"Hey guys come on!" Brock called out, "The taxis are here and they don't like to be kept too long!" Ash quickly jolted back into the house to get his backpack and immediately made his way to the living room where everyone were helping out with the cargo.

Brock was the one leading the moving operation so everything went smoothly, "Tracey, you take the big one over there and put it on the second cab, we'll be right behind you. (to everyone) Ok, if that's everything, then get aboard everyone!" immediately, everyone in the house began pouring out and into the one of the three large taxis in front of them. But then Johanna remembered that Dawn was still upstairs packing, "Dawn sweety, hurry up we're leaving in ten minutes!"

"Coming!" came her muffled voice from the second floor. "Oh… where did I put my hairbrush this time?! (pause) Ah here it is!" after packing her last essential item in her bag, Dawn quickly tied up her knapsack and dashed right back downstairs. But due to her clumsiness, she suddenly tripped on the second step down. "Wah… waaa! WAAAAA!!"

But just she could hit the floor, Ash seemed to have appeared out of the kitchen and before he even knew it, he was slammed right onto the ground like a brick faced against a hammer. "Owww…" the two of them groaned out.

As Dawn try to recuperate from the fall, her face suddenly turned bright red when she realized who she just slammed right onto. "Oh my! I'm so sorry! Are you ok Ash?" the boy rubbed his head for a minute before replying with a slight smile, "Yeah… nothing to worry about ahehehehe. Come on, we got to go!"

By the time everyone made it out to the back, there seemed to be one more problem. There weren't enough seats for everyone. There were three cabs but it looked like the third one just had enough for two since it carried most of the luggage. Seeing this, Brock decided to split up the gang to maximize the space given to them. "Ok guys, this will be our seating arrangements for the trip" he began, "Cynthia, Duplica, Tracey, Misty and I will guys take the back seat of the second cab. Johanna and Dawn can share the front seat. May, Max, Richie, Anabel, Todd and Drew can take the back seat of the first cab since Max doesn't really take much space (Hey!) Ash, you'll have to share the front seat with Zoey. Ok that's it! Let's move out!"

"Yeah!" the gang said in unison except for Misty who just sighed with some hint of disappointment in her lunges.

Right as the gang began taking their seats around their respective vehicles, Rosa decided to hop on the top of the third cab. Thanks to the bags and suitcases that were strapped onto the top of the vehicle, she was able to balance herself out without any problems at all. The high ground also gave her a good sight just incase someone would sneak up and attack them.

But just as Ash was about to enter his side of the car, a Glameow poked through the window and purred at him affectionately. "Huh? Oh hey there. You must be Zoey's Glameow"

"And indeed he is" came the red head's voice on the other side. "Sorry about that. It's just that Glameow doesn't really like to stay in his Pokeball all the time. I think she likes to roam around rather than to sleep in a Pokeball for the whole day"

"I think Pikachu knows how that feels (Pikapika)" he then opened the door to the cab, "So… do you want to go in first or me?" the seat was obviously enough for the both of them to fit perfectly, but it would probably be uncomfortable for either of them. Zoey laughed and gladly took the inner seat along with her Glameow. With everyone tightened in and the house complete locked and no ties left to do… the gang began their roll. "Alright, everyone in?" Ash counted the heads before turning to the driver, "Ok driver, lets hit it!" and with that they began to drive off.

A/N: Now would be a perfect time for one of those intro songs from one of the Pokemon movies, but I would be asking too much now would I? (sigh) Oh well I guess we beggars can't be choosers. Onward with the story!

**(Fort Gregro ruined castle)**

Fort Gregro island has definitely seen better days than it is now. However… due to the foolishness of one persons mind and the combined efforts of both Pokemons and humans… turned this tropical paradise into a desolate wasteland. Much of the fertile soils were now rigid and dry, most the foraging patches that bore most of the fruits were destroyed, and not even grass looked like they want to grow. Sure… the place was in a horrid condition, but if given enough time, the Pokemons here can return it back to its natural beauty.

"Man… you can still feel the heat in this place" said Azal as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. "It's like the whole land got blown up yesterday!" apparently he and the other councilors were being put into manual labor in filtering the land back to its natural condition. With their 'acceptable' control with their powers, they were in charge of purifying the area from the extensive heat. The balance of the land was so tilted off that not even the snow from the sky was able to reach here. It was so hot that it almost felt like a nuclear bomb was dropped in this place. Well at least that was better than losing the whole world, no?

"I know what you mean" Furo answered taking a little break off the work. "It kinda reminds of the time back home doesn't it?"

"Yeah…"

But just when they were about to relive their previous lives two million years ago, a yellow flash came before their eyes swiping their attention immediately, "What are you two still doing here?!" it was Chaucer the yellow Lucario, "Break time was over twenty minutes ago. Now get back to work. This area must be cleansed by the end of the week so we can get some harvesting done by the beginning of spring"

"Chill out master" Azal said calmly, "We got all winter to do this. Just sit back… relax… and enjoy the view"

"I'd be more relaxed if I didn't have to worry about you two goofing off all day long! (sigh) Neither of you have changed a bit!" Chaucer rubbed his ear in annoyance. But Azal simply laughed back, "Come now master, just because you lost the war doesn't mean you have to take it on us……" he then turned to his partner, "We did win…… right?"

Furro simply smug, "Dunno… didn't really feel like victory to me though"

"It doesn't matter!" Chaucer barked, "Just make sure you have this section done before sunset! And no more 'slacking' off you hear!?"

"Yes master" the two of them replied in unison.

"Sheesh… what a grumpy head" Furo added as he resumed his task.

"You said it" Azal agreed, "We helped save the world and what do we get? A decent meal and a job that would probably have us taking a life time (sigh) How long do you think our torches would last? I want to go back to the afterlife already!"

**(A few hours later, on the outskirts of Sandgem town) (04:30 PM)**

After traveling for several hours by car, Ash and the gang decided to do a little game of 'I spy' to pass the time. Most of the things that Ash chose were Pokemons, since they were probably the only thing in his favorite category. But with most the time came flashing by, the gang decided to catch up on a little snooze. Everyone was a little exhausted due to the fact that they've been packing for two hours straight. But Ash didn't feel a wee bit tired at all. He's had things worst than this and boy that was no lie. He's faced an army and made it out alive nearly unscathed (almost) He fought against legendary Pokemons that only few had been able to see and live to tell the tale. If he can go through that without a wink than this would probably be nothing more but a morning exercise. However… the child still had his limits. He was still human after all.

But just the boy stared through the window, a sudden purr got his attention. It was Zoey's Glameow, and it looked it wanted someone to scratch its neck. "Ahe… hey there Glameow" Ash then noticed that his seat partner was already fast asleep and snoozing like a child. I guess when you're traveling comfortably like this you get sleepy pretty fast. Before the boy had a moment to react to whatever the cat Pokemon had in mind, Glameow suddenly hoped off Zoey's arms and into his hands. "Meow…" it purred affectionately as it rubbed its fur onto his shirt.

"Hey, that's a cool looking Glameow" Todd stated as he picked up his camera, "Say cheese little buddy" but then the cat Pokemon suddenly began hissing and showing its claws, which scared the pants out of the photographer. "Sorry about that Todd" Ash apologized, "I guess Zoey's Glameow doesn't really take kindly to strangers" he then began rubbing the back of the cat which made it purr again, calming its senses down.

But as the car began to slow down, the driver turned around and asked, "Ok… we're at the docking area. Which port are you guys using?"

Ash thought for a moment for remembering what dock number Paul gave out, "I think it's dock number 45" the driver nodded and quickly headed towards the direction of the said dock number. The place was much bigger than Ash had anticipated. Sure, there were several fishing boats and small trading vessels but he never imagined there would be a cruise linear her. It wasn't as big as the S.S Notilus, but it was still big nonetheless.

After a few more minutes, the taxis stopped almost instantly after they got to the dock entrance. "Ok, here we are. Dock number 45" said the driver.

As everyone got out and got their things organized with a little stretch, a familiar face approached them. "You're late…" Paul stated as coldly as he once was back during the old times, "I was almost planning to leave without you guys" Ash simply rubbed his back, "Sorry, we got caught up with somethings" but Dawn simply barked, "That's right! It wasn't our fault! And who made you the boss anyway!?"

"So anyway, if you aren't busy. Follow me and I'll show you to the ship" Paul replied, ignoring the girl's ramble. "Hey! Don't you be ignoring me when I'm talking to you! Come back here!" the gang (Now including Johanna, Paul and Zoey) simply laughed.

After getting themselves sorted out and paying the taxi drivers their fees, the gang began hauling their luggage towards the shipyard where Paul was taking them. When they got inside, they immediately greeted by a small crew batch. "Hey there Paul, are you ready to leave for Valmarian yet?" said the captain who looked like he was still in his early 30s. "Yeah… and I brought some friends along as well. Hope you don't mind"

"No not at all" the man replied. As the rest of the gang got in, they immediately began to take the smell of the salt water into their noses. Though some city folks never really liked the smell of the sea, it was still refreshing for the others.

"Hey Paul" Ash called out, "Is that the boat we're taking?" the purple haired boy nodded in reply, "That's right. Ash, meet captain Feebus, captain, I believe you know Ash Ketchum from Pallet town" he gestured to the both of them with his hands. The captain quickly took off his hat and bowed slightly in respect, "Well it's an honor to meet the champion himself in the flesh!" the captain now known as Feebus shook the boy's hand like it was almost leisure. "I have to tell ya. I had my doubts when Paul here said that you would be coming on board our ship, but heck, here you are standing right in front of me"

Ash smiled back in reply, "Well… the honor's all mine captain. So how long will it take us to reach Valmarian city?"

"Oh we won't be landing directly in Valmarian port" the captain stated with a grin on his face, "Huh? Why not?" Anabel asked with a puzzled face. Seeing that the gang didn't understand why, Feebus decided to explain, "Valmarian city is located at the center of the Valmarian islands. Ever since the sea trafficking of trainers and tourists flooding the city like a swarm of bees to a honey stash, only high class cruise liners and VIP boats could enter the docks. Vessels carrying unimportant cargos like this here potato supply, have to dock at one of the twelve port towns around the city. Here, let me show ya" he quickly pulled the gang towards a map room, "We'll be launching from the Shinou region in about half an hour. After that, we'll take an all night trip to one of the southern towns. Once you get there, it'll be a day and a half walk to the southern city gates. Security is tight around the city, or at least that's what I've heard"

"So, when we get there… do we just ask for them to open the gate?" Richie asked to which the old sailor shook his head in reply. "No of course not! But as long as you guys have those Valmarian invitations, they'll let you in without a problem. The rest of you can act as companions traveling along with them"

Not long after the plan was explained, another sailor came in the room, "Captain, we're ready to leave at your order sir" Feebus nodded and turned back to the gang, "Alright then. Does anyone have any questions? (silent) Very well then. Just get yourselves onto the boat and we'll cast off right away! Having all these famous people on my ship makes me feel like old Kolo got his first wax done" Kolo was probably the name of the ship he managed. It was a sturdy looking fishing ship, preferably a frigate size, but it was also doubled as a cargo ship as well.

With the sun falling onto the ocean, the electric lights on the ship were switched on to illuminate the dark corners. The ship's horn honked through the pipe, signaling its departure.

Ash and his friends stood at the bridge as the Kolo made its way out. The sight of a ship departing was not one to be missed, it was quite remarkable that a fuel powered combustion engine was able to make something so huge… move without sinking.

"Whoa! Awesome!" Max cried out in amazement to the sight of Sandgem town at dusk. It was ironic really…… a few days ago they came to this region at this very port and landed on this very dock, and now… they were leaving through it.

"Well… I guess this is goodbye to Shinou" Richie stated earning a nod from some of the gang. Johanna simply stretched out her arms and legs and squealed with almost cute delight, "Ahh… this is just like the time when I first left for my first Pokemon journey. It makes me feel all young again" Cynthia nodded in agreement, "I agree. Traveling with these kids really does make you feel young again. I almost feel like a teenager again"

"That only proves that we're old" Johanna added to which they both laughed.

But as the gang went on to tend to their duties, Ash decided to wait until the sun fully sank at the bottom of the ocean. However, his concentration was then interrupted by a familiar voice. "Hey there Ash" Misty cooed as friendly as she could, "Mind if I stand here with you?" the boy shook his head in reply as he didn't really understood why. The girl didn't really need to ask for his permission. It wasn't like he owned the boat or anything…… perhaps it was something more.

For a whole five minute, no words were given from neither of them. Ash and Misty simply stood there and enjoyed each other's company as much as time granted them. Just as the girl watched the sun moved continuously downwards, something began to pump deep within her lunges. Her heart was throbbing and her hands were getting sweaty. Even though this feeling was completely new to her, she did not mind it at all. It felt… right… for some reason. As she stood next to her friend, every complicated thing inside her head seemed to have sorted its way out in an orderly fashion. Her body felt at ease, like her mind was coming down with a cool breeze.

"Hey Ash…" the girl began, "You didn't answer my…" but before she could finish her sentence, a cat purr caught their attention from below. It was Zoey's Glameow. "Hey there Glameow!" Ash picked up the little cat from the ground and scratched its neck which made it purr affectionately like a kitty. "Hahaha… you like being scratched there don't you? (meow) Hahaha…" not long after he began scratching… Zoey came by with a tired look on her face.

"There you are Glameow. I've been looking all over for you (meow)" the cat like Pokemon purred back at her but quickly began rubbing its head on Ash's shoulders. "Ahehehehe… I think it just wants to be scratched" said Ash with a soft smile. "Hey Misty, why don't you try and hold it? Glameow's fur is very soft and comfy" but just as Misty was about to reach for it, the cat began hissing violently like it was going to attack, causing her to flinch.

"I'm sorry about that" Zoey apologized, "My Glameow just doesn't like strangers"

"Y… you don't say" Misty replied a little shaken up.

"It probably doesn't know you much, so it's very aggressive sometimes. But Ash here was probably one of the first who it got used too other than Brock and Dawn"

Misty noted this and decided to ask, "Huh? So you two met each other before?" the red head coordinator nodded back in reply, "That's right. Ash and I first met in the Jubilife city contest dome. He was planning to compete so we both battled each other there"

Ash rubbed his head in embarrassment as he laughed as well, "Yeah… but you beat me by a long shot. Your combinations were so awesome that I barely had enough time to know what was going on" now in was Zoey's turn to rub her head in embarrassment. But as the two of them continued to talk and chat about things that happened, Misty began to feel herself out of place again. It was like Ash was speaking in another language and she couldn't decipher any of the words.

She had not been by his side for so long that she missed all of his grand adventures. Sure she's been a witness to some of his death defying missions before, but that was probably air compared to the stories the others had to tell.

As she looked at the boy laughing along with Zoey, a pang of anger was beginning to rise from her chest. She needed to go somewhere… anywhere… anywhere but here!

"Is something wrong Misty?" Ash pulled her out of her daze. "You looked like you were out for a moment" she suddenly slammed her hands on the railing, which expressed much of her anger to everyone, "I need to go somewhere for a moment!" she yelled out causing Ash and Pikachu to flinch back in fear. By the time she was out of hearing distance, Zoey turned to him, "Was it something I said?" Ash and Pikachu only raise their shoulders in confusion.

And so the gang were off… but what awaits them at the end beginning of their new journey? Will they remain strong together or will they crumble like a block of bricks smashed against a boulder? Only time… can tell…


	48. Road of Thoughts

**Chapter 48: Road Of Thoughts**

**(The S.S. Kolo) (Bridge area) (09:00 PM) (ETA at drop point is 08:45 AM)**

The last time we left our heroes, they were on board the S.S Kolo bound for one of the settlements on the outskirts of Valmarian city. From there, they will have to travel on foot, or by wheel to their destination. Only then, can they hope to achieve their long and hard mission.

Due to the fact that this was a cargo ship, there weren't enough beds for everyone to go all around in the guest's quarters. So instead of sleeping there, the whole gang decided on sleeping outdoors using their sleeping bags and miniature tents. With a nice clear weather and very few snowflakes falling on their heads, it was probably the best time for a night's out. But as the majority of the group were now snoring peacefully on their beds, there were some people who thought that something interesting might happen during this time of night.

Ash was of course, one of these people. Being so close to achieving his life long dreams was probably just one of many reasons for him to stay awake. The boy placed his hands on the railing and exhaled through his mouth. The air around him was cold enough for his breath to be seen by the naked eye so he decided to keep himself warm with his casual jacket. "Brrr… it looks like winter is coming down hard this year" he shivered slightly to keep the cold away. "I wonder how much longer till we get to Valmarian city?"

But just as the boy kept talking to himself, another voice perked in from behind, "Ash, is something wrong?" the boy turned around to meet the soft paled face of Anabel, the Salon Maiden. "Huh? Oh hey Anabel, I'm guessing you can't sleep either huh?"

She shook her head in reply, "Not really. I just wanted some fresh air before I head back to bed" she approached the sides and set her back on the railing. "I'm guessing you have another reason… yes?" the boy simply let out a small laugh, "Ahehe… I guess you could call it being excited. I'm so thrilled, my hands are still shaking!" he gestured by moving his fingers up and down repeatedly.

"Now that's just normal for everyone" Anabel replied as she warmed her hands with her breath, "I bet a lot of people are as nervous as you Ash. But try not to let it get to your head. We all get nervous once in awhile when we're stressed out"

Ash then shot out a look, "So why aren't you nervous like me?"

"Unlike all of you, my telekinetic abilities allow me to control my emotions and keep my mind in check. Oh that reminds me. Have you been practicing on reading your Pokemon's thoughts?" Ash quickly flash out a grin, "Absolutely! I've won so many battles with them with the talent. But sometimes I like to keep things simple" Anabel laughed at this, "Well then, since you're so good, why don't you try reading my mind then?"

"Huh?" Ash looked confused.

"If you are deeply connected to your Pokemons, then reading my heart should be no problem" Ash recomposed himself for a moment before returning the look, "Uh… ok. I guess it can't hurt to try. (inhale exhale) Here I go" a moment later, Anabel and Ash connected their eyes together hoping to get something out of this little experience.

The Salon Battle Maiden was able to reach Ash's heart like a book opening before her. The guy had intentions nearly as pure and white as the snow themselves. His determination and motivation were like two gorging suns that looked like they could never be extinguished. But as Anabel took a little peek deeper into his heart, a slight blush began to creep over her face. She was wondering if Ash could actually read her heart. If he did, then it would probably have a hard time explaining it to him on how she really felt about him.

After a while, Ash let out a sigh, "Nope… still nothing… (sigh) I guess I can read Pokemon much better than people huh…" Anabel chuckled, "I guess we all have our own strengths and weaknesses Ash. But don't worry… you're perfect just the way you are" they both began to laugh amongst themselves as the night was still young. But as they continued to make fun of each other at that moment, they did not know that Misty was eves dropping on their conversation.

Not wanting to hear anymore, Misty pulled up her sleeping bag and forcefully closed her eyes to make herself go to sleep. She just couldn't take what was happening anymore. Her heart was in so much conflict that even the slightest bit of emotion could set her off course.

"Thanks Anabel" said Ash, "I think laughing like this was all I needed to get my mind off things. I think I should (yawn) go to sleep now"

"Always glad to be of help Ash" and with that, the two of them went to their respective sleeping bags and dozed right off to dreamvile.

**(Valmarian city hotel lounge)**

Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum were taking a little midnight snack in the city's hotel lounge for a brief moment while enjoying the beautiful scenery of the city through a window. It has been almost a week since they've arrived at Valmarian city and it seemed like Ash was nowhere to be found. Surprisingly for the professor, Delia didn't seem too worried about it. It was odd… a few days ago, she panicking and couldn't take a moment without thinking about her son, now today, she's looking like everything was alright.

"So what will you be having professor?" the woman asked holding up her snack menu. Samuel was quickly brought out of his thoughts and began scanning back at the menu in front of him, "I'll uh… I'll just have some coffee and crackers" the waiter quickly wrote it down his notepad then turned to the woman, "And you madam?"

"Hmm…… I think I'll have a mini-dinner here" the waiter nodded back and quickly went away to fill in the order to the kitchen. It wasn't long then till Delia noticed the odd look on the professor's face, "What's wrong professor? You look rather pale for some reason" the old man sighed, "You could say that I'm a little worried about Ash" he began, "I've been trying to call his Pokedex for some time but it seems like its not responding to my calls" but the woman just waved it off, "Oh I'm sure Ash is just taking things slow. He's probably training with his Pikachu and his friends somewhere nearby. You worry too much"

The professor let out a sweatdrop as he realized that the whole situation turned around for the both of them. When they were still in Pallet town, he was taking things calmly while Delia was taking things seriously. But now that they reached Valmarian city, their feelings seemed to have switched.

But just before they could continue their conversation, one of the hotel clerks stepped in, "Excuse me, professor Oak"

"Yes?"

"You have a phone call on the registration table"

Samuel cocked up a brow, "A phone call for me? That's odd" he then walked to the registration table and picked up the phone, "Hello, this is professor Oak speaking"

"Good to hear your voice again Samuel" it was professor Rowan who was on the other line. "Professor Rowan!" Samuel replied waving his hand in the air, "I haven't heard from you in months now. How's everything back in the Shinou region? I heard from my student, professor Elm that you've found yourself a Pokemon egg, am I right?"

"That's right" Rowan replied steadily, "I heard that you were in Valmarian city already so I looked up your name in the hotel's registration. I have to say, you've picked a nice establishment for yourself. I only wished Ash had the same treatment" the name of the boy that Samuel was looking for perked the professor's ear almost immediately, "Hold on, do you know where Ash is right now?"

Rowan nodded, "Why of course I do, he just left for the south port of Valmarian Isle a few hours ago. I was the one who set up the arrangements"

"Wonderful!" professor Oak implied as if a huge burden seemed to have lifted off from his shoulder. "I was worried something might've happened to him. I guess there was nothing to worry about after all" Rowan smiled, "Now Samuel, if you worry too much, you'll grow wrinkles before you know it. And Delia probably wouldn't want a man with too many wrinkles now would she?" Samuel turned nearly crimson red like the red rose itself, but he kept a sturdy face. "N… nonsense! Whatever are you talking about Rowan?"

The scientist on the other line would've laughed himself silly if there weren't other people around, "Ahaha… well anyway, I wanted to check up on you that's all. And if you're going to look for Ash, I would start at the hospital first"

"The hospital?"

"Yes, the boy was pretty bandaged up when he came to my lab. If he had a few more, some people might mistaken him for a mummy or something" this made the professor even worry more about Ash. "Well anyway, that's all I wanted to talk about. Oh by the way, are you finished studying the Entei Ash sent you? If you're done, why not send it here for a day or two? I would really like to study the behavior of such a legendary Pokemon myself"

"Ahe… maybe some other time Rowan. Ahehehe"

**(Somewhere along the streets of Valmarian city)**

Frank, the hip hop artist of Brendan's secret group was taking a stroll along the city with his sister Griselda. They've apparently found many leads all pointing towards Red, but they were probably just some that he had made to lead them astray and off course. After a few hours of searching through the streets they've managed to locate one that was probably more reliable than the others. From the rumors going around, Red was indeed amassing a small number of trainers by his side. But not just any trainers… He was looking for those who can really be an asset to his force, but the question that Brendan needed answers was why?

The kid was definitely powerful, so why in the world would he need help from others weaker than him? If they could answer that question than probably a lot of things would finally be shown some light.

But as Frank approached their new contact, he leaned down on the wall and pretended to be hanging around with his sister. After a few moments of silence, the guy on the other side shoot up, "Are you Frank?" she asked plainly to which he replied with a nod, "Good… I just wanted to make sure"

"You're the one Rika mentioned" the hip hop guy stated, "You know something about Red?" but the guy quickly gave him the 'shhhh' sound, "Don't say his name out loud!" he yelled in a whisper tone, "All of Gary's crew are not to be mentioned lightly. Just saying their name is dangerous in these parts" he then took a look around to make sure that no one was nearby to give them a clear earshot. "Listen… I only know little about that Red kid, but he's a real mystery to everyone, you know what I'm saying?"

"You have no idea…" Frank thought to himself.

"Well anyway, here's the deal. I usually hang around here to see some battles ok. But a few nights ago, I usually see Red walking up in these parts every Thursday usually by midnight or so. It's like he got himself a routine or something"

"Does he come back through here as well?" Griselda spoke after popping her gum and chewing it back into her mouth. "Yeah of course he does" the man replied, "There are only two exits through this alley. This one here and a small sewer entrance on the other side. Be careful though, it's really easy to get lost in there if you don't know where you're going"

"Did you ever follow Red whenever he came in here?"

The man shook his head, "Nope. Whatever goes on in there is his problem. And there's no way I'm getting myself in trouble with gang business. Especially 'this' gang. If I were you, I'd probably do the same"

"Hmm… thanks a lot for the info" and with that, the man left to ten to his chores. Once he was out of sight, Frank turned to his littler sister, "Griselda, call Brendan and Rika and tell of this. If that guy was telling us the truth, then Red would be coming back here on tomorrow…… midnight"

**(Uno café)**

Red, the boy clad with crimson attire was having a little midnight snack of his own. Since the rest of Gary's crew had finished their supper he practically had the café all to himself. The owner of the café was also grateful for them being here as well. With the gang war happening all over the city, many restaurants had to close up shop early just to be on the safe side. But seeing that this place was Gary's favorite hangout area, other trainers tend to leave this place alone. It was a win-win luck for the owner. His business booms and protection was guaranteed.

But as the boy went on to his meal, his cell phone began to ring, which caused him to sigh. He clicked on the answer button and muttered, "This had better be important… (phone gibber) Oh… really?" there was mocking tone in his voice, "Who did he call for? (phone gibber) Oh my… it looks like Brendan is taking me seriously this time. I have to say, I'm quite surprised (phone gibber) Yes, everything is in order. They don't know a thing about our plan………… and even if they do find out…… I still have a backup plan of my own (phone gibber) Ash Ketchum? Hmmm…… now that you've mentioned it… I think you just gave me an idea (questionable phone gibber) I have to go. My supper is waiting. I'll call you tomorrow after I meet with my new member" and with that, he slugged the phone down and resumed to his meal.

**(Time skip the next day) (Near the Valmarian isles) (06:12 AM) (1 week and 3 days before the Valmarian league)**

Ash and his Pikachu were having a nice peaceful nap on their own respective areas until something decided to stir him from his sleeping bag. A scent of unimaginable goodness was making its way towards his nose, causing his eyes to flinch up. "Hmm… smells like… something's… cooking" he mumbled in his sleep. By the time his eyes shot up, the first thing he saw was Brock and everyone staring at him with nearly bursting laughs.

"I told you he got the nose of Raticate" said Brock which the others laughed at. "Good morning Ash. Breakfast is ready and we're all waiting for you" the boy quickly got out of his sleeping bag and grabbed himself a plate before digging in, "Digging in!! (ittedakimasu!)" with the gang's good graces, they all began to eat and eat and eat.

After awhile of digging in, Feebus, the Kolo's captain, popped in from the ship's control room. "Hey there, I guess everyone is up" the gang gave out their greetings to him.

"Hey Feebus" said Brock, "Wanna join us for some breakfast? Get it while it's hot" the captain gladly accepted, "Don't mind if I do" he quickly grab a plate and began garbling in. While the rest of the gang ate in silence, the Pokemons decided to keep quiet while eating their Pokechows as well. Even fighters need a decent meal to keep their strengths up.

"So captain" Ash called up, "How long until we get to see Valmarian city?"

"Not long now" he replied, "Probably a few hours the least" But then a sailor came up from behind, "Captain, there's a fog enveloping around us" Feebus immediately stood up. "Oh my… that must be the Misty Valley. Tell the crew to halt immediately" with a quick 'aye aye' the sailor dashed off to the engine room to halt the ship's progress.

"What's going on?" Anabel quirked.

"This is the Mist Valley young lady" Feebus answered to her question, "I've traveled from here to Valmarian all my life and I've encountered the Mist Valley many times before. When the Valmarian islands were still filled with villages and towns, pirates roamed these waters and raided the people of Valmarian for decades!"

"That's horrible" Dawn stated.

"Aye it is" Feebus continued, "When the people could take it no longer, they prayed to the gods for someone to help them. After awhile, their prayers were answered, and a thick giant fog was created, thus hampering the progress of the pirates"

Tracey noted this and smiled back. The gang had encountered the Mist Valley before back during their second attempt to reach Valmarian city, but as usual, since their boat was made of wood, it stood no chance against the ruff tides. "I've heard about it" the Pokemon Watcher stated, "It's a small valley located somewhere near Valmarian city right?"

"Did you get that story out of a book or something?" Feebus cocked a mock, "The Valmarian city is a moving wind! It doesn't stay on one place forever! The thing moves on from island to island, granting protection from pirates"

"Wow" Ash said in amazement, "So what happened to the towns and villages? Without the pirates, they must've flourished again"

The old captain laughed, "Nope, quite the opposite. They all became poor my boy!" everyone gave out a 'huh' sound, "Ever since that mist came up, trading with the other islands became almost impossible hahahahaha! Without the help from others, they all had to move out and find some other place to live! That's how Valmarian city came to be hahahahahaha!" it wasn't long then, until the fog started to lift off, "Oh it looks like the Mist Valley doesn't think of us as its enemies. Hey first mate, tell the boys to start up. We're moving out!"

"Yes sir!"

"Look ahead kids" Feebus pointed to the head of the ship, "That's the main Valmarian island" with a quick move, Ash and the other competitors dashed off to the head and glared at the sight set before them. As the mist began to lighten off, the sun began to shine once more from the west causing some of them to squint their eyes in excitement. But Ash didn't want to blink for single millisecond. As the new land began to stretch itself across the horizon, every moment counts.

A golden beach opened itself to the ship, a thick line of forest paths beyond it blocked the path of a never ending lush scenery of trees, and a small pier was the only sign of civilization.

But sadly, not everything in the eye was plainly green. The lush thick forest that would've been magnificent to see from this POV was coveted by a blanket of thick white snow. Even during the winter, not even the most tropical areas were spared. But it did not matter to them. No matter what state the land was, Ash and his gang were gonna traverse it, no matter how harsh.

As everyone who were part of the Valmarian league took the scenery deep into their minds, a slight smile embedded itself onto their faces, leaving a mark of pride behind to their thoughts.

"We're finally here Pikachu" Ash said whispered softly to his buddy as the little mouse stood on his shoulder. "Valmarian city is just beyond here… just a little more and it's off to the biggest tournament in the world (Pika pika!)" with his hopes renewed and his morale restored, Ash dashed off the moment the ship made its stop. "WE MADE IT!!!!!" he shouted so loud that some of the dock workers began starring at him. "We made it Pikachu! I can't believe we made it!" he held his little electric pal and threw him up in the air a few times to gesture how happy he was. Rosa saw this and had a slight smile on her face as well.

"I guess Ash must be the most excited out of all people to finally make it here" Brock clarified to the others as they starred at him with a sweatdrop on their heads, "Well we were supposed to get here about two months ago, but I guess things just got harder and harder along the way"

"I guess guys like him never change" Paul stated out with a sigh. "I thought two years would be long enough to make a man out of him" but Dawn was quick to jump into the boy's defense, "Oh yeah, well two years ago, Ash was man enough to beat you in the Shinou league! That must make you a baby"

Even with the volume of her voice going louder than your average surround sound speaker, Paul just picked his ear and moved on, "Come on, we still need to get out luggage from the cargo hold" he implied to the others, once again ignoring the girl's ramble. "Hey!" the Shinou coordinator shouted, "Are you even listening to me! You look at me when I'm talking to you! Hey come back here this instance!" the gang simply laughed again. At least now, if the gang were bored they could always look at these two for some entertainment. May and Max were good at keeping the guys high and up in spirit but a little new topics of arguments could be good to keep them up as well.

After an hour of getting themselves and their luggage out, the gang all assembled at the edge of the small port to give their farewells to captain Feebus and his crew.

"Well, I guess this is where we part ways" the captain said the gang. "Thanks for the ride again captain Feebus" Ash bowed, followed by the others. The captain simply rubbed his head, "Oh there's nothing to thanks about. We were simply going in the same direction and we just happened to meet that's all. It should be I that should be thanking you for that wonderful breakfast"

Brock rubbed himself with a slight embarrassment, "Hey, my cooking isn't that good. But I'd be glad to give you the recipe"

After saying their farewells to the captain, the gang decided they should continue to march on while the morning was still young and while their strengths were still fresh as well.

As they reached the exit, Ash pumped his fist into the air and stated to his companions, "Alright… look out Valmarian city, Ash Ketchum is coming up your front door and nothing's gonna stop me!" before the gang knew it, the kid was already half a kilometer away from them. "Hey Ash, wait up!" Tracey ran up, but only to trip on his untied shoelaces.

With the gang making fast progress (due to Ash's insistence) through the forest, it was only before a matter of time before they actually get to Valmarian city.

"Ash!" May managed to get herself to his side. "What's up May?" the boy replied with a smile on his face, "Aren't you excited to reach Valmarian city?"

"I am Ash" came her undeniable truth, "But remember what chef Franklin said. Don't keep your focus too much on the prize, or you'll soon lose your way" with the old man's wise words ringing clearly at the back of his head, Ash put his feet into an immediate halt. I guessed the girl was able to remind him, not to make the same mistakes he did so many times ago. "Wow… I guess you're right" Ash confessed, "I must've been so excited that I didn't think very well"

May smiled back at him and tapped his shoulders to reassure him. The boy may have been a klutz, but at least he was responsible enough to admit that he had been mistaken or wrong. Usually during these times, trouble would always hound his every step. But now that May thought about it for awhile, she realized that Ash doesn't just walks into trouble. It just so happens that the trouble is barring his path. Trouble may come by regularly to Ash, but it is how he deals with those problems that makes him so unique. It was hard not to admire him about that.

"Come on" May said finally, "Let's wait for the others and we can both agree on which path to take, ok?" Ash nodded and decided to slow his pace instead of increasing it with every five steps.

**(Somewhere out at sea)**

Team Rocket, the ever persistent band of three with a never ending mission to capture Pikachu and become infamous were making their way to the southern Valmarian port after a rough tackle from the Bake Off contest. Apparently the trios were paddling on a Goldeen shape submarine which was powered by human strength.

"Hey Meowth, how much longer till we reach Valmarian?" James asked looking a bit tired, "We've been peddling for a whole day and we barely even got any sleep last night"

"Not very far now" the cat like Pokemon replied, "Actually, we're already there" the moment he finished his sentence, their submarine crashed upon a stone rock which plucked a hole in the hull of the vessel. "Wahhh! Abandon sub!"

When Team Rocket were finally able to get ashore after that unusual death trap of their own, they immediately let out a sigh of relief. Who knew that your own creation could actually be their own coffins their making

"Well that was a close call" James stated, "If it could get any closer than this, than I would've drowned" but Jessie simply stood up and yelled, "Come on! That twerp couldn't have gone far! If we go now, we still have a chance to follow him!" but the blue haired boy sighed, "But Jessie, we don't even know where they are. They could be in Valmarian city for all we know, and the police there are tighter than any cities we came across"

"The only reason why Team Rocket fails is because people like you!" the red head snapped, "I am not gonna stand around while that twerp makes a mockery out of us! We're going to find him and when we do, we'll get that Pikachu! Got it!"

The other two partners simply sat back with horrified expressions on their faces, "Yes ma'am!" when the girl was finally out of sight they immediately got into whisper mode, "I wonder what's bursting her bubble?" said the cat

"The stress must probably be getting to her head. She's acting more and more…… violent"

"Are you two coming or WHAT!?" Jessie snapped out from the bushes. The two of them quickly got up on their feet and began following the girl to who knows where.

**(Back with the gang) (11:27)**

After taking the first length of the trip to Valmarian city, the gang seemed to be making less progress than they had expected. Ash and his companions were moving fine even with slight injuries, but Misty seemed to be lagging far behind. The girl blamed the snow and her shoelaces, but some of the members of the group thought that it was something else. Of all the gang, Misty had the less damage inflicted on her body. While the rest of them had scars and wounds almost comparable to Ash, Misty only had a few bruises on her shoulders and a slight cut on her cheek.

"Misty, come on! You're lagging behind again!" Duplica yelled out a good distance away from the girl. Usually when someone lags behind, Ash would always stop on and wait for that person to catch up. Because of this, the gang had to stop as well. Johanna and Cynthia were unsure why the others would do this, but with one look from Ash's face, they could already tell why.

The boy was a natural born leader. He had control over the group without even knowing it. His range and effectiveness of influence was so immense that defying him would almost be like a crime. He prioritized the safety of the group more than his own. Heck the kid was ready to fight a war just to keep them safe…… and perhaps he did! Not only was Ash a charismatic figure to the group, he was probably their idol, their inspiration, their master!

"I'm coming" Misty shouted back after slouching down a bit. By the time she made it to where the gang were, it was already noon, "Phew… going up hill is way harder than I thought" she made up an excuse to get herself out of trouble.

"You're really falling behind Misty" Anabel quirked, "Are you sick or anything? You're usually not this slow"

"Maybe she's just hungry" Todd stated, "We didn't really have much during breakfast. Why don't we all have lunch before we move out again?" to the gang's luck, there was a small opening a few clicks up north that was perfect for a camp site. Several trees were leveled down, probably by some of the local woodcutters who were out to pick them back later. The grasses were soft and there were plenty of small twigs and branches on the sides so the gang didn't have to look very far for firewood.

But as the gang started up with the camp construction, Rosa quickly moved to her master's side to make sure that no harm would come to him. However… as she approached the boy, the pink Lucario began her telepathic communication. _"Your majesty, I may be speaking out of line for your friend here, but I believe that the one you call Misty is lagging behind on purpose"_

But Ash waved it off, "Nonsense Rosa. Misty's probably just tired from all the running we've been doing. Just give her a couple of hours rest and we'll be off in no time" seeing that there was no point in convincing the boy of her perspective, Rosa decided to let things be for now. As long as it doesn't harm Ash in anyway, she could care less about the girl. So instead of pushing the subject further, she decided to drop it and follow the boy.

Even though the rest of the gang were taking it easy on resting up on the snowy areas of the camp site, Brock and Tracey were taking it a little bit harder than usual. Thanks to the number of mouths to feed increasing drastically in the pass months, the two of them had to cook an even bigger batch than before. Usually one bucket size was more than enough to fill the whole pack, but now they had to make two buckets for the humans and a whole box of Pokechow for the Pokemons. If it weren't for Cynthia and Johanna, the guys would've called it quit already.

"Alright guys, lunch time!" Brock quickly brought out two sets of portable-expandable tables and placed them out for the others to use. And as if they were right on cue, the rest of the gang came hounding in like a pack of starving hyenas to a livestock exchange store.

As they began to exchange random topics generated by words and other ideas, Ash couldn't help to notice Misty as she silently sat in one corner playing with her share of the food with her fork. Her body was there, but it seemed like her mind was grazing off into another distant land. Taking the courage into his heart, he decided to ask, "Hey Misty, what's up? Don't you like Brock's lazy stew anymore?" Misty's soul nearly lifted away from her body if that was even spiritually possible. "Uh… n… no! Not at all! I was just umm… taking my time with this…" if a lie could be more obvious, it would probably be shown in a thought bubble seen by all. "I'm just having… a great time!"

"You don't look like you're having a great time" Ash replied seeing the pain behind her forced smile. "Come on Misty, if you got something bothering you, you can always tell me. We're best friends remember?" he flashed out a wide grin to signify a friendly gesture. Togepi laughed happily to him as the smile almost looked too funny to be scary. "Hahaha… and I think Togepi agrees" Ash motioned to the little egg like Pokemon. He extended a finger which the little one gladly grab and started shaking like a toy. Misty would've also laughed at the situation, if only she wasn't so depressed about the whole situation. It was like she wanted to smile, but her mouth simply wouldn't comply. Like her feelings of happiness were blocked by some invincible barrier or something.

But before Misty could conjure up the words in her mouth, a certain blonde haired champion had to interrupt the moment, "Hey Ash" Cynthia called, "There's more over here if you want any. We'll be packing up in an hour"

"Ok" Ash yelled back before turning to Misty again, "We'd better eat up Misty. The more time we have on the road, the better" and with that, the boy stood up and continued garbling down his food into his stomach.

"Yeah… I guess… you're… right" was the only thing she said to herself as she turned back to her food. Not having the stomach or the appetite in her body, Misty handed the plate to Psyduck, who coincidentally was there the whole time. (Psy? Duck?)

"Oh man… I don't think I can eat another bite" said Max as he rubbed his belly. But just as he whined on how full he was, a sudden rumble on the bush caught his attention. "Huh? What's that?"

"What's what Max?" May turned, but the boy just waved it off, "Nah… probably just the wind" little did he knew that… he was so dead wrong.

After the gang finished up with their meal, Cynthia and Johanna decided to take the dishes to a nearby stream to get them cleaned up for their next meal. "Hey Ash, we could use the extra hand on the dishes. Think you can help out?" the blonde champ requested his aid in a…… certain way. The boy quickly agreed in a heartbeat. "Sure!"

After thirty minutes of packing up the campsite, the group once again pressed onward through the road, not wanting to take any shortcuts that Ash would suggest. His 'short-cuts' as the boy would call it, would only probably get them lost somewhere even deeper into the woods. But now that they were in unknown territory, they had to stick together and keep their senses up at all times. There may not be any Pokemons in the Valmarian isles, but one can never be too careful about anything. Who knows what other predators roam these woods?

**(Uno café)**

Havic and his friends were having a strange time this afternoon. What kind of strangeness you ask? Well for the fact that they were having a nice peaceful meal at their favorite restaurant with no one to bother them. But then suddenly, Gary began to crack up a smirk. It was a cold heart chilling smirk, but at the same time, it was also heartwarming. The boy was happy for some reason, and why? No one knows. But whatever it was… it definitely had something to do with Ash that much was for sure.

"Yo… what's up with the boss?" Steve whispered to Havic as the two of them looked at the table where Gary and Jaques were sharing. "Dunno…" the ex-boss shrugged, "But it's really creeping me out from here. Whatever it is, let's just leave'em. Who knows what that kid will do when Ash gets here?" the hippy Pokemon trainer smugged, "Man… I'd sure hate to be Ash right now. If the two of them should meet up on the streets and issue a challenge…"

"They'll have the whole city coming right at their heels" Havic added, taking a sip off his soda can. "But right now… I'm more worried about that Red kid. I haven't seen him for some time now and that Brendan has been hanging around with some other folks" he let out a small sigh, "And with the news Emma brought to us, that Red seems to dealing with some guys from the other gangs"

"Talk about major role play" Steve replied holding a spoon up.

"Tell me about it. This was supposed to be a simple five man gang… and now we got ourselves a whole army. Heh… talk about irony"

"Well anyway" Emma butted in, "It's better than rotting in that dump you call a hideout" Havic snickered, "Hey! At least I was able to band the five of us together! If it weren't for me, you two would still be staying in the Pokemon center!" the man snapped back at them.

"WHAT?!" Emma shouted back, "Why don't you come over here and say that in front of my face you old two coined face creep!?"

"You want a piece of me girl?! Bring it on!"

Steve then interfered before the two of them got violent, "Hey guys come on. We're all friends right (WHAM!)" but the guy was already too slow… too late.

"You stay out of this!" the two bickering teen yelled out in unison

And when it looked like nothing in the world could stop them from tearing each other apart, the door bell rang, causing the group to turn their heads to the new customer. Surprisingly for all of them, it was Red himself. "Howdy everyone" he greeted with his usual friendly tone. "I see you're all well spirited as usual" no matter how friendly the kid looked, the fact remains that he is one of the strongest trainer known to mankind. With the mere sound of his voice Emma and Havic stopped fighting, the room temperature suddenly got cold, and a strange shadow seemed to have loomed over the whole café, causing the gang to lose their appetites.

As the kid made himself at home and ordered up his usual takeout, Emma couldn't help but turn a glare of suspicion to the boy. Red was a good actor that much they could tell. If a person with little experience in life should meet him, they would probably be fooled by his friendly manners and smiley gestures.

-Never judge a person by first impression-

-Common saying-

**(Outside Uno café)**

Rika, the genius Pokemon trainer of Brendan's party was doing a little stakeout outside the Uno café. She was hiding behind one of the telephone booths, 'pretending' to be making one of those 'calls' to a distant relative so that she would not arouse suspicions. "Hmm… curious…" she quickly picked up a small walkie talkie and changed its frequency coordinates, "Rika here. I've located Red… he's in a small restaurant called Uno café"

"Good…" Brendan replied on the other line, "Keep a close eye on him. We're gonna follow him every step of the way till midnight… understood?"

"Yeah sure… over and out"

**(Back with the gang) (02:30 PM)**

The gang was making very little progress in their trip to Valmarian city today, but hopefully after they pass through this highway, they should be able to see the city just within view. However… that little mini dream was shattered when a stop sign was shown.

"Hey everyone" Tracey called in a round up, "Look at this warning sign"

-Warning, bridge under repair. Completion next month. Please use Steep Hill Valley to get to Valmarian city-

"Looks like the bridge connecting to the city's main road must've collapsed" Brock concluded to the others, "But I've never heard of Steep Hill Valley before"

"I think I also heard about that from professor Birch as well" Tracey added in a tone of victory, "There's a temple at the top of this tall hill built by monks from a long time ago. It was used as a shelter for pilgrims who came all over the world. I don't really know much what's inside, but it's supposed to be a little harder to get to Valmarian from there"

Ash once again pumped his fist and pointed eastward, "Well there's no point in stopping now! Let's go through this hill and get it over with!"

But when they made it too the location of the hill, a large sweatdropped seemed to have loomed over their heads causing some damage to their morale. Apparently, the steep hill was not only steep enough for a car to pass through, but it was also very high as well. Climbing over it and reaching for the other side could prove to be more difficult than our heroes could imagine. Not only that, but the terrain was also heavily covered with snow, and that would also hamper their progress.

"Whoa… this is Steep Hill Valley?" Max inquired hoping that someone would say 'No, the valley's on the other side where there's an elevator to take you to the top'

"Well, the sign here says it is. So we must be on the right track" Brock stated to the sign made of wood. But nothing seemed to be able to bring Ash down. Whatever obstacles were in his path, he would either plow through them or go around them in whichever way possible.

"Hmm… getting to the top could be a little dangerous" Johanna said a little worried about her daughter's safety. "Maybe we should camp out here and wait for the night? Perhaps the bridge would be fixed by then"

"I don't think so" Cynthia added in, "The sign clearly stated that it would be finished next month and from the looks on this map I bought from the souvenir store, the safest way to get to the other side would be this place" if she meant 'safe' as in horrifyingly dangerous with a high chance of death…… then yeah… it is 'safe'.

But just as the gang were considering the possibilities of getting through, Ash decided that there was no time to think. 'Actions speak louder than thoughts' and with that single phrase up his head, the boy carefully stayed close to the wall, not taking his eyes off the road. One little slip and it could prove to be the end of Ash Ketchum.

Seeing their fearless leader traverse through the hill safely on the first row of steps, the gang decided to follow Ash behind. If they were lucky, they would probably make it to the temple before sunset at least.

After an hour of carefully stepping on each snowy plates of the stairs, Ash decided to wait for the others to catch up with him. Sticking together was probably the best idea for this situation.

But just when the gang were about half way there, something began to bug them. The simple pathway seemed to be getting narrower the higher they got to the top. If this was the only path left to Valmarian city from the southern port, then vehicles will find it impossible to cross. "Everyone, stay close to the wall!" Ash ordered, "The path is getting a lot more dangerous, so be on your toes" the gang nodded back at him as he continued to take the lead.

"How much farther do you guys think this hill goes?" May asked, hoping to start a little conversation to pass the time. "Dunno" Max replied, "As long as we can get there in one piece, I'm more than happy" the gang let out a small chuckle to them as these guys can even make the most dangerous situations funny. But their laughter was soon cut short, when Brock spotted some nasty looking clouds coming in from the west. "Hey Ash" he called out for the leader, "We need to speed up or that rain cloud will hit this place soon! The snow can turn as fast as mud like water!" The boy nodded and quickly hastened his pace to get the others faster to the temple.

A few hours later, they were able to make it to the top in one piece. And thanks to their luck, the sun was just beginning to set. Once the last of the members were able to get to the top, they all fell on their backs as their feet gave in to the much intensity of the climb.

"Now that… was scary" Max huffed out as his legs turned numb as ice itself.

"Next time I'm coming to Valmarian city, I'm taking the plane" Duplica sighed out loud to herself.

But it was still no time for relaxation. Even though they were safe from falling, without sufficient protection from the rain, they will easily become ill and it would take a lot more time for them to reach Valmarian city. "Alright everyone" Ash rounded up, "Let's get inside the temple before the rain catches up. Don't want any of you to catch a cold before the match starts" the others quickly agreed and slowly hulled themselves into the shaggy looking building before taking any breaks.

And right just before the sunsets down behind the trees, the others decided to use the abandoned temple as their temporary base camp for the night. Thanks to Brock's clever planning, he was able to gather enough firewood for the camp fire. The temple was bigger than the gang thought it would be. There were some bedrooms that were still fit and able to use, a washroom with no pipelines, a well at the back of the building that takes water from an underground spring and a nice relaxing meditation room where the pilgrims would come and relax.

There weren't any totems or symbols around, so it was difficult to say what or who this temple was dedicated to. But that wasn't important right now. What was important however, was what the gang were going to have for dinner. Having that little life risking experience really brought up an appetite to everyone. Heck even Johanna wouldn't complain anymore. Having re-experienced her Pokemon journey days once more was like rubbing wrinkle remover off your face. She even felt like her age was going backward now.

"You look awfully cheerful Johanna" Cynthia teased from behind as the mother cooked her meal on one of the big bowls. "Well having this journey with my daughter is something mothers don't get everyday you know. Besides… traveling like this, makes me feel like I'm back in high-school again"

"I think there's more to that story" the blonde champ noticed the slight flaw in her words, "You know there's something going on with Dawn, and there's no use hiding it you know" Johanna sticked out her tongue, "Hehehe… I guess I never really taught Dawn how to hide her feelings" the mother began, "But seriously…… I never really thought that she'd actually fall for a boy this early"

"Hey… the new generations always have a surprise or two once in awhile" Cynthia replied darting her eyes towards Ash as he continued to chat among all of his friends. "You never know what those kids can do at such sort notice. Before you know it, they can catch you unprepared for almost anything." she slowly took a sip from a small choco milk bottle and smiled.

"Oh don't worry" Johanna smirked under her lips, "This time, I came prepared… hehehehe… I even brought this just for such an occasion" she quickly pulled out a wedding gown out of her bag and showed it to the blonde champ right in front of her face. Cynthia choked on her hot coco for a few seconds before finally spitting them all out at a corner. Her eyes visibly twitched in confusion and surprise. "W… what's that for?!" she asked in an almost yelling tone.

"I didn't want to be caught unprepared so I brought it along with me" Johanna excused herself with a smile. If Cynthia didn't know better, that was probably the worst excuse she could practically bring. But before the blonde champ could come up with something to say, Johanna began to reminiscence about the future. "Hmmm…… I wonder how many children they will have? If it's a boy I'll probably recommend Dash. But if it's a girl then I think maybe Savana. Ooo maybe they'll name their daughter after me!"

Cynthia's eye were now beginning to twitch like hell as she starred at her best friend's unusual behavior. If Ash and Dawn were here, she wouldn't be surprised if they were burning crimson red right now. "Uh… earth to J.J. Please come back to the present…" but Johanna was simply too tied with her fantasy world to even care what her friend was saying.

Right after dinner was done, the gang decided to lock up the temple so the wind wouldn't chill them off. The rain followed not long after that. The jumbling sound of thunder roaring at the heavens, the feint flash of lightning piercing out the window, and the blinding flash that follows behind. It was a scary night for all of them that much was for sure. With all the doors creeking like a ghost in a haunted mansion, they were barely even able to get themselves a little shut eye. Even Max couldn't even take his eyes off the main gate as it made a rattling sound against the winds. Tracey and Todd wanted to make sure no one interrupted their beauty sleep from the outside, so they barricaded the place with a table from one of the rooms.

But as the others tried to get some chills, Max starred out of the window and noticed a shadow looming over it. At first he thought that it was just a tree blocking the way, but when another lightning struck, the boy could see the face of a monster itself. He couldn't really tell what kind of creature it was, but it was definitely not human. "AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!" the whole gang erupted to his cry as they woke from their slumber.

"Max, what's wrong?" May tried to calm her little brother as he looked absolutely petrified. "T…t…t t t… there wa… was… there was something… looking at me… out there" Max pointed towards the door with a claw mark imprinted on the glass. "Max…" May sighed, "It's probably just your imagination. There's no ghost or monsters or anything"

"Yeah… it's probably just your eyes playing tricks on you" Drew agreed

Ash would've shot out a chuckle, but he was halted, when Rosa turned in a telepathic message, _"I don't think he's lying your majesty. I sense something…… something other than us… nearby"_ this made Ash took in a slight defensive stance. _"It's coming……… through the door!"_ and just when things weren't starting to cool down a bit, the main entrance suddenly whammed up causing the others to jerk their heads to that direction.

"What was that!?" Tracey asked knowing full well no one truly knew the answer.

Wham wham wham WHAM!!!

The pounding seemed to grow harder on each attempt as if something or someone was trying to get in from the outside. It was almost as if there was a battering ram smashing against the door. Seeing this, the gang quickly got off their sleeping bags and slowly approached the door. The ramming halted for a few seconds until BAM! A giant claw of a monster pierced through the wooden door scaring the pants off of their feets.

"Everybody run!" Brock recommended to which they all whole heartedly agreed. When the door finally gave in, they didn't even bother to look back. Seeing this new threat emerge from the darkness, Rosa quickly lodged a shadow ball at the creature, but to her surprise… it didn't even flinched back. Now knowing that this threat was real, she decided to move into a more defensive position.

"Quickly everyone! To the mess hall!" Cynthia pointed to the connecting room. Once everyone got in, the monster quickly broke down the door and wailed out with a violent roar not far behind. It was as if the gods themselves had given out a cry so vicious that the world would've torn itself apart. Tracey quickly closed the door behind him and stacked himself on the front hoping that his weight would suppress the damage.

"W… what do you think it is?" Anabel shivered near one of the chairs. "Whatever it is…" Todd stated with a stutter, "I don't think it want a Pokeblock…" not long after Tracey bodily barricaded the door, the monster on the outside began ramming its body onto the wooden plank like a siege ram. If it kept its pressure up, it would only be a matter of time before the door breaks down.

"What do we do?!" said Duplica a little panicked by the fact that death was literally knocking on their door. "It's gonna break the door sooner or later"

"And there's no way out!" Brock immediately scanned the area and noted that all the windows were located near the ceiling (Japanese classic house)

Seeing that they were trapped in a room with a monster just right out of those doors, Cynthia decided to make a stand. "Then we'll just have to fight it head on! Garchomp, come out and make a stand!" the dragon Pokemon appeared gnawing its teeth for its next opponent. It wasn't long until Ash and Richie followed up, "Pikachu/Sparky, let's go!" they said in unison. Even Rosa took up a defensive stance around the table.

But as Tracey got off the door and barricaded it with a chair instead, the monster on the other side stopped. As if it knew what was going to happen on the other side. And right after that moment, a deep and dark silence came over the whole temple. On the pouring rain, the blowing wind and the roaring sky made their natural sounds. The monster was toying with their minds…

"_It's probing out defenses"_ Rosa mumbled in her head as she activated her enhanced hearing abilities. _"Not on the left… right… back or front…… then…" _After searching for any feint noises that proved unnatural, her eyes widened with horror as she looked at the ceiling. _"From above!"_ she immediately pushed Ash away from the table and tumbled in an impossible manner back onto her feet. Just mere seconds after she got back on her toes, the monster dropped right from above and destroyed the roof and the table. The gang quickly got onto the defensive mode and prepared to attack. But then suddenly, the monster picked May up with its giant claws. "Ahhh!! Help me!" she cried

"May!" Max panicked.

Having that monster attacking one of her friends, Dawn decided to do something about it, "Piplup, come out and help!" but then Brock stopped her, "No Dawn! If we attack it, that thing will squish May!" the Shinou coordinator quickly put back her Pokeball and frowned to the Pokemon Breeder's point. The monster really had May in a tight grip and one wrong move could damage the girl in an unimaginable way. But the gang simply couldn't do nothing.

And that's exactly what Ash and Richie had in mind. If their Pokemons can't do the job, then they thought manpower can make a little difference. The two boys quickly jumped at the creature's humongous body and began using their natural weapons to let the girl go. Teeth and fists were probably the first choice in their arsenal but hell it wasn't doing much damage at all. In fact the monster was barely even paying attention to them. It was more focused on May's backpack.

"H… hey! Stop snooping around my bag!" the girl freaked out as the monster got a chunk of her favorite snack and garbled it in its mouth. (Snore…lax…)

The moment the creature made the feint sound, everyone seemed to have stopped on their attacks. Pikachu quickly let out a small spark of light come out of its cheeks and with the light illuminating the entire room, everyone could see the monster perfectly. The creature that was hounding them was no monster… but a hungry looking Snorlax.

"A Snorlax?" Max questioned at the Pokemon. But the hungry grubber was simply too focused on the food on its mouth to listen.

Seeing that this Pokemon was only interested in food, Ash suddenly got an idea. He picked out a double sized potato chip pack from his backpack and dangled it in front of the large Pokemon's face. "Hey there big guy, you wanna eat some nice smelling potatoes? (Snorelax!) Ok… but I'll trade it, if you drop her down" Snorelax looked at one of its paws and literally dropped girl… and with speed of a Rapadash, Ash threw the pack of chips at it and caught May just moments before she hit the ground, "Gotcha!" he sighed with relief, "I guess you really can catch them all"

**(Ten minutes later)**

After getting May exchanged for a bag of chips (which is kinda insulting for me) the gang huddled around together while Snorlax sat on one side eating the chip slowly… for some reason.

"Well this is a surprise" Zoey stated as she looked at the large Pokemon, "I thought Valmarian didn't have any Pokemons"

"Maybe this one got lost" Dawn suggested a theory, "Perhaps its trainer got lost during the storm"

"That's possible" Brock agreed. "But what would it be doing all the way up here?"

But Cynthia had the answer to that question, "It must've smelled the food we were cooking. Snorlaxes have a tendency to smell things farther than most Pokemons. It must've followed the scent"

"Well… thinking about this now won't solve anything" Drew mumbled, "Why don't we all just get some sleep and we'll see what we can do with this tubby in the morning… good night" he quickly shuffled his sleeping bag over and went straight to dreamvile. "I agree with Drew" Brock nodded, "Let's all get some rest and we can plan what to do with Snorlax in the morning" with a nod from each and every member of the group, the gang went to their respective areas and napped peacefully, dreaming about their own ambitions.

Two hours had passed and everyone was finally fast asleep again. With the rain finally quieting down and the world catching up on its breath, the air around seemed peaceful enough to doze off to dream land. But such treatment was not meant for our young hero, as someone was bold enough to disturb his sleep. "Forgive me to disturb you your highness" it was Rosa, his self-proclaimed bodyguard, "But there is a matter that requires your immediate attention"

It was somewhat rare for Rosa to speak out of her mouth, but whenever she says is urgent, then it must be urgent. Ash yawned himself out of his sleeping bag, "Oh… what is it Rosa? And… can't it wait till morning?"

"I'm afraid not your highness" was her slow reply, "But I assure you that this matter would not take long" Ash gave in and quickly followed the pink Lucario into the now ruined mess hall of the temple. "Ok… so what's the matter Rosa?" the Lucario only pointed towards the Snorlax as a gesture of her reply, "That's Snorlax… so what about it?"

"The reason why my attacks did not do as much damage as intended… is because this Pokemon is from Fort Gregro"

The name of the old battleground gave Ash the chills almost immediately as it was said. "Fort Gregro… you mean from the island where Mewtwo is?" the pink Lucario nodded in reply, "Yes… it appears Sha-hear has sent this one with a message. Show us the envelop soldier (Snor… lax)" the giant Pokemon slowly lowered its head to Ash's level and picked out something from its back. It was a blank piece of paper that looked almost like a tissue wrapping or something. Ash gladly took the object with a little disgust, but then his face suddenly turned to amaze when a holographic projection appeared on top.

It was the image of Sha-hear, though most Lucarios practically looked the same, Sha-hear had many traits that differentiate him from the others. One that was probably the most obvious was his color blending. The second trait was that scar on his left eye. Not all Pokemons have those cool marks on their faces…… unless of course, they're war paints.

"Greetings your majesty" the hologram began with a slight bow, "If you are seeing this, then that means that you have received my message. Forgive me that I am unable to deliver this personally for I have many tasks here in Fort Gregro that requires my presence. However, I am able to inform you that everything is going smoothly. The land is currently being healed by our finest workers and the island should be back to its normal glory in about a month or two. Mewtwo and his clones have also been earning their keep in the castle as well and are more effective than most. I wish I could say more, but I believe you wouldn't have too much time on your hands. The reason why I sent this messenger here is because Hagard was able to recover something of great importance from the ruins of the keep"

A small crystal shared suddenly appeared on the letter causing Ash to flinch a little, "This is the crystal of aura" the hologram continued, "Its fragments are scattered throughout the island and perhaps we will have no hope of rebuilding it ever again. This piece was the only one we were able to recover. It no longer contains any magical property but I figured that it must be rightfully given to you. Take good care of it" he paused for a moment to catch up on his breath, "This is all I have to say. I must bit you farewell sire. Oh and uh… Mewtwo sends his regards" and with that, the hologram ended.

With the shard firmly in the boy's hands, Snorlax bowed his head in respect and left the temple the same way it came in. It jumped off the roof and landed about two miles away from the area.

"So… this is a part of that crystal on that staff?" Ash looked at the small trinket in his palms and scanned its every detail. The gem itself was nothing special, not anymore at least, but it did look good for some reason. Its reinforced surface was harder than that ten thick layers of titanium alloys. For it to be shattered to bits only proves how strong the blast from the castle keep was.

"Oh hey!" Ash called to Snorlax, but it was already long gone. "Rosa, if he was a friend, why did it attack us?"

"It apparently got hungry from its travels. Hopefully Sha-hear would send a more appropriate messenger next time"

And with that done, Ash and Rosa went back to sleep, hoping that nothing else would disturb their sleep.

**(Valmarian city slums) (11:40 PM)**

Brendan and his crew were positioning themselves in every corner of the slum's sewer entrance. Rika had just notified them that Brendan was coming to meet with someone today and if they were lucky, they'd catch him 'red' handed and foil his plans right away.

"Brendan to all units, report in" the leader of the party called through his walkie-talkie.

"Frank here… all clear at my side" said the hip hop kid.

"Rika here, I'm right behind Red, he's making his way towards the slums" the genius trainer replied.

Griselda simply popped her bubblegum to signal her boss in Morse code.

"Ok everyone… keep a sharp eye for anything suspicious" Brendan ordered, "I don't want any surprises.

"Roger…" they all said in unison except for Griselda.

But as Rika continued to trail Red, something odd began to occur to her. This was just too easy and Red was not someone would get caught this fast. The guy was able to slip through the tightest of security systems and for him to not notice her was simply too strange to be true.

But… just when Rika was trailing him… Red turned around and looked at her straight in the eye. Rika froze on track for about a minute until Red decided to run. The girl quickly snapped out of her daze and reported this, "Red is on the run! I repeat, Red is on the run!" she then gave chase.

Brendan cursed under his breath, "Not good… alright let's go for it! Frank, Griselda, cut off the exits now! I'll deal with him!" The hip hop sibs immediately dashed off from their hiding spot and began making their way towards the slums.

Rika chased Red for a good whole five minutes before she managed to get him to the trap area. When the girl signaled out with a whistle, Brendan popped out and blocked his path. Seeing his escape route denied, Red decided to take another road, but Griselda and Frank blocked those areas too. With no where left to go, Red knew that he was cornered.

"Alright Red, show your face!" Brendan demanded to which the guy obeyed immediately. But when Red took off his cap, the four ambusher's eyes widened instantly. The person who they were chasing… wasn't Red, but just another guy who dressed like him. "What the!?" Brendan gawked.

"I… I'm not R… Red" the boy quivered, "I was just told to wear this get up and walk t… through here… that's all" it was then the party knew that this was another false lead. It seemed like Red was hiding his trail well… real well… "W… who are you guys!?" the kid looked as if he was about to wet himself.

"Never mind…" Brendan ordered, "Let's go… this was nothing but a waste of time" and with that he left, with a very annoyed look on his face. He really thought that he had Red by the neck, but now it looks like things weren't going to be as simple as they thought they'd be.

**(The next day) (Morning)**

The gang really got worried why the Snorlax that visited them would just disappear like that. But once they figured out that half of their rations were missing, they already knew why. Heck they were lucky, if that Pokemon should take all of their supplies then they would have to feed off the land or worst… starve to death.

But with breakfast done, Ash and his companions decided to head off towards Valmarian city once more. It was only a few hours walk from this point on, and with luck, they might just make it there before lunch.

"Alright everyone! Let's go!" Ash pumped his fist into the air again to signal the gang's departure.


	49. The Glassed Mind

**Chapter 49: The Glassed Minds……**

**(Steep Hill Valley) (1 week 1 day and 18 hours before the Valmarian league)**

Whiles on the road to Valmarian city, our heroes had to take a little detour through the Steep Hill Valley temple due to a construction repair happening to a certain highway bridge. But after climbing through the hill and having a little rest along the way, the gang were now once again up on their feet and ready to hit the road…… or at least in this case, the slopes!

Apparently the gang were now facing a rather difficult choice on how to go down hill. The path coming up was zigzagish and somewhat steep, but the other way down was going to be pretty harder… or so they thought.

"Turtwig, I choose you!" Ash called out his grass Pokemon, (Turtwig!) "Ok Turtwig, use razor leaf on that tree and cut it down!" the turtle like Pokemon obeyed its master's commands and cut the dead tree down. Its branches soon broke off during the fall and in a matter of minutes, the boy made himself…… one… giant… log…

"Uh Ash" Brock asked, "Can you tell us what you're going to do?" the boy flashed out a grin as he moved the log into position, "Just hop in and we'll find out" the gang were reluctant at first, but then decided that it was 'probably' safe. Once everyone hopped in, Ash nudged the log out on the slopes with a little push and urged everyone to hold on tight. Before the gang knew what was happening, the log slid down the hill at an incredible speed causing everyone to scream like a Totodile with a soar throat.

"WAHHHHH!!!!" even though some of the gang were panicking at first, the slide down the hill suddenly became fun! With Ash on the wheel… err… I mean on the wood, he was able to dodge all the obstacles that would prove to be dangerous. After jumping off bumps and sliding a tree through the snow, the whole group managed to make it to the Valmarian city highway road, which would lead them straight to Valmarian city.

"Woo hoo! Yeah! Now that's what I call a slide!" Max cheered, "Who's up for round two!?" but May suddenly pulled his ear before the kid got any bright ideas, "Oh no you don't mister… we still have a long way ahead of us and we wouldn't want to miss the Valmarian league now would we?"

"Yes ma'am" Max replied in defeat.

Johanna quickly let out a small stretch and moaned with pleasure of the wonderful feeling coursing through her body, "Oh my… I've never felt my heart raced like that for such a long time. I really thought I was going to have a heart attack" but then Cynthia calmed her down, "I guess you haven't traveled for awhile. A little rush like this can really wake you up from a drowsy day. And look… we probably saved up a whole hour worth of walking. This road over here should take us all the way to Valmarian city"

With their primary objective so close at hand, the gang kept their heads in the game and move on through the road. It was a real road this time, not like one of those dirt paths that Ash and his friends used to take during their previous adventures. Therefore it was much easier to travel and a lot faster too. With a whole strip of lines to guide them, it was nearly impossible to get lost.

But as they traverse through the marked path of the road will little much attention to the weather, Drew's eyes suddenly caught sight of a large board that appeared out of the next turn. "Hey guys look!" it was a Valmarian greeting billboard with a beautiful secretary woman smiling cheerfully. "It says only three more hours till we get to Valmarian!" but when the wind blew out the trees blocking the rest of the board, the gang sulked. Drew was right though… it was only three more hours to Valmarian city………

"……by car" Max finished the sentence

"Come on, let's keep moving" Brock motioned to keep the gang moving. "If it's three hours by car then it may take about four to five hours by foot" But not even those words were able to lift the gang's spirit.

As they continued to make their way through the road, their progressed slowed down considerably by Misty's burden. She was taking small steps… very small and slow steps.

The girl could not place the feeling why she was doing this. Usually it would be Ash who would always lag behind and she would always yell at him for being slow. But now she was the one being slow, and Ash wasn't even yelling at her yet. But who knows when that would change?

After a long while of traveling, Brock suddenly hatched an idea up his egg. "I got it!" the gang turned to him, "I know a way to get us there faster!" everyone didn't really anticipate an idea from the guy, but right now anything to get them faster would be most welcome. Brock quickly pulled out a Pokeball and threw it to the sides, "Steelix, I choose you!" a long steel like beast appeared roaring to its master with happiness. It wasn't long then till everyone got the idea.

The steel Pokemon had the speed of a regular car and with its long body, it would be able to take them to the city in a matter of hours. However… there was still a slight flaw in Brock's plan.

It was snowing…

Steelix quickly roared out in pain the moment the first snowflake landed on its body. "AH! Steelix wait!" the squinty eyed breeder called out. After getting the Pokemon back into its Pokeball, the gang once again resumed their long painful march. But that little attempt wasn't a waste of effort. At least it brought them a slight bit on entertainment to cool their minds on.

"Well that was a waste of time" May stated out as she put her hands on her waist.

Brock sulked, "Sorry"

"It's not your fault Brock" Ash cheered him up, "Who knew that Steelix would also be afraid of the snow? Come on everyone, let's keep moving"

**(Valmarian city merchant's quarters)**

Gary Oaks, the boss of the biggest gang in the entire city was taking a little stroll down the merchant's quarters to get a little rest of his own. On his right side was none other than Jaques, his bodyguard. And on his left side was his own second favorite Pokemon, Umbreon. As the boy walked through the streets of the city, the local stores feel much more at peace knowing that one of the best of the bests were in the area. With the increasing numbers of trainer battles happening on the streets, the people could no longer put their safety trust with the local police force due to their lack of men to cover the entire area.

Gary was probably some sort of immunity idol which sends all of them low lives back to their corner.

After a few minutes of walking around, Gary stopped by a fruit stand and bought a bushel of apples to keep his mouth busy. A little stroll around the city was probably good for his health.

The merchants and other vendors had to admit though…… when they heard that Gary was the leader of the most powerful gang in the city, they really thought of him to be like one of those hooligans that kept challenging each other for no apparent reasons. But now after they got to know the boy a bit, he actually turned out to be a nice guy. Whenever he's around, no one would dare to even show their Pokemons to him, fearing that he might actually take interest with them.

"Hey there Gary" called out one of the store clerks. "How's it hanging with ya?"

"Oh you know… same old same old" the boy replied in a friendly manner.

"As usual… Hey, here's a little something for the trip. It's on me" the clerk quickly threw out a bottle of soda at the boy to which he caught skillfully. Guess all those practice with catching and throwing Pokeballs paid off at some point.

As more and more people come to greet the boy, Jaques couldn't help but smirk behind his coat. Gary was finally getting the recognition he so entirely deserved. When the boy first set foot onto the soil of this city, he was a nobody just like the rest of them wanabes. But after clawing his way through sweat and blood, the boy finally made it to the top. He earned his mark here in Valmarian city, and by the gods it was no small feat he has accomplished. He trained, fought, battled, and nearly injured himself fatally several times before, but no matter what came across his path, he would stand up once more and march on to fulfill his goal. Heck, not even a tank would be strong enough to hold this boy down, that was for sure.

"Hey Jaques" Gary called out catching his attention, "Come on, let's go"

**(Back with the gang) (01:30 PM)**

Ash and his friends were once again… walking and walking… and to my surprise… they were still walking. It had been hours since they last saw that billboard saying that Valmarian city was close by. If only that had some sort of transportation that can travel the distance of 30kph then they would probably be there by now. But apparently, they were pretty much half of a half way there.

As they entered upon a small open clearing, Ash recommended having lunch before moving again. With Misty lagging behind all the time, he was worried that he might've been traveling too fast for her to keep up. He had been doing a lot of workouts lately and that must've given him the extra speed and the bonus stamina.

Right after the camp was set, Brock, Tracey and Johanna decided that it was time to make something special for the gang. A full course meal with everything in it! Veggies, meat, fruits, and all the other food group on one table. However… with their supplies dwindling thanks to that Snorlax last night, cooking that much might take a lot out of their provisions. But what the heck!? They were near Valmarian city anyway. Why not make a blast before going in?

With the fire up and going and the meal slowly being cooked with a nice warm temperature, May, the coordinator from Petalburg city decided to do a little sightseeing around the woods. Now that they were nearing the city's outskirts, the trees had become somewhat sparse, which proved to be good now that they can move around a lot easier.

May knew that she wouldn't see any Pokemons around here, but that didn't mean there weren't any beautiful sceneries. As she traverse through the small batch of pine trees and thorn bushes, another small clearing opened up to her. Her eyes widened out so much that it was amazing that her eye balls didn't fall out of their sockets. Surrounded by a thick coat of snow and overshadowing a small natural spring was a patch of winter rose flowers!

It was beautiful, probably even beyond words, or at least so to speak. But May couldn't even imagine something as perfect as this. Life itself thickened near the spring as if it was the source of all the lands energies. Grass grow longer and the area around was nearly 'literally' brimming with life.

"Hmm… this should be a great place to relax" May said to herself. "Alright everyone, come out and play!" she immediately called out all of her Pokemons to have a little peaceful R&R themselves. As the girl and her Pokemons dazzled themselves on the white field of flowers and snow, May tumbled onto the softest spot in the entire patch and laid her eyes on the clouds above.

It was hard to imagine how strong the rain was last night. With most of the clouds gone and only a sparkling of light to signal where the sun was, it seemed like the storm didn't even exist.

As she began shaping some of the clouds into Pokemons and forms of the different things she liked, her mind began to drift back off to sleep where it could rest and recuperate from the beating from all the world's problems.

**(Back at the campsite)**

But with May off snoozing on her own, the rest of the gang were now looking forward to their next meal. Ash and Drew were off training with their Pokemons. By using the combined skill of contest combinations and Pokemon battle ruthlessness, they were able to get themselves some decent results. It was like training only ten times more effective.

"Hmm… looks like Drew's techniques are mostly basic combinations mixed with his own" said Kenny to his friend Zoey. The red head nodded in agreement, "That may be true, but his skills improve everyday. It's almost like Ash's training style is rubbing off on him"

"Ok everyone, lunch is ready!" Johanna called to the gang, "Come on Glameow, your poffins are ready" with the humans and the Pokemons happily chowing down their meals, Duplica suddenly noticed that one of them wasn't present on the table. "Oh hey… where's May? Her food will get cold if she doesn't get it quick" but Max simply waved it off, "She's probably sleeping somewhere in the meadows. Who knows? I'd say let's just leave her there. It won't be out fault she missed lunch" the others laughed at the boy's little statement. Though it was hard to imagine something like that coming out from the girl's little brother.

"Well, I'm going to look for her" Ash informed, taking his leave from his plate. "I wouldn't to stop just because we couldn't find May" but just a few seconds before the boy was off, Misty turned her head towards him and opened up her mouth. The words seemed to be in her head, but the voice just didn't seem like they wanted to come out. Like an invisible barrier was locked up in her throat or something. Dawn noticed this and began to worry.

"Is something wrong Misty?"

The girl vigorously shook her head, "No no… I think I'll go with Ash. You know how bad he is in finding his way out" she immediately excused herself from the table and followed the boy not far behind.

**(Back with May) (May's POV)**

"Haaaa…" I sighed out to myself as I looked at the clouds passing by. My Pokemons were all playing around in the field near the woods while I was laying on the same spot near the warm spring. It was amazing how Mother Nature does her work even though no one really notices. The moment I put my head on the comfy grass behind my back, I removed my bandana from my head and tucked it into my side bag. I felt so at peace that I believed that I would probably go to sleep the next time I close these eyes.

The grasses on my back were so soft and smooth that it felt like they were massaging my bones into position. I still had some wounds from the battle on that Pokemon island where we saved Ash. Who knew that the boy would actually be a half king? I guess I can imagine why he kept this a secret from all of us. He always did want to keep everyone safe, but the boy never really thought of his own safety. I guess that's probably one of the million things I like about him.

"Haaa…" I sighed again as I shifted my position to the sides taking a little breather off the top of my lunges. The more I keep thinking about Ash, my heart begins to race. I got so used on having him around me all the time that the moment he's out of my sight I begin to panic. It feels so safe just to stand beside him… like he was the castle and I was the princess that he was protecting.

Max seems to think like that too. There were even times where he would openly declare that he'd rather have Ash for a brother rather than me. I kind of like the thought of it though… me and Ash…… "Tee hee" I giggled to myself as I felt my cheeks began to light up like Christmas candle lights.

"May?"

The moment I heard my name being called by a familiar voice I suddenly turned around and locked eyes with the person I was just thinking about. At first I thought I was just dreaming or perhaps having the sun hallucinating in my eyes, but after a moment of silence, my nerves went haywire. "Ahhhh! Ash!" I screamed nearly out of my lunges. "W… what are you doing here!?" he looked at me in an innocent way and gladly explain, "I was just looking for you. Brock already made lunch and we'll be leaving soon" he replied with his usual trademark smile, "Come on, you don't want to miss on Brock's special meal today"

He offered me his hand as a gesture of helping me get back on my feet, to which I gladly accept. By the time I was up dusting the dirt off my shorts, Ash raised a brow. "Is something wrong May? You look kind of down" he was probably half right with that. Ever since we landed on the southern Valmarian port I've been kind of getting this awkward feeling inside of me. Though I might not look the part, I've been feeling a little restless for some time now. Everyone was nervous that much was for sure, and I tried my best in concealing it so that I wouldn't have to worry everyone else, especially Ash. He has a lot of things up his shoulders that it's a wonder how he's able to keep moving.

Seeing that he was giving me that worried look, I decided to come clean. "Well… I guess you could say I'm a little nervous" I took out my bandana and held it onto my chest, "With Valmarian city so close and all, I feel like something big is gonna happen when we get there"

But to my surprise, Ash simply flashed out his trademark grin, "I guess that's normal for all of us" he began, "Even I'm a little nervous myself. But I know a great way on how to take all that stress away" I tilted my head to the sides in a state of confusion. "Here… let me show you" he stood next to my side and inhaled a lot of fresh air into his lunges. "Ok first, you close your eyes take a deep breath" I followed his instructions and inhaled as much air as my body could contain, "Keep breathing like that for about two or three times……… and when you're ready, look up into the sky and open your eyes" though that method of his looked kind of weak, it did manage to lift some the stress away from my body.

"Wow…" I said softly as I exhaled the air within me. As I continued to glare upon the wide open sky, the weight on my body seemed to have just disappeared.

Seeing that I was getting the technique done right, Ash decided to explain why it worked. "When you look up into the sky, you'll probably realize how small your problems are. Being nervous and restless is probably just another part of life. We can't stop it, but we have a choice on where it goes. Hehehe…… I learned that one from professor Oak"

A/N: This relaxation technique was copied out of a stress reliever guide.

As the two of us continued to breathe in and out in synchronization, I suddenly began to feel my muscles relax again. Perhaps this relaxation session was really working after all.

But just when we thought that nothing could disturb us, a strong gush of wind came out of nowhere and began blowing at us, making Ash and I cover our eyes from the dust. The wind waker lasted for about fifteen seconds or so until it finally decided to die down. As I retook my position upwards to the sky, something beautiful seemed to have befallen before us.

The wind waker (strong gush of wind) was so strong and so powerful that the petals of the winter roses flew high up in the air and slowly fell back to the surface like the snow themselves. Their brightly colored shapes glittered as the sun shone onto them making a pattern of rainbows near the spring.

But as the both of us were enjoying this little scene, Blaziken and Skitty began making some strange noises with objects they could find in the area. Before I knew it, my Pokemons were now playing a song for us. I didn't really know why, but the tune they were giving out really brought some light back in my eyes. My head was moving with the beat and Ash's foot was doing the same. The next thing I knew, Ash grabbed my hand on purpose and said, "Hey… wanna dance for awhile?" my whole heart agreed to it within a heartbeat.

**(Back to the normal POV)**

While Ash and May were dancing themselves and enjoying each other's company for the duration, Misty finally stumbled out of the bushes with her Togepi on her arms. "Ash! May! Where are you!" she yelled out, "Geeze, I take my eyes off him for one second and he's gone like the wind. I wonder how fast as slowpoke like him could actually go?"

But as the young Cerulean gym leader was taking a little detour, a strong gush of wind blew out from the sides causing her to duck and cover. "Wahhh! What's with this wind!?" she screamed while her Togepi continued to chirp. After a long while, the gush ended leaving nothing but a large trail of falling leaves.

"What was that about?" she mumbled out.

Not long after the little wind blew out from the distance, Misty began to hear a feint trail of music or something lingering in the air. It was a soft calming sound with no grudge of sadness. It was probably the opposite really. The tune of the melody was soothing and it really calmed her mind. But the moment she turned around the corner, her blood suddenly began to boil.

In the middle of the winter rose flower patch, right next to a spring, were Ash and May…… and they were dancing. May had a smile plastered all over her face while Ash had a more slightly happy yet confused look on his face. The kid didn't really know how to dance, since he never practiced it before. He would've tried to, back in Camaron palace (8th movie) but due to the strict rule of the 'Guardian' of aura, he only had the luxury of watching others dance.

But this sight only continued to anger Misty even more. It was good that one of her hands were gripping onto a tree or Togepi would be screaming with pain. She couldn't explain why she was feeling this way, or why she was developing a new hatred for all of them. When the others joined up with the group it was fine at first, but whenever they got close to Ash, or too close for her liking, her mind begins to think of ways to destroy them.

As she watched the two of them twirling around with grace and beauty, she slowly turned around and walked away… with her hair covering her eyes. By the time she was gone, the music that the two have been dancing to the beat had finally come to an end. "Hehehehehe… that was fun" May exhaled through some measure of exhaustion, "Come on, I think Brock and the others are waiting for us" she quickly turned around and dashed off back to camp before the boy had the chance to reply.

**(A few hours later) (04:30 PM)**

Max couldn't really put it, but after his sister got back from her little exploration, she seemed… strangely happier than usual. I mean… she was practically smiling for a whole hour ever since she got back to the campsite. She was humming a strange tune in her mouth while moving to the rhythm of the beat. Ash was still the same, and he was talking to his friends like nothing happened, but it seems like the kid managed to lighten the load off the girl.

"Hey May" Max finally got the courage to speak, "What's with you?"

"Hmm? What do you so ever mean Maxie?" a tingle of chills went down the boy's spine as she spoke his nickname in a very innocent like manner. That was it, something was definitely wrong with May today.

"You look… happier than usual…" Max said a little scared on what her reaction might be. The girl simply scooted away and smiled back, "What do mean? I'm always happy Maxie"

"_If she calls me that one more time, I think I'm gonna freak!"_ the little Mr. Maple scooted away, hiding behind Tracey.

But just before anyone could say another word, Dawn gave out a cry so loud that it just grabbed their attention in an instant. "Everyone, look!" she pointed out on the other side of the hill they were walking and glared at the marvelous sight with a smile worthy of a thousand praises. When the others turned their heads to the side where she was pointing, their hearts literally stopped for a whole two seconds.

Just over the hill, right beside the setting sun……… was the place that had been on the minds of our heroes for nearly three months. With its gates standing strong as it was first built many years ago, its crowded structures teeming with millions of Pokemon trainers, its battle arena standing tall like never before and its beauty… majestic beyond belief.

The Valmarian city…… the place where heroes are made… was finally in their sight…

The place was better than any of them could've imagined. At first they thought that the place was just like any other city or someplace high-tech like LaRousse city (city of Pokemon movie 7: Destiny Deoxys) but the place was probably three times bigger.

Though the city wasn't as clear as day to them just yet, they can already tell just by looking at the outskirts of the wall, that it was going to be a place to remember.

But just when Ash was about to say 'Let's go' a pair of giant robotic arms suddenly appeared out of nowhere and snatch Pikachu right off the boy's shoulders. "Ahhhh! Hey what gives!? Pikachu! (Pikapi!!!) and it wasn't long till a familiar trio decided to show their faces once again. But at least this time, they were prepared.

"Prepare for trouble you sniveling toads" said Jessie as she appeared out in her J-unit Mk1

"And make it double cuz this is the end of the road" said James as he appeared in his J-unit Mk2

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all people within our nation"

"To denounce the evil from truth and…"

"Yeah yeah yeah… we heard this a billion times already! Now give me back my Pikachu!" Ash interrupted waving his arms up with a demand to lower Pikachu from their clutches. Jessie quickly grew a throbbing vein on her forehead and quickly opened her hatch, "Can't you twerp wait till we're finished!? It's extremely rude to interrupt someone when they're speaking!"

"Well it's much more rude to steal a Pokemon that doesn't belong to you!" May countered holding out one of her Pokeballs. "Can't you guys go on a vacation this once and leave us alone!? Its bad enough you had to hunt us for a whole year! Now give Pikachu back this instance!"

"What makes you think we're gonna follow orders coming from a twerp?" the talking Meowth replied rubbing his whiskers. This made Cynthia and Johanna open up their eyes in amazement. "Incredible… a Pokemon that can talk human language!"

Rosa simply shrugged and ignored their amazement.

"Give it up Team Rocket" Ash continued, "We beat a hundred of your machines before, and we can do it again! Come on everyone!"

"That may be true" Jessie mocked, "So this time… we decided to have a little change in our strategy…"

"Since you can take on one of us at a time" James added, "Let's see how you deal with three of them at the same time!" in an instant, the three bad guys appeared in three mechanical robots. (Try to imagine them in one of those old school anime classics with brightly colored robots) As they readied themselves for battle, Ash and his companions pulled out their Pokemons for a fight.

Dawn went first, "Ok Buneary, ice beam!" the rabbit Pokemon quickly unleashed a beam of ice from its mouth but the attack only deflected away from the J-units.

Kenny was next, "Alakazam, come out and use psychic!" the psychic Pokemon quickly came out from its Pokeball and unleashed an invisible mind attack, but like always, it was deflected all the same.

"Hahahaha!" James laughed at their pathetic attempt to destroy them, "Don't be so naïve. You think your pathetic attacks could actually harm the Jamesmatron ten-thousand?"

But then Jessie perked up, "What!? Hey I thought we agreed to call it the Jessie-maidens twenty-thousand?!"

"Oh pach-shaw, that name has no sense of style at all"

"WHAT!? I'm the leader of this group and so I get to name our machine you get it?!"

It wasn't long till Meowth butted in, "Hey! I was the one who made this machine so quit your yapping and get back to fighting! And so, as the creator of this machine, I hereby call it the Meowthatron!" but the other two immediately disagreed. Right after the first argument was sent, the whole group began to fight in the cockpit for such a really pathetic reason.

On the outside of the machine, Ash and the rest of the gang immediately sweatdropped as they heard everything they were saying through the giant speaker on the robot. The group were actually expecting a real fight, but now…… they believe if they just sit back long enough, one of those three would probably hit the self destruct button…… if they were lucky of course.

"Umm… mind telling me who those clowns are?" Cynthia asked looking rather confused at the moment. Brock sulked down and sighed, "Those are Team Rocket. You could say that they're a bunch of troublemakers during our travels. They're sometimes harmless, but they can get really annoying at times"

"We heard that!" said the trio.

"Well it doesn't matter!" Ash barked, "Give me back Pikachu and I promise I won't blast you away!"

The female Team Rocket only smirked, "Nice try twerp, but we're not the ones getting blast off today…… It's going to be you! (presses a button)

When Meowth saw this, he immediately screamed like a little kitten, "Jessie! What have you done!?" the girl looked at them with a quizzled brow, "I'm firing a rocket. Is that a problem?"

"You machine doesn't have rockets!" James screaked, "You're the one who's in charge of handling Pikachu's capture!"

"Then… what button did I press (pause) Hmm… The Rampage button?" in a matter of seconds the three Team Rocket machines suddenly began acting crazy and beating each other up! Pikachu was instantly released from its cage and returned to its master. "Pikachu" Ash called his little buddy with relief, "Are you ok? (Pikapi…)"

"Who in the world put a rampage button in this machine!?" Jessie screamed out to the top of her lunges as her J-unit Mk1 took down Meowth's and James's robots. Meowth ejected from his seat and landed safely on the ground but poor James barely had enough time to find the ejection switch before his machine was torn in two by Jessie's mechanical menace. When he fell to the ground a little unscathed, the robot suddenly pulled out a flamethrower and burned the guys pants making him run for the nearest

"That thing's gone crazy!" said Tracey as he ducked down for cover. "Let's get out of here fast!" quickly agreeing to his idea, the gang returned their Pokemons into their Pokeballs and dashed off into the distance to get away from the Jessie-maiden 20k. As they all hid behind the tree line areas, the gang couldn't help but feel a little pity for the girl trapped inside. Not even the worst criminal deserved something like this…… but I guess she deserved it… in some sort of way.

"Oh no!" Zoey cried out, "It's heading towards that power station!" to her truth, that was exactly where the machine was heading. And from the looks of it, that power plant seemed to be linked directly to Valmarian city. "If that thing hits the power grid, the damage could big catastrophic!" Brock concluded.

Seeing that this thing threatened the land itself, Ash immediately waved his hand to the others as a gesture to follow him, "Come on you guys! We need to stop it before it hits the station! Let's go!"

**(Power plant lounge)**

"Hey Billy" said one of the worker to his lazy partner.

"Oh hey…" he replied taking a sip from his coffee mug, "Hey… check the window for me will ya? It's your turn to clean them anyway"

"Yeah sure…" but just as the power plant worker opened up the glass window, a large figure suddenly caught his attention. "Eh? What's that?" as the large humanoid thing came in closer, his eyes and nerved widened considerably. "WHATTTTTT!!! Wha wha wha… what is that!" his scream caused his partner to come beside him, "What is it? Did a mole get to you or… HOLY DRATINI!" in an instant, the guy pushed the alarm button which signaled the employees to evacuate the building. "Get everyone out of here now! Come on Polly, we gotta go!"

"Y… yes sir!"

**(Back with the gang)**

As the gang gave chase to the mechanical monster, Brock had to ask, "Hey Ash! How do we stop this thing!?" but clearly the boy didn't have the answer yet. He had to make it up as he went along. "We'll have to try and slow it down first!" the boy replied taking a Pokeball out of his jacket, "Swellow, Turtwig, Cyndaquil, I choose you guys!" a bird, turtle and fire mole Pokemons appeared ready to serve their master. "Ok here's the plan. Swellow, you take Cyndaquil and let it use flame thrower on the robot. Turtwig, use your razor leaf to cut down some of the trees to slow it down!" (Swellow!) (Cyndaquil!) (Turt Turtwig!)

With Ash's plan in motion, Cynthia decided to add in her Pokemons as well, "Garchomp, come out!" a dragon-shark like Pokemon appeared ready to make a mess. "Garchomp, get in front of that machine and try to stop it!"

Seeing what the blonde champ had in mind, Brock decided to add up as well, "Onix, Steelix, I choose you two!" a rock and steel Pokemon appeared. "Follow Garchomp and stop that machine hurry! (roar!)" As all of other Ash's friends helped out in what little way they could, they seemed to be making little difference with the robot's progress. Turtwig was able to level down some trees to block the machine's path, but it doesn't seem to be very effective. Garchomp and the rest of the Pokemons were trying their best to bust a hole onto that robot's hull but it seemed like TR were able to build themselves an impenetrable armor.

As minutes rolled by and time clearly not on their side, the gang decided to change their tactics. "Everyone, listen up!" Ash called to their attention, "Change of plans. If we can't stop, then we'll just have to get it to turn around!"

Brock got the idea and quickly checked out his map. "The way to the west goes directly towards the ocean!" he explained, "If we can send it there, it won't bother anyone ever again!"

Kenny nodded in agreement, "He's right, the farther we send it away from land, the less damage it can do!"

"Alright then! Cyndaquil, Pikachu, Rosa, give everything you got on the right side of the machine and make it turn around!" with the order given, the three Pokemons unleashed a volley of attacks on the robot's shoulder making it turn, little by little. Seeing his plan unfolding nicely, Brock reorganized his Pokemons as well. "Onix, Steelix, use your bodies and push the robot to the right side hurry!" immediately, the rest of the gang followed Brock's example and began pushing the robot to the right side.

Paul noticed that strength was needed so he called out his evolved starter Pokemon, "Torterra, come out!" a giant grass type Pokemon appeared with a loud roar. "Torterra, use leaf storm and hold it down!"

But without sufficient strength, Duplica decided to turn the table around, "Mommy dit, Daddy dit, Dit junior, come out and play!" three blob like Pokemons appeared. "Daddy did, turn to Steelix and help out. Mommy did, turn to Onix and do the same. Dit junior, turn to Pikachu and make it big!" Dit junior saluted and began using its super unique talent to grow into the biggest Pikachu anyone has ever seen before in their lives. It stood nearly as tall as the robot, but it was big enough to hold the thing up tight.

But after awhile of punching and kicking and holding, Dit junior suddenly punched a hole into the cockpit and threw Jessie away far into the forest and quickly halted the robot on its track. "Alright everyone!" Ash cheered, "Now… push!!!!" with the strength of nearly a million normal men, the gang pushed the machine around successfully making it turn to the other side towards the ocean, where it would eventually stop and die down somewhere quietly.

Once they were sure that they were safe from certain death, the power plant workers let out a jubilant cry of joy to their saviors below. Luckily the power plant barely got a scratch, however… some of the conducts were pretty damaged up, but thanks to the gang's heroic efforts, the repairs should take about a few days rather than a year.

It was probably just another day for the gang, but all this excitement was really building up tension to every last one of them. However…… thanks to Team Rocket's interference, the sun was already setting and the gang would probably make it to Valmarian city by mid-night… if they were again of course… lucky.

After a few minutes later, the plant manager arrived on scene to thank the gang that saved them, "Thank you very much good trainers" he shook their hands to show his gratitude, "If you guys didn't stop that thing when it did, the damage would be too much to bear. I wished their was someway we could return the favor"

"Well…" Ash thought for a moment, "Do you happen to know the fastest way to Valmarian city by any chance?"

"Valmarian city?" the manger cocked a brow, "Oh you must be trainers coming to participate in the Valmarian league, yes? Well, if you follow the path where the robot took, it should lead you back to the road. From there, just follow up north till you see a large, no wait… huge… no… enormous gate. But I think you already knew that. However… I don't think you'll be able to get in"

"Why not?" Anabel questioned

"Valmarian city has a strict curfew of their gates ya see… No one is allowed in or out pass seven o'clock. So you'll have to start again tomorrow morning. That's how the city keeps order inside and outside of the city. I wish I could help you more, but I don't have the power over security"

**(A few hours later) (08:39 PM)**

Seeing that once again, Team Rocket has successfully hampered their progress into the city of Valmarian, though intentionally or unintentionally, the gang decided to stay on the outskirts of the city walls and set up camp for the night. Though the plant manager was right, the gate of Valmarian was indeed enormous. The metallic door stood about ten or twenty times taller than your average man's height and its hard structure made it almost impervious to bombs. It was like this whole city was built to withstand a siege of some sort.

"Well… I guess we got no other choice but to set up camp here guys" Brock gestured to a small patch of grass which looked decent enough for a campsite. The others agreed and quickly began to unload their supplies onto the ground. "I'll have supper ready in an hour. You guys go along and set up camp. I think we'll need a whole night's rest when we get inside" but then he suddenly noticed that one person was not around. "Eh? Hey… where's Ash?"

May looked around for a moment before noticing the person in question near a hill overlooking the giant southern gate with Rosa right beside him. "There he is. Wait here… I'll go talk to him" she slowly approached the boy hoping not to disturb his moment. "Ash?" she spoke his name softly, but he didn't react. The boy's focus was completely laid on the southern gates. His deep and intoxicating gaze were fixed onto its metal structure, his conscious drifted away hoping to see some sort of light in the end of the darkness. But hey… I'm not Shakespeare…

"Ash?" she called again, but it looked like the boy was just too preoccupied to even notice her. It wasn't long then till Pikachu decided to call in, "Pikapi…"

"Huh? Oh sorry Pikachu. Is something wrong?" the little mouse only pointed to the sides which made him turn his attention to May who appeared to be smiling, "Oh sorry May, what is it?"

"We're setting up camp now and we could really use your help" she said cheerfully. Ash rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment seeing how much of a fool he was to just stand there and watch, "Oh yeah… sorry. I guess I was too busy thinking about something" but before he took off to help with the camp, he darted one last look at the gate and smirked under his lips.

**(Somewhere along the woods)**

James and Meowth were walking (barely walking) aimlessly around the forest after their inevitable defeat at the hands of the twerps. The blue haired boy was using a stick to help carry the weight of his body around while Meowth had his whiskers bent to the max.

"I hate to admit it" the talking cat began, "But I think our lost back there was completely pathetic"

"I agree" James managed to mumble through all of his aching pain, "My bones are so crumbled than I think they turned to dust. It'll take me a year to recover from this. Let's just go and find Jessie and get out of here. A nice relaxing vacation back in Shinou region should be nice"

"I second that" Meowth whole heartedly agreed. "Some fish fillet and Pokeblocks would be nice too" as they kept walking, an idea popped into his head, "Hey… maybe if we're lucky, we won't be able to find her"

James nodded, "Yes… we'll just say that we tried our best and collapsed along the way"

"Again, I second that" and in an instant, the two of them fell to the ground completely exhausted from all the fighting. Hopefully they'll stay like that till the end of the week.

**(Back with the gang)**

Right after dinner was served, the whole group dug in almost immediately. Johanna and Brock could already feel the tension coming from the young trainers and it looked like all of them were eating more than they usually did. Drew garbled down a whole steak in one bite. Duplica was eating three bowls of rice instead of her standard three cups. Richie was eating slowly, but steadily. Dawn was eating faster than a pack of piranhas. Anabel was also eating faster than usual. Paul and Zoey on the other hand were keeping themselves cool.

"I'm done!" the trainers said in unison. Once they put their cups down, the immediately went their separate ways and find themselves a nice quiet spot to think for themselves. "Hey… what's with all of them?" Misty asked hoping to get herself a decent answer for once.

Johanna chuckled, "Its called battle stress Misty" she began, "When people are facing a great challenge they tend to find some time to think. This is usually the best time to reflect on their experience and keep themselves from being too stressed out. I think you did that before too, am I right Cynthia?"

The blonde Shinou champ nodded, "Indeed…… when I was at the first battle of the Valmarian league, I locked myself in my hotel room just to get some time to think. I guess when you're used to somethings; it doesn't really bother you anymore"

As the Shinou trainers laughed amongst themselves, Misty once again got that gut like feeling like she was being left out again. Perhaps staying away from Ash's journey for too long can really leave you behind.

**(With Drew) (The Cheery Bard…)**

Our green haired trainer found himself a quiet spot a little near an open clearing a few clicks away from the main camp. Once he made sure that he was alone and no one was there to interrupt him, he called out his Pokemons for one last look before they enter their names into the halls of champions. Roselia, Maquerain, Absol, Flygon and Butterfree. These Pokemons are his strongest and most loyal companions and never before had they failed him. Sure, they may have been defeated many times, but it is because of those defeats that makes him and his companions stronger.

He had battled in Hoenn, Kanto and Johto and he had never won any major trophies before. But he did not care for that… he just wanted to go out there and be the best coordinator he can be. Whether thick or thin, rain or shine, he had gotten through all of those obstacles himself and never had it hindered or hampered him before.

As he looked onto his five loyal Pokemons, he couldn't help but smile as the old battles ring back into his head. And with his binds loosen and his mind set clear, he gazed onto the gates of Valmarian city and prepared for the battles that are to come.

**(With May) (The Gold Hearted Maiden)**

May, the coordinator from Petalburg city found her sanctuary near a small boulder overlooking the campsite. With no one around, she quickly pulled out all of her Pokeballs and summoned out all of her friends. Blaziken, Eevee, Munchlax, Squirtle, Skitty, and Beautifly. These were her Pokemons for the battle in Valmarian city. As they all exchanged looks onto each other, the chocolate haired girl couldn't help but smile with a hint of pride to herself and her companions.

For two years she had been traveling and for two years she has accomplished many things that she never thought possible for a twelve year old girl. She had become just as famous as her father, Norman Maple perhaps even more famous now that she was competing in the Valmarian league. But no matter what the others thought of her, she knew that she would never have come through without her friends. All of the knowledge she knows today were brought in through experience and feelings. Her mind was set the moment she held Torchic in her two arms like her first child. Her destiny was written by her and her alone, with no other ink staining her pages.

It was true that her adventures were great beyond words, but the time she spent with Ash would probably be the most exciting. Whenever she was with him, everyday seemed like an adventure, nothing in her life was ever dull. But whenever he wasn't around… it almost felt like the sun would refuse to shine. There was not a doubt in her mind nor her heart or soul… that she had fallen for him. At first when she first traveled Hoenn and Kanto, she thought that it was impossible for someone like her to fall for any man. But when she traveled to Johto without anyone to guide her… the wonderful emotion locked in her heart finally opened up and graced her body with a feeling so unimaginable that it coursed through your blood like a bolt of lightning.

And so……… by submitting to this feeling deep within the contents of her very personality… she had freed herself from bonds beyond reason.

With her mind clear of doubts and heart clear of burden, May and her six loyal Pokemons turned their gaze towards the southern gate of the city and prepared their souls for their next challenge.

**(With Richie) (The Twin of Light)**

Richie, the trainer who came all the way from Goldenrod city in the Johto regions has found an area where sound was light. A place that was a little farther than the others near the woods of which TR had destroyed about a few hours ago. With no one but the trees, grass, wind and the full moon gracing him with their presence, the boy released all of his Pokemons and put Sparky at the center of the group. As he looked at his Pokemons, the memories of battles he had come through flashed back onto his mind in a blink of an eye.

Together he and his companions stood against many rivals and faced many opponents along the way. Though his accomplishments were nothing more but a mere trickle compared to Ash's range of trophies, he was still proud of himself and his Pokemons. Sparky (Pikachu) Rose (Taillow) Zippo (Charmeleon) Cruz (Pupitar) and Happy (Butterfree). These were his Pokemons for the battle ahead. Each were all seasoned Pokemons and each were all ready for any challenge.

Of all of Richie's life… he had accomplished many of his goals. He had become a better trainer than he thought that he could ever be, conquered his fears and doubts of his skills, and facing that which he could not go against before. Many of his adventures were grand and some were even plain mysterious, but out of all that, he had tasted life to the fullest extent of its nature.

Life is sometimes sweet and sour for many of us humans, but for Richie… life is somewhat bland. It was neither sour nor sweet but more of somewhere in between. There had been ups and there had been downs for him and his companion. But no matter how high the mountain was, his strength and determination was there to lift him… and if that was not enough… then his companions were there… to lighten the burden.

But no matter how many goals this boy had succeeded, something just seemed to be missing out. Like a loophole made with every accomplishment gained. There was no doubt that he enjoyed victory and defeat, but with everything that he and his friends got through, a part of him just didn't feel it to be right. But soon all of that changed when he traveled with Ash and co. Whenever he walked with them, every step he took seemed like an accomplishment a thousand folds greater than all of his adventures put together. He did not know why, but traveling with these people seemed to have brought him so much joy he thought wasn't possible. Traveling with them… traveling with Ash… was the most fulfilling journey… he had ever felt…

With his head back in the game, his heart clear of burdens, Richie and his Pokemons set their sights onto the gates of Valmarian city where their next accomplishment awaits!

**(With Dawn) (The Lord's Apprentice)**

Our little blue haired coordinator from Twinleaf town was having a little time alone near the beach to set her minds off things…… to reflect on the journey she had finished. With the cool breeze of the sea soothing her ears, she released her Pokemons to come and watch the scenery with her. Piplup, Buneary, Pachirisu, Buizel, and Bayleef. Her most trusted and loyal Pokemons of all times stood beside her on this very night to ease the burden on her mind.

With the moon grazing downwards, shining it bright light onto the surface of the world, Dawn recalled the adventures that she and her friends journeyed through deep within her mind. Her past experience, her previous life… and her encounter with the legendary Pokemon… Mesprit. She did not know what or why that Pokemon appeared before her during the beginning of her Pokemon journey, but whatever it may be… she knew that it had to be some sort of a sign for greatness. It's not everyday you get to meet a legendary Pokemon…… that is of course… if you're Ash.

But that was something you would expect from a main character after all.

As she turned her eyes into the infinite sky above, the weight on her shoulders seemed to have lifted away slightly. Her mind was at ease… but not forever.

She has faced many problems in her road to greatness, and each problem only serves as a stepping stone to her future. Indeed… she has accomplished more than most coordinators by winning the Shinou grand festival contest two years ago. But that accomplishment was probably dust comparing to the goal she still had in mind. By following in her mother's footsteps in becoming a great Pokemon coordinator she had become a better trainer and a breeder than others.

But not all of this could be accomplished without the help of a certain raven haired trainer. The mere thought of his face made her cheeks burn red with shyness. It was obvious that her mother knew what affection she had for Ash. If the boy had not been so preoccupied with training and getting his next badge, then perhaps he would've had a slight chance in noticing her blushes. For many months, he had trained her with his knowledge of Pokemons and their nature. From the basic forms in throwing a Pokeball to the advance use of unleashing a Pokemon's true abilities… he had taught her everything.

With her experience in mind and her will strong, Dawn set her eyes onto the city walls where the finest hour was soon to come.

With the blessings of Uxie, the Pokemon of 'Knowledge', Mespirit, the Pokemon of 'Emotion' and Azelf, the Pokemon of 'Will'… may light guide her wherever darkness lingers.

**(With Paul) (The False Knight)**

A certain trainer from Veilstone city in the Shinou region found his place in this time of reflection in the sparse area of the forest somewhat near the power plant which he had taken part of its survival. With no one but him around in a fifty feet radius, Paul released his Pokemons to console their next battle strategy. Torterra, Electabuzz, Ursaring, Weavile, Gliscor and Murkrow. These are the Pokemons whom he had captured during his travels in Shinou. They have been most loyal, and none of them had faltered during his adventures.

As the purple haired boy gaze his eyes onto them, a slight hint of pride crossed his mind. He had fought through opponents, both strong and wise and battled Pokemons which were considered dangerous to others. Two years ago, he was known to be the most fearsome trainer of the entire Shinou region. He only took in Pokemons which he considered was strong, and release those he thought were too weak to be in his group. With his standard level of Pokemons, he had become somewhat strong at the beginning. But that trait had its limits

By becoming the ruthless trainer he was, he was immediately called an ace among rookies. The strength of his Pokemons were incredible and his belief of brute force tactic was commonly known by many of the gym leaders around the countryside. But like they say: Pure strength can only get you so far.

When he had trained all of his Pokemons to the maximum capacity level, he believed that there was no chance in hell for anyone to defeat him. He even thought that it was possible for him to defeat Cynthia entirely. But all of that changed… when a certain trainer… defied his very belief.

Ash Ketchum…

The boy was a thorn in his side ever since he arrived at Sandgem town. He always thought of the boy to be nothing more but a loser who showed compassion to his Pokemons, but after his defeat in the Shinou stadium, it made him think how much stronger can he become? He had trained his Pokemons to the highest level, practiced day and night extensively without rest and showed no emotion whatsoever to his companions. By drilling these things into the minds of his Pokemons, he was able to earn himself victories against trainers who had traveled longer than he has. But yet this boy…… defied him to no end. He defied his purpose, he defied his belief and he defied his very existence.

When his mind finally came to light, Paul knew that he had been mistaken all this time. He knew then that strength alone can't stand against the test of time. No matter how strong his Pokemons were, or how hard he trains them, he knew that their true potential can never be reached.

By submitting to his own fault… the boy had released a part of his physical bonds and became not just a better trainer… but a better person… as a human… and as a friend.

But not all redemptions are rose thorns…

Through submitting to this great sin, he had unleashed another feeling……

Regret…

From the day he earned his starter Pokemon to the day he fought Ash at the Shinou stadium. He regretted it all… If only he had seen through this, he would've been the best trainer any rookie would've ever seen in a thousand lifetimes. He regrets being a fool, he regrets all of his actions…… but most of all… he regrets about the time when he released a certain fire monkey out of his arsenal.

But even with his mind burdened by the guilt of his past and his heart unsure of what to do… he knew that he to bear with it… until the day comes when his sins would finally be forgiven. After knowing this, he sets his eyes… onto the gates of Valmarian city… where his finest moments would finally be realized.

**(With Misty) (The Broken Puppeteer)**

After knowing that the other members of the gang were off to reflect upon themselves, Misty decided to leave them and find her own place of solitude where she can think for herself. She did not go far. Her spot was probably just about a few meters away from the dining table the gang set up. She did not release any of her Pokemons so she didn't have to worry about personal space…… that of course excludes Togepi.

As she sat down near a small stream of water, strange thoughts began to enter her mind like a wave ready to turn into a tsunami. She really wanted to spend some time with Ash and catch up on some things. She wanted to know all of his adventures and exciting events, but every time she was able to find the moment to speak with him, something or someone always manage to pop in and butt into their conversation. She never had to experience something like this before. When she was traveling with him back in Kanto and Johto, she never had to worry about finding time to talk with him at all. No one was ever around to bother them but Brock, but he's usually too busy fixing up their next meal.

The girl was really fighting an urge to go look for him because she knew that he was probably in his most critical moment. Disturbing someone who is reflecting on his or her past actions can be really dangerous.

As she looked at the beautiful moon above her head, a small glimpse of hope seemed to have lingered onto her chest. She had not been herself as of late… and she suspects that Ash noticed it too. She had remained somewhat quieter on the trip and the closer she got to Valmarian city… she became more and more… distant… like she no longer had a place in this team. Every time she tried to fit in, a different topic would come out from nowhere and begins to shun her away. With each passing moment she begins to feel less and less herself and more… of another person.

But hopefully… this would all be resolved by the end of this journey……

The end…

That simple phrase was something she feared the most. Once Ash wins this, there will no longer be a reason for her to follow him… There will be no battles, no more adventures… only a simple life of running the Cerulean Pokemon gym. No more exciting travels, no more sightseeing Pokemons… the journey would end right here and now.

"No!" Misty closed her eyes and ears as she listened to these thoughts. "I don't want it to end… I don't want it to go away!" Togepi looked at her mother with worry as she was placed down onto the ground, "I don't want it end… I don't want it disappear like this! Why must everything end now of all times!?"

Turning her gaze towards Valmarian city, she whispered softly under her breath, "Go away…… disappear forever…" she did not want the adventure to end… no… not like this… not right now.

With her heart heavy and her mind haunted by the fears of the future, Misty shut herself from the rest of the world and emplaced herself in a fortress of solitude. Hopefully she would get over this self growth and move on with the rest.

**(Back at the campsite)**

When everyone was finished reflecting on themselves… they all returned to the campsite to find themselves a nice peaceful place for a nap. Ash and Richie were the first to arrive, followed by Paul then the rest. "Hey guys" Ash waved to them, "What were you guys doing?"

Richie smiled back, "Oh… just thinking about stuff… nothing much"

Paul shrugged back, "Nothing important…"

But then suddenly, Ash's stomach began to growl causing everyone to smirk, "Ahehehe… I guess all that thinking must've really made me hungry"

Dawn chuckled, "I guess something's never change" but when she finished, her stomach suddenly growled as well which caused her to flush in embarrassment. It wasn't long till everyone's stomach began to growl too. It was hard to believe that they were hungry after having such a heavy supper just an hour ago.

"I guess we're all hungry after all" Ash laughed at them. "Come on, may be we're lucky, there might be some leftovers from dinner"

But when they arrived at the dining table it appears like someone had set up a second dinner forthem. Johanna, Brock, Todd, Tracey and Cynthia knew that they would all be hungry again after such intense thoughts running through their mind so they prepared ahead.

"Welcome back everyone" the chefs greeted the trainers with bright wide open smiles.

"We thought you might be hungry so we cooked up a little something to get your minds off things" Brock added wiping a smirk onto his lips. With the meal he had helped set up for everyone, he seemed content with his work alone.

Without another word being thrown, all the trainers suddenly began digging in for the second time to fill their stomachs with energy. Hopefully none of them would have any bladder problems when they reach Valmarian city. Before Brock and the others knew it, the gang had already emptied half the table in less than half a minute. I guess they'll need that excess energy for the battles ahead. Who know…? Maybe they'll find more than they can chew in that place.

But as Ash and his friends laughed amongst themselves of old tales from the past and other random topics, the boy noticed that one person seemed to be missing again. "Uh hey… where's Misty?" Tracey looked around for a moment before spotting the girl in question near the area where they set up their sleeping bags. "Oh there she is, over there"

Ash quickly grabbed an extra plate from the pack and put in some of the juices looking meat from the dishes and brought it with him. He thought that Misty might be hungry and lonely since he hasn't been spending much time with her.

But just as he approached the girl, Rosa suddenly felt a dark aura looming over Misty's mind. And so for the first time, the pink Lucario decided to keep do something about it. _"Your majesty…"_ she grabbed Ash by his jacket, _"I wouldn't recommend going to her. There is something wrong with that girl"_ but Ash just waved it off, "Don't worry Rosa. I'm sure she's just hungry like the rest of us. Once she taste a little of Brock's stew, she'll feel as good as new"

Taking his word for it, Rosa let go of his jacket and let the boy move on. _"Very well your majesty… if that is what you wish"_

**Author's Warning: Ok listen up everyone… this is the part where I got scared the most in the whole story. I don't know why, but when I wrote this part, the hairs on my skin just seemed to have risen like they were all freaked out or something.**

As Ash approach Misty's side, he noticed Togepi starring at her mom like something was wrong, "Hey Misty, I brought you some food for ya. Oh and I got some poffins for you too Togepi (to-gic… pree!) hehehe" the little egg like Pokemon quickly dug into its bowl and began eating the tasty treats like there was no tomorrow. Once the little one was busy eating up, Ash handed Misty her plate, "Here you go Misty. I saved some of Brock's stew for ya" but the girl was silent. She hid her eyes behind her hair and closed her ear with her hands like she was going insane.

But then she slowly accepted the plate and placed it on her lap. "T… tha… thank you… Ash" she said softly in an almost barely a whisper voice. The boy flashed out his smile and sat beside her to keep her company for the night. The others were probably too busy discussing some other topics back in the dining table.

After gazing at the plate for a few moments, Misty finally managed to gather the strength to lift up the spoon and fork. She chewed the smaller parts of the meat and drank some of the soup to clear her throat. But as the taste dropped into her mouth, the flavor seemed to have died like they refuse to come out from its mortal bodies. The meat turned to ashes in her mouth and the soup dried up like they've been robbed of its texture. (again… not literally)

Once the girl began eating properly, Ash slouched back down onto her side and gazed at the full moon above him. "I guess we finally made it" he said suddenly. "I'm almost at the end of my journey" Misty suddenly stopped eating and placed her spoon back on the plate. But Ash didn't notice, "Valmarian city is so close I can almost touch it! Tee hee hee. Man… this feeling is awesome! I wonder how many trainers I'll have to battle when I get there? Hmm…… I wonder which Pokemons I'm going to use as well? There's Sceptile, Glalie, Torkoal and so much more I don't even know which one I should start with hehehehehe… Oh and t---"

"I don't want to…" Misty interrupted catching the boy off guard.

"Huh?"

"I don't want you…… to… go there" she whispered to him.

Ash gave a look to her, "Huh? Why's that?" he then flashed out a smile, "You know I can't exactly battle without being in the stadium" there was an awkward pause hanging in the moment, like a string ready to be pulled up and strangle him.

"Ash… can you… do something for… for me" Misty asked visibly shaking with a slight hint of fear in her voice. "Sure… what is it?" Ash replied almost instantly. "I… I… I want…"

"Hmm?"

"I want you to quit the tournament!" she yelled out loud causing the gang to turn their gaze to the two of them.

Ash froze like ice as he looked back at her with disbelief. What was she trying to say? Was she testing him or trying to figure out his reaction? He did not know. He could barely even input that last sentence into his head. At first he thought that she wasn't serious, but with one look of her face, he could tell that this was no laughing matter. "W… what do you mean?" he said finally, "The next Valmarian tournament doesn't come in another five years Misty. I can't wait that long"

"Then maybe you can use that time to practice!" the girl sounded so desperate in trying to convince him that it was almost frightening.

"What are you talking about Misty? I've had plenty of practices" Ash reasoned with her, "I've even got great friends to help me train for battle"

"You see! That's just it!" she snapped, "You're still overconfident just like before! Why don't you just skip this event and try again next time!? I mean… there's a lot more things you can learn!"

Ash's smile was suddenly slipping away, "Misty… I've traveled around the world for more than four years now. I think I've learned enough to win. I know I'm ready for anything!" he thumped his fist onto his chest signaling his confidence. "What's wrong Misty? You sure don't look like yourself today"

"This isn't about me Ash, it's about you!" the gang were now becoming slightly upset with Misty's tone. Her voice was no longer pleasant or cheerful like before. In fact… it sounded almost like a demon possessed her or something. "Your Pokemons can't handle themselves on their own. They still need more training. Just save yourself from embarrassment and quit!"

Dawn nearly splattered her soup on Drew's face when she heard what was coming from Misty's mouth. What was going on over there, and why was Misty being so…… unreasonable?

"No way!" Ash snapped back, "Me and my friends didn't come all this way just to quit Misty! We worked hard day and night and battled many opponents and you're saying that I'm supposed to back down now that we're finally here!? You're crazy!"

"Ash! Stop being such a selfish kid!"

Crack…

The glass in Ash's mind began to break…

"All you ever cared about is winning and getting your next badge! You never care about other people's feelings!"

"That's not true" May mumbled a little frightened by Misty's flare of anger

"You always had other trainers take pity on you because they know you're not that strong!" Misty continued with her barrage.

"Hey… don't you think we should stop her" Drew asked one of the elders. But Brock and Tracey simply shrugged. They thought that this would probably just be like any other fights and it would probably be best if they settled it themselves. Little did the two of them know…… that… that was probably… the dumbest move they've ever done.

With no one to hold the two of them back and no one to break the fight, Ash and Misty were now reaching a new point of their fight. Ash tried his best to keep his smile up and try to fight the urge to do something rash, but Misty wasn't even considering on holding back anymore! All of the hatred, and disgusting emotions bottled up inside were now pouring out like a water hose with a broken pipeline.

"Admit it Ash!" Misty continued, "You're just not ready for something this big!"

But Ash refused to be beaten by such comments. Every lie she spoke out only fueled his anger even more than before. "Oh yeah!? Well you can just watch me! I'm going to join that tournament and win it! And there's nothing you can do to stop me! You'll see! This is my dream and I won't let someone push me away from it. Especially not by you!"

Crack…

"Ash Ketchum" Misty's heart and mind were so consumed by her own greed that she had become the puppet of her of own feelings. "YOU ARE THE MOST SELFISH, ANNOYING PERSON I HAVE EVER MET IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!!! YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYONE OTHER THAN YOURSELF!!! I WOULDN'T BE SURPRISED IF YOU LOST!!!!"

Slap…!

That single sound said it all. Ash's face tilted to the sides so forcefully, that it was almost a miracle that his head didn't come off. But the mark and pain it left behind… was deeper than anything he had ever felt. Right at that very moment, the glassed wall that had been holding all the terrible things that Misty had done to him finally gave in and crumbled to dust… consuming him in a veil of darkness. The boy could feel it. The darkness was consuming his body, surfacing his most terrible emotions. But just when he thought that the rage would consume him, a small glimpse of light flickered around his pocket causing the darkness within his mind to go away.

The moment the slap was given, the gang knew that they had to stop this right away before it turns any uglier than this. Brock and Tracey came almost instantly and stopped the two bickering teen, but when they got there… they already figured out that the fight had already ended. Misty turned around and dared not to look at Ash's face. Ash on the other hand, simply took his sleeping bag to another spot and slept there. With no one left to stop fighting, the gang could only wonder… how will things return to normal after something like this.

"Wh… what do we do Brock?" Todd asked with a worried expression plastered onto his face. But sadly the slanted eyed boy had no idea what to do in a situation like this, "I… I don't know. I mean… I know that they always fight each other… but never like this" even then he could not figure out who to blame. Usually it would be Ash's fault to start the argument, but now it looked like Misty seemed to have full responsibility to this fiasco. "Why don't we all get some sleep? Maybe tomorrow things will turn out better"

With a nod from the gang, the group split up towards their designated locations and slept like logs in a fireplace… that is of course… they could find a way to sleep…

The others kept their distance between Misty and Ash for none of them looked like they want to talk for another lifetime. With their goodnights said to each other, Brock poured a bucket of water onto the fire and went straight to his sleeping bag. Hopefully tomorrow… things will look brighter.

**(Ten minutes later) (With Ash) (The Crownless King)**

Ash sulked down onto his sleeping bag covering his entire face with his hat and hair. But no matter how much he hides the humiliation, his Pikachu can tell that this was not something the boy would do everyday. Rosa noticed the slip of a sob and immediately became worried.

"Your majesty" she tried to whisper to him, but he just shrugged it off. It was clear that he didn't want to talk to anyone right now, and I guess Rosa could understand that. But just before she left, a feint memory seemed to have jolted back into her mind like an electric shock from Pikachu's thunder bolt attacks.

"I'm not certain why she did that to you your highness… but you cannot cry forever (silence)" It looks like words would not heal something like this. "(sigh) If you would your majesty…… allow me to tell you a story"

**(Flashback, two million years ago) (King's quarters)**

Rosa was bringing a tray of food to the king's room that evening. There was a storm outside and his majesty seemed like he wasn't himself lately. It was obvious that the boy had been broken after Freya's sudden departure. Ever since that human girl left the Empire, Hsa seemed to have locked himself in his room the whole afternoon, not coming out for any particular reason. No matter how big or small the matters were.

When she finally arrived at the door to his room, she sent out a telepathic message to the other side to notify her presence. _"Your highness… I've brought you supper"_ she awaited for a reply, but sadly… there was none. The pink Lucario sighed with frustration as she slowly turned the door knob with one of her paws.

When she entered the room, she was surprise to see the king still awake. Usually he would be laying down on his bed crying from dawn to dusk, but it looks like he seemed to have regained some of his spirit back. He was still in his king's attire and his blanket loomed over his head hiding his eyes and tears as they flowed down his face. Freya had scarred the boy not physically but mentally, leaving behind a mark that can never be healed.

"Your highness…" Rosa spoke up, "It is not wise to starve yourself for too long. Please try to eat something" again, she was given the cold shoulder treatment. "You can't stay cooped up forever. Come on let's get you cl…" the moment she removed the blanket off his head, the entire flock of his hair just seemed to have died down. They were no longer spiky like before and hell they were a mess. His skin was moist and damp gesturing to Rosa that he had been in the rain for quite sometime now too. If Hsa went to the present with that hairdo, he'd probably be called a Goth with white hair.

As Rosa touched the boy's skin, she felt like she was touching her tongue with cold water from the North Pole. "Your majesty… you're freezing!" she then noticed that the blanket he was wearing was also wet from the frequent storms and rains. The floor was also dripping with cold water making it look like an ice Pokemon can make its lair here without any complications. Seeing this, Rosa immediately went to the closet to find the last pair of dry towels and put it on him before the king freezes to death.

"Quickly your majesty, put these on before you get sick!" she suddenly turned from a bodyguard to a mother in a flash of a second. But it looked like the king didn't have any will-power left to even lift a finger. It was like he was now only a shell of the person he used to be. "Your majesty!" she yelled out which was then followed a lightning sound from the heavens.

"**I'm sorry Rosa…"** the king said finally, **"I don't want to go out just yet"** his voice sounded so weak that it almost felt like he was half dead. Perhaps he was already half dead as well, since his face was paler than a thin slice of paper. The boy was broken… but it was not beyond repair. **"I'm so tired… so… very tired…"**

Seeing the pain and lost scorning deep within the king's heart, Rosa did not know what to do. How do you fix a broken heart when it is something you can't even touch? Taking in all of his pain into herself, Rosa hugged the boy with all her might, embracing him with her hug.

**(End of flashback)**

As she recalled that terrible event back in her mind, the pink Lucario shook her head away and put the past behind her. She then let out a small smile as Ash finally rose up from his sleeping bag. Though he wasn't exactly up, he could see that the position he was in was quite similar to the story Rosa had told him. He was crying because he was hurt, and now he felt like a hollowed man with nothing but skin and bones.

"So… what happened after that?" he asked finally hoping to get an answer. Rosa could see from the numbness of his eyelids that he had been crying during her story. "It took Hsa, several weeks before things returned to normal again" she explained with a little hint of passion in her voice. Perhaps sharing her tale with another person was something she did not do everyday. "But he knew well that the faster you let go of this pain, the better. Worldly attachments are something you should not linger with, no matter who or what it is"

"I… I guess you're right" Ash admitted slowly. He already how lingering on something could do to a person. If you hold on to defeat for a long time, you'll become a loser for life, and if you held on to victory for awhile, you can become over confident. He could relate his feelings with his journey much more than anyone could possible know. Once he reassured himself with her words, the feeling of hatred and anger seemed to have lifted away from his shoulders. For a moment there, he actually thought that he was going to be consumed by his own darkness, but now with a new torchlight to guide his way. There was not a snowball chance in hell for him to lose himself again. "Thanks Rosa… I feel much better now with your story" Ash flashed out a smile which lightened his Pikachu's heart incredibly.

Rosa smiled back and turned away. "Your majesty…" a blushed began to form around her cheeks as she spoke, "Whatever that girl said to you, it may have hurt you a lot. But know this… by traveling with you I already know what kind of a person you are. (pause) You are strong, brave, smart and kind hearted not like any other humans around"

"Oh now your just embarrassing me" Ash flashed out a small chuckle of embarrassment.

"And from my opinion Ash…" Rosa began, lifting her smile up a notch, "You would've been a great king…"

To say the least, Ash was not expecting her to say that at all. His eyes widened and his breathing seemed to stop as they both locked their eyes at each other. It was as if they were reading each other's hearts, like Anabel. But it looks like Ash can read Pokemon's hearts better than human hearts. "Rosa…" he said her name with a little hint of surprise in the background.

The Lucario closed her eyes and bowed her head in respect with a smile at the end. "I shall take my leave your highness" but just she turned around and began moving away, Rosa's eyes widened when Ash suddenly jolted from his sleeping bag and wrapped his arm around her with half of his strength. Her heart stopped for a whole good five seconds before she could input all the data in her mind. A part of her wanted to push the boy away and run, but another part of her seemed to have taken dominance over her body. She turned her head slightly, only to notice Ash's face hanging over her shoulders. "Y… your majesty…?"

A slight sob came out from Ash's mouth as tears continued to flow down his cheeks. But these tears were not like the ones he gave out earlier. These tears… were tears of happiness and joy.

"Thank you………… Rosa……… for everything…"

If Rosa could get anymore happier than she was now… then she'd probably be jumping with joy blowing candle lights on her birthday. But instead… the two of them just silently remained there… and enjoyed each other's touch for the night. Who knows… perhaps this would be the only time she could ever get this close to her king again.

**(The next morning)**

No matter how dark the night is or no matter how the moon shines brightly in the sky…… nothing can compare it with the brightness of the morning sun. But as the gang members slowly woke up one by one, a great smell was catching their noses, causing them to open their eyes almost instantly.

"Hey Brock, what are you cooking this time?" Dawn asked as she rubbed the sand off her eyes. But then she noticed that the slanted eyed boy was still sleeping on his sleeping bag mumbling something about Nurse Joy. "Oh… Tracey?" but then she realized that the Pokemon watcher was sleeping right beside Richie who also seemed to have awoken from his slumber by the smell.

A few seconds later, Johanna woke up from her tent along with Cynthia. "Is it morning already?" the Shinou contest champion yawned along with her Glameow.

"Hey everyone, rise and shine!" came a very familiar voice from the campfire. When the gang turned their eyes to the source of the voice, they were quite surprised to see Ash there with all of his Pokemons helping out with the food. He was cooking the only thing he knew how to cook and was certain that the gang would love it. His plain mushroomed soup with added spices. With one whiff of this tasty treat, everyone who was awake quickly got out a plate and served themselves a handful of Ash's unnamed meal.

After taking one bite from the soup and mushroom, everyone seemed to have been reenergized to the fullest extent. Surprisingly for everyone, Ash seemed to be as cheerful as he was yesterday, thought the fight still seemed to linger deep within their minds, they knew the boy had better things to do than to worry about petty arguments…… at least that's what they thought.

As Dawn turned her eyes to Ash, she couldn't help but feel a little sad for him. To let his best friend say something like that right in front of his companions was like taking his heart, ripping it into pieces and then throwing it back at him right at his face. It was a humiliating act. Like none they have ever seen before. When Dawn turned her gaze to Misty, it looked like the girl had lost her soul. Her eyes were dark as if they had lost their pupils, Togepi seemed slightly more afraid of her and it looks like the others were keeping their distance from her. Heck even Brock didn't feel like talking to her either.

She had no right to say that in front of him. Sure, Ash may sometimes be so self-centered about getting to his next objective, but not enough to be called selfish. And what did she mean that he wasn't ready? Even if you look at it from an ant's POV, even a bacteria could tell already that he was more than ready to compete. There was something going on about that Misty and she wasn't gonna let go of it until she finds out.

"Does anyone want seconds?" Ash asked the crowd, to which Richie and Max raised their hands in reply.

Right after breakfast, the gang decided to pack things up for their next move. Tracey and Todd took care of the dishes, while the rest of them load up their provisions. But as the gang carried on with their task, Brock turned around to see Dawn having that odd look on her face and of course… he could tell that she was looking at Ash.

"What's wrong Dawn?" the Pokemon breeder asked plainly as he zipped his backpack up.

"I'm a little worried about Ash" it took a little while for the girl to answer, "I'm worried that if he's a little sad or angry" Brock could understand completely why she was worried. He too was also worried if that fight with Misty clicked a nerve in his brain. He was not angry at neither of them. He was more angry about himself than to blame it on someone else. If he had just taken the time to stop them like before, then this fight wouldn't have escalated to something out of proportion.

"I wouldn't worry too much about him" he said finally with a smile, "Ash is a strong kid and he can handle himself. I'm sure he's been through worst… (I think)"

Unsatisfied with the answer given by Brock, Dawn decided to stop pondering for the moment and focus to what's truly important now. The Valmarian league!

With the city's southern gate so close, the gang packed up faster than a pack of mules and walked off through the roads. When they were just about one or two kilometers away from the gate, a guard post came into sight, causing them to turn their gaze to the officer in charge.

When Ash finally came up front, he let out a small sigh, "We made it everyone……… we made it…"


	50. Meet The Parents Part 1

**Chapter 50: Meet The Parents (Rated: NP for no-parental guidance needed)**

**(Southern Entrance of Valmarian)**

As Ash and his gang approach the massive gates of the city of heroes, their bones suddenly began to feel somewhat tingly inside. The gate enormous no matter where you looked at it from anyone's POV. Even from a distance, it almost looked like a size of a regular loaf of bread. Taking the height of the gate into consideration, the gang approached the guard post on the side walk. Apparently the security guard who was on duty was too busy reading the newspaper to notice them.

"Um… excuse me sir" Ash called to him which the middle aged man came by. "We'd like to enter the city please" the guard quickly shuffled away the newspaper he was reading and immediately scanned the boy's face. "Oh? And what might be your business here in Valmarian city?"

"We're Pokemon trainers" Richie implied, "And we're here to compete in the Valmarian league"

"Is that so?" the officer replied in a cheerful tone, "Ok then, then I hope you brought your letters of invitations" the participants of the league quickly drew out their letters encased in different colored envelopes. Once the officer scanned the signature with his x-ray device, he handed it all back to them and smiled, "Ok then. All of these invitations are clear. May I have your names and the regions you came from?"

Johanna started out first, "I'm Johanna, and this is my daughter Dawn and her friends, Zoey and Kenny. We're from Shinou" the four of them smiled and nodded.

The guard smiled back and awaited for the next one to speak. But when he saw Cynthia, his heart nearly from his chest, "I'm Cynthia, ex-Pokemon champion from the Shinou regions and the previous winner of the last Valmarian league" the guard nearly choked when he realized that he wasn't breathing anymore. "Is something wrong?" the blonde champ gave him a look before he could reply, "N… no no no NO! Nothing at all ma'am! It is an honor to meet you!" and with that Cynthia turned around and let the others speak.

May was next to come, "I'm May, and the one over there is Drew. We're both from Hoenn"

The officer's eyes perked up, "Ahh yes! Miss May Maples. My son is a big fan of yours. He simply love your appeal back in Mauvile city. It's an honor to finally meet you" May simply let out a sweat drop, "Uh… yeah… thanks…"

After that, Richie turned in, "I'm Richie and this is my friend Duplica. We're both Pokemon trainers from Johto" the guard nodded back in reply.

Anabel came next, "I'm Anabel, member of the Frontier Brains back in Kanto" the guard was quite surprise to see so many famous people in one group. First Johanna, then Cynthia then May and now a member of the Battle Frontier was standing right in front of him. Darn… he must've done something right to deserve this.

After the girl was done, Paul came in, "I'm Paul, one of the top eight in the Shinou league. I too am from the Shinou regions" the guard nodded and confirmed his registration.

"And what about you young man?" the officer notified the boy at the back. Ash looked around and noticed he was the last person to identify himself. "Huh? Oh me? I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet town in Kanto. I'm here to participate in the Valmarian league (Pikpikachu!)" they all knew that the guard would have a heart attack hearing his name, since he was so famous. But to everyone's surprise, the guard only let out a sigh, "Very funny boy. But seriously, what's your real name?"

Ash gave out a 'huh' look, "What are you talking about? My name's Ash Ketchum" this time, the guard's sigh was nearly as deep as the mist themselves, "Listen kid, I'm doing this for your own good. Impersonating another person is ok, but impersonating Ash Ketchum is not something you would want to do in this city. Trust me…… you'll be a wanted man before you know it"

"but he really is Ash Ketchum officer" Brock vouched for him, "Show him your Pokedex Ash" the boy quickly placed his hands onto his pocket but then he couldn't find it. "Uh…" he searched his backpack and other pockets but then remembered that it was dropped during that time when Rosa kidnapped him, "Oh no! I think I lost my Pokedex!"

"WHAT!?" the gang said in unison.

"I must've dropped it during my travels!"

"Man… of all times to lose something you don't really use everyday" Dawn sighed.

Seeing this, the guard sighed even deeper, "If you can give me your real name sir, then I can't allow you into Valmarian city" but Ash was growing impatient, "But I'm Ash Ketchum! Really it's the truth! I'm not lying"

The others quickly joined his side to vouch for him. But this only made the guard suspicious. He then thought if that the boy was fake, then the other people here are fakes as well. "Then sir… I'm afraid you give me no choice" with a press of a button below his desk a small door on the sides suddenly opened up. And within seconds, the gang found themselves surrounded by a whole platoon of officers with riot shields. "Alright boys, let's take'em down town"

"Hut hut hut hut hut hut hut hut hut!" said the officers as they escorted the trainers. Rosa was ready to give them the pounding of a life time. With her martial art skills and her abilities, she could take on this city without even breaking a sweat. But Ash simply gestured to her not to cause any trouble. Hopefully, they'll be able to get out of this mess without much trouble.

**(In a square shaped rock not far)**

Team Rocket, the lowest of the low lives in all of mankind and the most annoying villains ever to walk the face of the planet were sneaking around with an oddly shaped rock as cover. They just recently saw Ash and co being dragged in by the police and that could only mean something big was happening.

"It looks like the coppers got the twerps!" Meowth shouted. James sighed, "Now how will we ever get into the city? The place is most likely locked down to the fullest extent"

But Jessie, the red head, was not one to give up so easily, "Oh quiet you two! Haven't you ever heard that the closer you are to danger, the further you are from harm!? Now come on! If we want to catch that Pikachu, we'll have to find a way to get into the city. Now come on before the door closes!" and with one chain of command, the trio quickly remove their disguise and rushed in through the door when no one was looking.

**(Valmarian city, main security center)**

As Ash and his friends were escorted into a room, there was a chair behind a computer desk and someone was on it. Someone very familiar to everyone.

"So… another copycat?" said the woman in the chair to the security officer who brought the kids in. "Yes ma'am. The kid at the center claims to be Ash Ketchum… again" the woman simply sighed, "That's the twelfth one this week. Can't we all take a break?" when the woman finally turned her chair around to face them, Brock's eyes immediately turned into heart shapes. The one who was sitting on the comfy chair was none other than Officer Jenny.

"Officer Jenny?" the younger members of the gang said in unison. But when Brock noticed her eyes and her ears and the uniform she was wearing, his heart nearly froze up as he gasped, "No way…… impossible… you can't be… you're… you're… you're Chief Jenny!"

"Chief Jenny?" again the gang said in unison.

Hearing his friends not getting the situation, Brock decided to explain, "How could you guys not know about Chief Jenny!? She's currently the most popular Jenny of all time! She's the first of the Jennies ever to have a police force of her own and not to mention the most beautiful! Look at those wonderful eyeliners, and that mock 30 lipstick! There's no doubt that she's Chief Jenny!"

But Jenny simply let out a sweat drop, "Well uh… I'm glad to see someone can tell us apart" but then she turned from happy go lucky to dead plain serious, "But anyway, back to the matters at hand. Since you're new here, I'm sure that you haven't heard that impersonating a famous actor is strictly forbidden"

"But I'm the real Ash Ketchum!" Ash snapped as this situation was really getting ridiculous. After hearing this, Chief Jenny sighed as she pressed a button on her speaker, "Luis, can you bring the professor here for a moment?"

"Sure thing chief. I'm right on it" said the person on the other line. A few moments later, the side door opened with the sound of a mechanical whoosh revealing another younger police officer and an old scientist which everyone knew instantly.

"Professor Oak!" the gang screamed his name which caught his attention. When the professor caught sight of Ash and Brock and Tracey, he immediately knew who they were. "Ash! Brock! Tracey! You're here!" the old man immediately went to their sides and gave them a big hug. Ash returned the hug and let go after a few moments, "It's great to see you too professor… but uh, what are you doing here?"

Chief Jenny immediately let out a sarcastic cough which made them turn their attention to her. "I hired professor Oak to help look for the real Ash Ketchum. Due to the number of his fans increasing almost everyday" she then turned to the professor, "So professor… is he the real Ash Ketchum?" Samuel simply smiled back and nodded, "Absolutely! With Brock, Tracey and the others here, I'm certain he's the one. Besides, only his Pikachu has cheek as red as these" she rubbed the red dots on the little electric Pokemon's face which made it 'pika' with joy.

When the officer who arrested them heard of this, his face paled like the stone marbles themselves. Arresting crooks were one thing, but arresting the world renowned famous Ash Ketchum, Cynthia, Johanna, Dawn and May was like signing your own death sentence.

When Chief Jenny was assured that they were not imposters, she gestured to the guards to stand down. "Well then… I guess I owe you an apology Ash" she gestured to the boy, "With a lot of people imitating you, we can't exactly be too careful"

"That's ok Officer Jenny…"

"Chief Jenny!!" Brock corrected him with a yell.

"I mean… Chief Jenny. I mean we all make mistakes once in awhile right?" the chief nodded back and immediately thought of a way to apologize, "I know. How about I make it up to you by bringing you all to the Pokemon HQ? I'm certain you guys would like to register for the Valmarian league as soon as possible, since registration will end in about a week" the gang quickly yelled out a jubilant cry of victory as they cheered each other.

But then professor Oak interrupted as he pulled out a Pokedex from his pocket, "Well somehow I knew you would lose your Pokedex one day Ash, so I came prepared. This is the latest model of the Pokedex 3000 made in Valmarian city. I have your name registered in it and it has the same functions as your old one. But please, try not to lose it this time ok?"

Ash grabbed his new Pokedex and smiled, "Thanks professor, I'll make sure I'll keep this one safe" he then turned to his friends, "Come on everyone! Let's go register for the Valmarian league!"

"YEH!!!"

**(A few minutes later outside the security center)**

When the gang entered the inner part of the city, their eyes were like the size of saucer plates. Valmarian city was even better than they imagined. There were hover vehicles that were cruising along the roads, buildings that reached towards the sky and a dome that covers the entire city with an impenetrable force field. If they thought that LaRousse city was high-tech, then this place with be the future of that city.

"Well then, I'm heading back to the hotel" professor Oak waved at them, "I'll be sure to tell your mother that you're here. I'll meet you there in about an hour"

"Ok professor, we'll see you soon" Ash replied waving back along with his friends. A few minutes later, a private tour bus arrived, to carry them all to their next destination. "Ok, everybody in… and watch your step please" Chief Jenny escorted them inside along with two other officers. Once everyone was in and found themselves a nice comfy area to sit, the bus driver rolled out into the city.

A/N: Now would be a great time for the song: I'm On The Road to Varidian city! (Just change Varidian to Valmarian)

As the gang looked out the windows, they were amazed on so many Pokemons and people wandering the streets. And to think that everyone they see is a Pokemon trainer nonetheless. To be surrounded by millions of trainers and coordinators was like landing on a soft cotton bed that would somehow take you to paradise. Ash stuck his head on the window glass and glared at everything that came by. So far he had counted about sixty to eighty different types of Pokemons and it had only three minutes since they started.

"Well then" Chief Jenny began, "I guess I should explain the brief story about Valmarian city" the gang quickly turned their attention to her with anticipation. (except for Cynthia since she's been here before) In a few moments, the light inside the bus began to dim as a VR (virtual) map appeared behind Jenny "Valmarian city is an island city made entirely out of six islands. The bridges you see here on the map are the only route that connects them together. There are about eight districts here in Valmarian city" she then clicked a button which changed the map into a bigger size of itself.

Valmarian city summary: Valmarian city is a city run by Governor Winston Valmarian, the great great great grandson of the founder of the Valmarian city. The place was a hot spot for tourist, but only during the Valmarian league. It's a mystery why people don't visit this place since it was a great place to live. There were plenty of food and the land itself was a warm welcome sight. Perhaps it was the location itself that was the issue.

The Merchant's District- Located on the Eastern most island of the city on the 3rd island. It is a place where vendors and merchants gather to sell their goods to passing customers. You can almost anything from minor trinkets from distant lands to Pokeballs and other things you may not find in your region. Due to this, security there had been one of the tightest of all. To prevent something like forgery and scams, police force there had been doubled.

The Industrial District- The second busiest place in the entire city located on Northern most island. It's a place where business is conducted and where the city's supplies are gathered. Factories and other working areas are gathered here for adequate production as well. This is where all delivery vehicles come and go to place their cargos. This is also the location of the infamous dump site which was amply-named, the slums.

Residential Area 1- As the name gives out, this is where resides. Located on the fourth island on the south west, however, unlike the other residential areas, Area-1 is known to be the richest area of the city. All the luxurious mansions and houses are located there only for the 'true' inhabitants of the city.

Residential Area 2- Connected next to the Merchant's district, this place has been known only for apartment complexes and small time inns. This is the first place for any traveling visitors to come and spend the night. The place was not only suitable for living, but also cheap as well.

Downtown District- The busiest part of the city! Located at the southern area of the city, this place was the number one hot spot for any tourists. With thousands of shops lingering on every corner, window shopping would probably be an eye sore. You know all those hotels you see in post cards and fancy parks? Well you can find them right here too. Five star restaurants were aplenty, and with the many entertainments given around, it was no wonder why people come here more than once a day. There were malls with everything in it, and fashion stores of the latest trends. You can also find more than twenty Pokemon centers in this district as well. If that isn't enough for you then I don't know what is.

Old Town District- Like the name implies, it is the old part of town. This is the only district which has not been renovated by the governor. The place was now a memorial to how the city once looked like back in the old days. But just because it was old, doesn't mean it couldn't provide something beneficial to the city. The old town was not only great for spiritual rest, but a great place to surf as well. There were four beaches on the island which gave it a reputation for tourist to visit quite often. Thanks to the city's weather control machine, the place was as warm as an eternal summer. There were also some hot spring areas which provided much relaxation to those who were stressed out as well.

Arena District- The most famous spot for every Pokemon trainer. This entire district was built especially for trainers. With nearly hundred of battlefields to issue challenges and a twenty four hour referee and field repair service, the place was like a warzone with no sight of end. There was a Pokemon center in the area and several fast food restaurants to keep the fighters full of energy as well. But mostly this place was plainly used to issue fights.

The Central District- The hub of the entire city. This is where the Pokemon HQ is located and it is here where the city hall can be found. This is also where the grand stadium was stationed. Located right on an island in the middle of the city, the place was surprisingly vast. Only those with authorization or special permission can enter this part of the city.

**(Pokemon Headquarters) (Central District)**

Once the tour was done, the bus stop arrived at the Pokemon headquarters. Chief Jenny escorted them out and into the registration area. "Well… here we are everyone. The Pokemon headquarters" she gestured to them to the big building, "Now let's go and get you guys registered" When they reached the front desk, they were greeted by a familiar girl wearing a cat costume.

"Greetings meow" the girl greeted, "Can I help you with anything?" when she showed her face to the gang, they immediately recognize her, "Hey! Aren't you Mrs. Bunny from Twinleaf town?!" Max implied, remembering her in an instant. The girl looked back at him in confusion for a moment and then she smiled back, "Oh I think you have me all wrong. I'm Kitty, I work here in the Pokemon HQ. You must be talking about my big sister Bunny"

"Oh so you're twins?" Dawn asked holding up her invitation letter. But Kitty simply shook her head, "No, the two of us are part of small family of ten. I'm the fifth youngest of the family. My younger sisters are Birdie, Foxy, Ratty, and Puppy. There are still more of us, but I'd rather save the surprise for later. So what you guys here for?"

Ash quickly handed out his invitation slip, "We're here to register for the Valmarian league. Sorry we're kinda late" but Kitty waved it off, "Oh my, more trainers? You must be the last ones who haven't registered. It's a good thing too. You only had about a week before registration ended" the girl quickly grabbed all their letters and stamped them to confirm that they weren't forgery, "Ok then, you're all registerd for the tournament" the gang let out a sigh of great relief as a burden was finally lifted off their shoulders.

"Oh but before you go" Kitty called them back, "You'll all need these" she all handed them one badge each. The badge looked like that of a shield with silver plating on the sides. It was just the size of any badge but not as attractive as the others. "What's this?" May questioned.

"Those are Valmarian badges" Chief Jenny explained, "They're only given to those who are competing in the Valmarian league. If you show up to a competition without them, then you'll not be allowed to compete. So don't lose it" it wasn't long then till her radio started acting up, "This is Chief Jenny, what's the sitch?"

With Chief Jenny off to talk to the person on her radio, the gang decided to put their Valmarian badge in a safe spot before heading off towards their next goal. "Well, what do you want to do guys?" May asked the bunch to which Dawn replied with a cheer, "Shopping!" but before the two of them could dash off towards the nearest mall, Johanna pulled them by the collar to stop them. "Oh no you don't" she scolded, "Our first priority is to find a place to stay first. We won't be able to carry all of your luggage back you know"

The gang chuckled to May and Dawn as the two of them sulked down. "Yes ma'am" they groaned.

"Hehehe… well I guess mothers have that effect on children" the gang turned their attention to the new voice that came along. "Professor Oak!" they said in unison. "Hey there everyone" he greeted back with a wave, "I heard you're looking for a place to stay so if you like, you can all stay in the hotel I'm staying. My treat of course" no one could possibly refuse an offer like that. So without further ado, the gang boarded up in the tour bus again and hailed off.

"So where is this hotel professor?" Duplica asked as she sat on her seat with her stuffed Teddiursa bear. "Oh it's a luxurious place in the downtown district area" Samuel explained, "Apparently an old friend of mine who owes me a favor is letting me stay there until the end of the tournament. The hotel is called Che'val-yere and it has one of the best room service here in the city"

"Well a nice bed would be warm welcome" Johanna stretched out her arms as a gesture of her exhaustion, "I never realize that sleeping outdoors can be really painful for the back"

**(On the southern walls of the city)**

Team Rocket, the gang that has been hounding Ash and his friends were attempting to enter the city the hard way. After trying to make a hole in the wall with several TNTs and dynamites, they figured out that the thing was made out of some of the strongest metal known to man. Then they tried digging their way under it, but they found out that the place had a sewer system which was very hazardous to living creatures without specific protections.

And so now here they are… trying to climb the mini Mt. Everest with nothing but a grappling hook and some rope. It was a desperate attempt, but who knows? Maybe they might make it.

"Climb faster James! You're as slow as a Slowbro!" Jessie yelled out with a roar. "I'm climbing as hard as I can Jessie but things like this takes more work and sweat then I know!" the blue haired yelled back to which the talking cat agreed, "Yeah, we're the ones doing all the hard work and you're just deadweight"

"Well excuse me!" Jessie countered with a little hint of sarcasm, "It was my idea to climb up the wall. So I thought up with the idea and you guys do the work. Now quit complaining and keep climbing!"

"Yes madam" James replied in defeat. When arguing with Jessie, you know there's no way any man can win. But just when James was about to continue climbing, a sudden twisted cracking sound occurred just right on top of him. When he looked up, he realized that the rope that he cast in was weakening, "Uh ho…"

"Uh ho what?" Jessie asked turning up.

"Uh-ohyou'dbetterstartprayingandcalltheambulance! (snap!) WAHHHHHH!!!!"

**(The Che'val-yere hotel lounge) (Downtown district)**

When the professor and his friends arrived in the hotel, the gang was practically ecstatic beyond words. The whole place was so roomy that you could hold a ball in here (ball as in old school parties, not the ball kind of ball) There was a giant fountain at the center and it was also probably easy for a kid to get lost if you don't know where you're going.

"Wow!" said Max as he instantly made himself at home, "Now this is what I call a hotel!"

Professor Oak simply let out a small laugh as the others went to the little boy's side to watch in astonishment. "Well why don't you all sit back and order something from the snack menu? I'll have you all checked-in by the counter" with a nod from the gang, they immediately picked out a small spot at the lounge and ordered up a large amount of cookies and sodas.

"Man… I can't wait for the league to start" Ash stated out as he clenched his fist with excitement, "Just think…… a whole stadium full of Pokemon trainers from all around the world! This league is gonna be huge!" the other trainers steadily agreed.

"This isn't gonna be your standard battles guys" Brock commented, "There's gonna be a good chance that you might actually go up against each other. So no holding back, no matter what happens. Ok?"

"Hey no problem" Richie replied holding his hand up, "We're all ready to face any opponent no matter who it is. Win or lose, it's all the same, right?" again, the gang nodded (except for Misty)

"To think… we started on this journey three months ago" May implied as she took a sip off her soda can. "It feels like it all just started yesterday" Max agreed wholeheartedly, "Yeah… it only feels like an hour ago, Ash defeated the Frontier Brains back in Kanto. Man was that excititng" Anabel chuckled behind his back as she also felt the same. Though she only met Ash very rarely, they did talk a lot during their travels together.

"I'm hoping to sign up for the V-city weekly news" Todd gestured to his camera, "With my new camera, I'll be able to capture a lot of good shots during the Pokemon battle" Tracey nodded in agreement, "And I plan to draw a lot of Pokemons as well. Who knows what rare Pokemons trainers around here have?"

"Well the first place I'm going to will be the Arena district" Ash stated out, "I'm gonna see what kind of competition we're going up against and after that, we'll be going through a lot of training! Right Pikachu? (Pikpika!)"

"Hey, I'm with you all the way" Drew nodded calmly as he gazed around the area, admiring the architecture of the place. "A little Pokemon battle can go a long way during the competition" but May had other plans, "Well the first place I'm going is the downtown district. You'll never know what you can find here in a new city. Besides, we have a whole week to train, what's the rush?"

"But a little training can help you keep up sweedums" came a new voice to which the gang was somehow familiar with. When they turned their heads to the source, both the Maples seemed to have a jolt to their behinds. "Mom!? Dad!?" it was none other than Norman and Caroline Maples, the parents of our young coordinator. "Hey there sweetie" the mother waved at them innocently while the father smirked as he folded his arms.

Both Max and May quickly jumped from their seats and hugged their parents like they the most precious treasure in the world. "Mom, dad! What are you two doing here!?" May barraged them with a volley of questions almost instantly. "I thought you weren't coming. What about the Pokemon gym? When did you get here?!"

Norman laughed, "Easy May… one question at a time please hehehehehe" seeing that her husband won't be able to answer, Caroline decided to explain, "Well a few days after you all left home, your father received an invitation to compete in the Valmarian city. So he rushed here right away" the gang would've popped their eyes if they could, but that would be exaggerating. Thought they were quite surprised to have Norman in the game, May seemed to be quite pleased with it. Who knows, maybe she and her father might be battling each other as well.

But after talking around for a few minutes, Johanna came by to extend her greetings, "Well well well, it's good to see you again Norman"

"Johanna!?" the Petalburg gym leader said almost in shock, "Oh my, you've gotten… uh… taller than… before" the woman simply gaze him a Noh look, which seemed to work in her favor because he couldn't tell if she was angry or happy. "Well your charms surely hasn't changed much either. And hello to you too Caroline"

"Always a pleasure Johanna" May's mother smiled back in return.

When May noticed their friendly relations she decided to ask, "Hey wait a minute. Mom, dad, you know Johanna?" her father nodded, "Absolutely! She's your mother's best friend back during highschool. They were practically inseparable back then. To tell you the truth, she was kind of the last person I expected to see here. Man… small world isn't it?"

"To small for my liking" came Cynthia's voice. When Norman caught sight of the blonde Shinou champ, his heart nearly skipped a beat, "C c c c c… c… Cynthia!? What are you doing here (boink!) Ow!" the girl slammed her fist on his head lightly but it still hurt nonetheless.

"Why else do you think I'm here for?" Cynthia implied with a small smile.

"Huh? Oh yeah… the Valmarian league. I forgot that you were last time's winner. Ahehehehe"

And while the adults laugh amongst themselves, Ash couldn't help but smile as his friends interact with each other. It was like living those old times again, but right now… he only wished he could do something about the argument between him and Misty. The girl refused to talk to anyone and everyone refused to talk with her.

Immediately the boy shook his head to take away the thought. He needed to focus on the game and not on the meager topics. But just before he was about to join his friends, another voice seemed to have grabbed his attention.

"Ash?"

The mere sound of the voice was enough for the boy to stop on his tracks like a car put on full break. As he turned around slowly, his gaze was entrapped by the two eyes that he had been longing to see for almost an eternity. That soft long brown hair and smooth silky face…… who else would it be?

"Mom…?" their eyes connected like they haven't seen each other for a life time. Neither of them moved for a whole minute and heck they didn't even know what to do at that moment. But as time flowed endlessly through the stream of the world, Ash decided to make the first move. He was walking forward towards his mother but just when the two of them were about to embrace each other, Delia suddenly grab Pikachu off his shoulder and began pinching its cheeks like an old stuff toy. "Oh I miss you so much Pikachu!" Ash immediately face faulted on the floor like a 1000kg weight suddenly dropped on his head.

"Oh hey there Ash" Delia finally noticed him… in a certain way, "Did you guys take a side trip? You're rather late" she kept pinching Pikachu on the cheek which made it groan annoyingly.

"Nice to see you too mom" Ash sulked with a little sarcasm and disappointment in his voice. He was quite expecting a big warm welcome from his mother. But I guess that's Delia for him.

When Johanna saw this, she immediately grab Delia's hands, "Oh my, so you're Ash's mother! I've been dying to see you for a long time now" to say the least, Delia was quite surprise to have someone approach her in this kind of a friendly manner, "Um… uh… really?" she replied with a little sweatdrop on her head.

"Yes! I'm Johanna, Dawn's mother. Your son met me back in Shinou" Johanna explained to her, "I must say that I've been dying to meet you for awhile now" seeing that she was a friendly type, Delia decided to smile back, "Is that so? My son told me about Dawn back home, but he usually keeps things to himself"

"Oh that's the same as Dawn. She never usually tells me about her journey anymore. Kids grow up so fast these days"

"MOM!" Dawn and Ash said in unison while their face flushed.

But just when Johanna and Delia were getting a friendly talk to each other, Norman and Caroline came in to greet the famous Ash Ketchum's mother as well, "I see, so you're Ash's mother" the Ptalburg gym leader greeted with respect, "I'm Norman, the gym leader from Petalburg city… and this is my wife, Caroline. We're the parents of May and Max. Our children told us about you and I can see why they admire you"

Caroline noticed his charms working up so she silently pinched her husband on the behind which made him twitch with pain and agony. "It's nice to finally meet you Ms. Ketchum" she said innocently.

"The pleasure's all mine" Delia replied with a slight bow, "I have to say, I can see where May gets her looks from" Caroline blushed with embarrassment, "Oh my thank you, but I'm not that pretty hehehehehe"

While the adults talk themselves silly, Ash placed his hand on his waist while Pikachu slowly made his way back onto his shoulder. Its cheeks were slightly redder than usual thought, thanks to his mom's pinching, "Well there goes the neighborhood" Ash mumbled

"Don't worry about it Ash" Anabel reassured him, "They're just having a friendly conversation. These things usually happen with adults all the time" the two of them chuckled slightly in agreement. I guess they should let adults be adults after all.

"I agree to that as well" came a new voice from behind. When Ash and Anabel turned around to the entrance, they were greeted by a chubby man wearing tourist attire and dark black shades. "Hey there you two. I see you guys haven't changed much"

"Scott!" they yelled out.

"The one and only" the Battle Frontier owner replied with his usual grin. Ash bowed back slightly in respect and shook his hand, "It's great to see you again Scott. But how did know we were here?" the chubby man laughed, "Well, I keep track of trainers that come into Valmarian city. When I saw your name on the list I immediately knew where you guys were heading. I'm also staying at this hotel as well, along with the other members of the Frontier Brain" Ash and Anabel's eyes quickly widened with surprise.

"What?! The Frontier Brains are all here too?" they said almost in unison.

"Yeah, but they're not competing" Scott clarified for them, "They're going to be the ones handling the matches"

"But… how'd you get here so fast?" Anabel questioned.

"We came by Brandon's Battle Pyramid of course. When you own the Battle Frontier, you're can do almost anything"

After getting reacquainted with everyone, professor Oak came by to see that there a larger number of people joining up. "Oh my word. Did I miss something here?"

"Oh hey there professor, you're just in time" Delia explained to him, "We were just introducing each other. Everyone, I believe you all know professor Oak from Pallet town" they all bowed slightly in respect of the old scientist. "Oh no need for formalities everyone. I'm just an old man who knows a lot of things heheehehehehe (ting) Oh that reminds me. Here everyone. I was able to get some spare rooms but it looks like some of you will have to share a room or two ok?"

"That's ok" Norman replied, "May and Max can stay with us. We wouldn't mind it at all"

After the gang accepted their respective keys to their rooms, Ash decided that it was time to move out to the Arena District for some well deserve training, "Well I'm off everyone! I got some training to do at the other district! Come on Pikachu!"

"H… hey Ash wait up!" Max and Richie followed not far behind. Paul and Drew simply shrugged and followed as well, but in a much cooler poise. Zoey simply chuckled and thought that a little training couldn't hurt either.

"What about me Scott?" Anabel asked her boss, "Since the rest of the Frontier Brains are here, I think that I should help too" but the chubby man simply smiled and waved it off, "No no no. Not at all. We got everything under control. You and Ash have fun hehehe" the Salon Battle Maiden flushed slightly with embarrassment as she turned away and left.

"Well, I'm off to the Merchant's District for some shopping" Dawn stated standing up from her seat along with May.

And with all the trainers off to do something, the adults remain behind to discuss a more… important topic. "And there they go… just right when they arrive" Samuel sighed openly. "Well I have some duties to run back in the Pokemon laboratory. I'll see you all later ok" with the professor gone. Brock, Tracey, Todd, Cynthia, Johanna, Norman, Caroline, Scott and Delia remained behind to begin their discussion. Misty on the other hand… simply decided to go to her room with her Togepi.

"I see Ash is as energetic as always" Norman complimented to the boy's actions, which was somewhat true. Ash has always been a free and high spirit. "Has he always been like that?" Caroline questioned the boy's mother who was busy serving tea to everyone. "Hmm? Oh yes, Ash has always been like that ever sine he was a little boy. Ever since he saw his first Pokemon battle he's been in such a hurry to grow up" but then Delia thought for a moment, "Which makes me wonder, when will he ever settle down?"

"He's an excellent Pokemon trainer, that much I'm sure" Scott added, "He'll be an excellent addition to the Battle Frontier"

"Oh yeah… that reminds me" Johanna tapped her hands together, "Delia, does Ash has any particular interest in anyone lately?" Delia looked back at her with a confused face, "Particular interest?" she asked innocently.

Twitch…

Norman's eyes twitched slightly to the woman's words but he still kept his cool. "Yes, I was also wondering that myself. Since he's an excellent trainer, I wouldn't be surprised if he settled down and start a gym of his own. Hey Delia, if Ash wants to open up a gym, then he can ask me for advice any time" Caroline gladly agreed, "Yes I agree. You must think of the boy's future. He can't roam around the world forever you know"

Scott nodded in agreement… but in another certain way, "I must say I agree with you two. But being a gym leader isn't exactly that much of a choice since you're still young Norman" he adjusted his shades with his index finger and smirked, "Which is why I prepared a Battle Facility just for him. Since the Battle Frontier is in Kanto, he wouldn't be far away from home. Besides, he would also want to stay close with the ones he loves" a invisible blue flare appeared from behind the Battle Frontier owner as he spoke with confidence that he could win this argument.

Caroline and Norman now began giving Scott the 'look' but the chubby man didn't back down. As a red flames unleashed behind them, the young couple retained their posture as the countered, "I must agree with you there Scott" Norman smiled forcefully, "Leaving someone you love just for the sake of life isn't gonna cut it. So that's why I'm offering my gym to him. He'll be able to stay there with us like his second home"

Twitch…

Scott's grin turned into a battle smile, "The Battle Frontier can pay him ten times than what the Pokemon league can afford in a year"

Norman grinned back, "Ash isn't attracted by money… he's attracted by challenge. Besides, once he wins the Valmarian league, he'll have all the money in the world"

Scott's eyes sharpened like blades, "The gym can only go so far. But with his new Battle Facility, he'll be able to travel anywhere in the world, just like Brandon"

Norman suddenly had King-Kong behind him with claws ready to tear its opponent to shreds. "Ash doesn't need all that fancy mumbo jumbo. Why don't you give it up Scott?"

"Is that a challenge?" a T-rex suddenly appeared behind Scott, taunting it to come and strike first. "You know you have no chance to win. With my men all over the city and my way of persuasion, Ash will be begging to join the Frontier Brains" the white T-Rex bit the red dragon on the neck causing it to roar in anger. But Norman wasn't through just yet. He still had some ammo in his mind and a woman to back him up when in desperation. "But you forget Scott……… I also have some help from the Pokemon HQ. The Pokemon rangers owe me a few favors after all" The King-Kong threw T-rex away and lodge a punch to its jaw. As the two of them began chuckling menacingly like two rivaling families fighting for Ash's loyalty, Tracey and Todd scooted away from them as they began to think that being close to them would bring nothing more but further conflict.

"Well you both can dream on" Johanna interrupted their conversation with a smirk so sinister, that it would make Giovanni's deadly grin look like a Cub Scout smile. "Ash… is coming with me" Caroline, Norman and Scott immediately gave her the look which could kill a man if it could that is. "And I'm supposed to think that you have a plan?" Caroline snickered behind her husband like a vampire, ready to lay its fangs on its next victim.

Dawn's mother simply let out another smirk as she pulled a card out of her bag with the speed of light. She quickly got into a pose and showed them all… her trump card. "This… ladies and gentlemen… is my weapon of choice…"

As both parties scanned the context of that card, all their faces turned to like that of the person in the painting 'The Scream'. "No… no it can't be!" Scott shook in fear as he sulked to the ground in defeat. "I… impossible!" Norman quivered down to his knees for he knew he couldn't top that. In that very moment, both T-rex and King-Kong were exterminated by a nuclear explosion that seemed to have come out of nowhere.

The Card- Two VIP passes for the Galaxy concert in Valmarian city. Limited to only 600 audiences, with a dinner pack included. Have a memorable evening with the one you care most at a restaurant of your choice!

Norman, Caroline and Scott sulked onto the floor.

"Not even I could tickets like that" the owner of the Battle Frontier stated in defeat.

"It is… impossible" Norman added with a tiny fake sob.

While Johanna stood on the table victorious, Cynthia simply took out her tea cup, "More please" she said to Delia. The mother gladly smiled back and poured another fresh batch into her cup ignoring the bickering adults that were practically ready to fight for someone…

Today… was going to be an interesting day indeed.

**(Arena District, battle area)**

When Ash and the companions that followed him arrived at the area, they were at awed to see such a place of wonders! Right after they crossed the bridge into the district, the were immediately greeted by a large open field which benefited on all kinds of grounds. There were trainers battling on every field and Pokemons fighting like there was no tomorrow. The place was just so full of energy that Ash could actually stay here for the rest of his natural life. "Whoa! Now this is what I call a battlefield!"

"Excuse me sir" a referee's voice came by, "Are you lot going to use the battle area?"

"You bet!" Richie spoke for all of them, "Where do we sign up?" the referee quickly pulled out a notepad from him pocket and flip the pages a few times before stopping. "You'll just have to sign right here. The training area is free for all and you can battle anyone you like. But only of course if they want to battle that is" he explained the rules to them as they signed up on the pages. "There's a Pokemon center over at the end of the area and if you want to rest for your next match, there are some fast food restaurants around as well. Good luck on your battles"

With the referee gone, Ash and his friends were now on their way to make a name for themselves. "Alright guys… anyone up for a good battle?"

"YEAH!!!"

"But who are we gonna battle?" Paul asked pointing out an obvious weak spot to their cheer. They could've battled each other, but right now they wanted to save their own strength and surprise the others on how good they are. "Hmm good point" Ash concur. As they all looked around for a trainer to battle, it all looked like they were too busy doing their own things. Many of them were already challenging others and it looked like most of the aces were booked as well.

"Hey you!" a voice came from behind. The gang quickly turned their head around and saw about half a dozen seasoned trainers smirking at them. "We heard that you boys are looking for a battle" said the leader, "Mind if we… entertain you rookies?"

Immediately Rosa's enhanced hearing detected some whispers coming from the other crowd. They were quiet and soft mumbles but not something that could escape her hearing abilities.

"Hey, aren't those guys from the Bail Outs?" said one of the trainer

"Yeah… I heard they're one of their bests" said another

"I sure hope those kids know what they're doing"

But before the pink Lucario could hear anymore, Ash spoke up in response to their challenge, "We accept! Come on guys, let's go pick a battlefield and have ourselves a match!" but then the leader of the other group stopped him, "Hold it right there" Ash tripped on his foot and looked back, "Why don't we make this a bit more interesting? How about a tag team match? Besides… there are eight of us and eight of you. So we should make this battle snappy. You know what I'm saying?"

"You're on!" Ash agreed without even thinking of the consequences of his actions.

Before they knew it, the whole gang (IMPORTANT: Now disregarding Misty) grabbed each of themselves a battlefield and positioned with a two man formation. Ash and Anabel as one pair, Duplica and Drew in another, Kenny and Zoey in two and Paul and Richie as the last pair. Max on the other hand decided to cheer out from the sides.

When the crowd noticed the fight, they all began to crowd the area like bees to a bottle of honey. As the referees took their places, the one on Ash's field took the spotlight. "This will be a tag team battle between four trainers. Each trainer can choose only one Pokemon each with no substitution and no time limit. The last team with a Pokemon standing is the winner!"

"I'll go first then" Ash stated, "Let's go Pikachu (Pika!)" the yellow mouse took to the field charging electricity through its cheeks. Anabel came next, "Alright then… Espeon, let's go!" a purple cat like Pokemon appeared out of its Pokeball and ready to do battle.

The opposing trainers simply laughed at this, "Well now that unusual. Who woulda thought that a cat and a mouse can actually be friends?" his other friends laughed as well. "Well then… I guess it's my turn. I pick you…Shieldon!" a lion with a shield face Pokemon appeared roaring out to its enemies. His partner then came in, "And I pick… Hypno!" an odd looking Pokemon appeared with clock like object on its hand.

Seeing all four trainers out with their Pokemons, the referee stood back onto the side of the field and waved his flag around, "Alright then… let the match… BEGIN!"

Ash went on first, "Alright then! Pikachu let's go with a thundershock on Hypno!" the little electrical Pokemon fired a strong bolt of electricity but the enemy was not without a few surprises of their own. "Shieldon, take the hit head on!" the lion Pokemon quickly got in front of Hypno and took the electrical shock without taking much damage. "Now it's our turn! Shieldon, use ice beam and freeze that little mouse!"

But then Anabel acted up in the defense, _"Espeon, use shadow ball now!"_ she ordered telepathically. The psychic cat like Pokemon fired a powerful shadow ball attack which collided with the ice attack causing an explosion. When the opponent saw this, they decided to step up the attack. "Hypno, use confusion on that Pikachu!" the odd looking Pokemon quickly dashed through the smoke and reappeared right beside Pikachu. "Oh no Pikachu look out!" Anabel cried out, but Ash only smirked back in reply. When Hypno began using its confusion attack, Pikachu simply straightened its back and whacked it with an iron tail, sending it flying to the air.

"What the!? How's that possible!?" the opponents jaw dropped with disbelief. He really thought that he had them cornered back there. "I guess I forgot to tell you" Ash stated with a little hint of sarcasm, "I trained my Pokemons to resist psychic attacks, so don't even think about using it on my Pikachu. Come on buddy, let's show them how a real battle goes, Iron tail assault!"

Even while, Hypno was still in the air, Pikachu was able to land several attacks directly on its face, causing it to hit the ground so hard that it would take days to recover. But that psychic Pokemon wasn't out yet. It still had some fight left in its body. "What are you doing!?" Hypno's trainer screamed at his partner, "I'm taking all the beating here. Stop messing around and start helping out will ya!"

"R… right! Shieldon, use fire blast attack now!" the lion Pokemon hastily unleashed a powerful fire attack towards Esepeon, but Anabel was more than a match for that. _"Espeon, endure!"_ the psychic Pokemon quickly held its ground and let the fire hit it directly making the enemy think that they've won. But they thought wrong. When the flames stopped, Espeon was still standing like nothing happened. "What the!? How strong are these things?"

Ash and Anabel smirked together, "Way stronger than you! Now! Espeon/Pikachu, quick attack let's go!" the two Pokemons quickly attacked their opponents sending them back to a corner. "Now for the final touch" Ash notified, to which Anabel couldn't help but smile back, "Espeon, use shadow ball on Pikachu now!" this caught some of the audience trainers confused. Why would Ash's partner turn against him?

When the attack came close, Ash immediately ordered out. "Pikachu, iron tail now!" the little mouse smacked the giant dark ball and sent it flying towards his opponents. By slamming the ball with another force, they were able to double the damage causing a huge explosion in the process. When the smoke cleared up, both Shieldon and Hypno were incapacitated.

The referee moved in check on their condition for a moment and when he confirmed that they were down, he waved his flag up and announced the winners. "Shieldon and Hypno are no longer able to battle! The winner goes to the blue team, Pikachu and Espeon!" Ash and Anabel congratulated their Pokemons together. But just when they were about to go and see the other's fight, they realized that they had already beaten their opponents. The audience roared out with whistles and applauses as they have never seen such an intense match before. Heck, it even looked like Espeon and Pikachu didn't even break a sweat.

"Great work Ash" Richie complimented with Sparky along with him. "You sure showed them"

"Yeah" the boy replied, "Battling like this really brought up some spirit. I'm ready to fight all day!" but just before he could move an inch, another group of trainers came by, "Hey you there, new kid" Ash pointed at himself with a face that clearly stated 'Are you talking to me?' or something like that, "Yeah… umm… your match was awesome and uh… we were wondering if you would like to uh… battle?" Ash would've jumped with joy if he could but he just kept his cool down.

After an hour passed by, Ash and his friends became the most famous trainers on the block. More and more trainers and newbies were all crawling onto them like celebrities. One after another, they defeated their opponents… and within record time too. (A/N: Again, another perfect time for a song intro)

But after the gang lost count on how many fights they've fought, they decided to take a little break at one of the fast food stands, which luckily had Ash's favorite burgers. After ordering their food and drinks, they all let out their Pokemons for a good fresh battle air.

"Ahh… I'm exhausted" Ash moaned with happiness in his lips as he slouched on the picnic table. "Well after a winning streak like that, you're bound to be tired Ash" Duplica implied with a chuckle. As she turned to the boy's company, she could see that Richie was also in a state of exhaustion. Heck, the two of them were so alike that they even slouched the same way.

"You can say that again Ash" Max stated, "Just watching you guys fight all day makes me tired already" while the three of them slouched like couch potatoes, Drew and Paul kept their poses straight to make the impression that they were still ready, even though in truth that they were dead tired to the bones.

"But we did make a good start here in the city" Zoey notified them as she pointed to the trainers who looked like they want to them on for a battle. But Ash was simply too tired to even notice them. A few days ago, he was itching for a battle, but this was simply too much for him to take. Right now, he just wanted his burger and his can of soda. "So hungry… need… food" he groaned.

But instead of having his meal, he was greeted by two familiar shopping fiends that were carrying a small load of shopping bags. "Hey guys, what's hangin?" it was none other than May and Dawn.

"Oh hey May, Dawn" Ash instantly shot up from his slouching position and greeted them, "I see you bought a lot again today" he let out a sweat drop go down his hair with a sigh. But May simply waved off, "Oh this? These are just souvenirs for home. I wanted to save my money for something big and special. How about you guys? I've heard that you guys are making a name for yourselves as 'New Kids' hehehe"

"Well we won't be the new guys very long" Ash replied having some of his spirit back, "If we can defeat everyone so far, the Valmarian league would be a synch. Bring the next fight on. I'm ready……" but then his body remembered that he was exhausted. "… Uh… just let me rest for ten minutes" he then slouched back into his original position until his food arrived.

Seeing that he was tired, May and Dawn decided to let their Pokemons out as well for some fresh clean air…… and a little bit of sweat. The two of them then grab themselves a seat and sat right next to Ash.

When Dawn's Buneary caught sight of Ash's Pikachu, she immediately blushed out. Pikachu only gave out a simple sigh. But then suddenly, to Pikachu's surprise, Anabel's Espeon suddenly purred behind him causing it to look back and tilt its head in confusion. The little purple cat gazed at the mouse's poffin bowl, Pikachu immediately knew that it wanted some. Since Anabel lived in Kanto, she never has time to make poffin or even know how they're made. The little yellow mouse gladly handed Espeon the bowl, but when he did, it looked like the purple cat blushed out of embarrassment.

"Pika pika?" (Want some?)

"Espe espe…on" (Ummm… ok)

When Espeon took a bite, her tongue burst with a large amount of flavors which she couldn't resist. She immediately gouged down more and more until the bowl was half empty. When Espeon was full, she purred right next to Pikachu and rubbed its long ears on its red little cheeks. To say the least, Pikachu wasn't expecting something like that to happen. He was just hoping for a friendly thank you or something. But it wasn't long till Buneary came into the scene and pulled the love-thieving cat away from its favorite mouse.

"Bun bun bun-neary!" (Hey keep your paws off feline!)

"Espeon! Espe esepon!" (What's your problem cloud for brain?! Wanna pick a fight!?"

"BU—NEARY!!" (Bring it on cat!)

Before he knew it, those two lovers were now having a face to face combat… and Pikachu knew that he had to stop them before this blows out of line. But when the little guy tried to stop them, the two female Pokemons pushed him away and continued to growl at each other menacingly.

While the Pokemons fight it out against each other, Pikachu suddenly notice several shadows hiding behind a trash bin. "Pika?"

**(Behind the trash bin)**

Norman and Caroline were hiding behind the trash bin wearing ridiculous disguises like Team Rocket… except that they were more ridiculous now that they were copying them. And right behind them were Brock, Todd and Tracey who seemed to have been forced to wear marine uniforms for some bizarre reason.

"Ok… we have approximately five minutes before Johanna gets here and offers Ash those tickets and off with Dawn" Norman briefed his 'soldiers' the mission, "We have to stop that from happening at all cost! Caroline, do you have the tickets?" the wife pulled out two front row tickets to the latest romance/action movie playing tonight. "Got it right here sweetie" she cooed.

It was then Brock wondered how was pulled into this mess. He turned to Tracey for some answers, "Uh hey Tracey"

"Yeah Brock?"

"Tell me again how Norman pulled us into this mess?" the Pokemon watcher sighed, "Well… he's getting Todd and I to pay up the debt we owe him for using his credit card back in Slateport city, and he said that he'd teach you his secrets on how he attracts women. Remember?"

"Oh yeah… now I remember" Brock sighed annoyingly. He sold his service just to get a few dating tips from a married guy. But then suddenly, Todd spotted something with his camera lens. "Oh-ho! Incoming at twelve o'clock!" when they heard of this, they all took a peek outside their hiding spot. Apparently, Johanna was already in the District gates and she was heading towards Ash…… with the ticket on hand. "AHHHHH!!!" Norman panicked, "We got to do something! Quick! Brock, stall her for as long as you can with your natural charms! Use the methods I taught you!"

"But you haven't taught me any-----THING!!!" he was pushed off towards the field as he ended his sentence.

As the slanted eyed boy stopped right in the middle of the field, Johanna noticed him instantly, "Oh hey there Brock. Nice… uniform" Brock sweat drop big time since he barely had an excuse to make up, "Ahehehe… yeah… I got it from uh… fashion store… in uh… the bargains slot ahehehehe" Johanna seemed to have bought the story… for now, "Is that so? Anyway, have you seen Ash? I wanted to give him this golden ticket for tonight's show"

Brock then knew immediately how to distract her, "Uh yeah! I think I saw them go uh… that a-way!" he pointed randomly onto a corner which happened to be the Pokemon center. "I see. Thank you Brock" the woman then left for the Pokemon center to find Ash… except that she won't find him there, that's for sure.

With Johanna out of the way, Norman cheered with his crew with joy as nothing can stop them now! He quickly took out the disguise and combed his hair neatly so he wouldn't arouse suspicion. "Ok… how do I look?" Tracey and Todd pulled out cards behind their backs with a full ten point score. "Great… now for phase two of my plan" he then casually walked out of his hiding spot and innocently walks to them like he just came in.

"Dad?" Max was the first to notice his usually whistling.

"Huh? Oh hey there kids. Fancy meeting you guys here. Destiny must have its ways for putting us together huh? (Yeah right!)"

"I guess so" May replied a little suspicious of his actions, "But where's mom?" when Caroline heard this she immediately cleaned herself and walked right out with a picnic basket. "I'm here" she said innocently like a girl walking in a field of flowers. "Sorry I'm late. I left the picnic basket back there. Oh my hello there Ash" the boy waved back as his food finally arrived. "Hi Mrs. Maple. We were just about to have some snack. Wanna join us?"

"They've got some excellent tacos here too" Drew added taking a bite off his sandwich. But Norman waved back in refusal, "No thanks. We're off to a little meal by the beach ourselves. We were supposed to catch a movie but…"

**(Behind the OTHER trash bin)**

Scott was wearing an expensive camouflage suit along with eight of his employees behind him. They were all wearing high-tech gears which resembled that of a Navy Seal Commando squad. "Target is in sight sir" said one of the soldiers. Scott smirked and called in the radio, "Does he have something behind his back?" the soldier looked through his telescope and magnified it two folds. "Yes sir, he's holding two tickets. Judging from the shape and colors, I'd say they're movie tickets for the new movie that's showing out tonight"

"Aww… how romantic" said the other employee who happens to be a woman.

While they were busy laughing, the scout noted that Norman was gonna pull it off, "Code red code red!!! He's going to present the ticket in approximately thirty seconds! What do we do sir!?" Scott quickly pulled the radio to his ear, "We need to act fast! All units it's go time!" he then notified to one of the men, "One of you has to give the signal! For the good of the Battle Frontier, GO!"

The scout quickly inhaled a whole lot of air and pulled an amplifier out of nowhere. And with one loud yell, every man woman and child on the battle area got to his attention. "EVERYBODY LOOK! IT'S NORMAN MAPLE, THE PETALBURG CITY GYM LEADER!!!! HE'S HERE!!!" before the guy knew what was happening; his fans suddenly popped out from the blues and began tackling him like ants to a piece of sliced bread.

"Hey what the!? Wait a minute! Honey help!" but in the end, only Brock, Tracey and Todd remained behind as they amused themselves with the sight of both of him and Caroline were immediately taken by a wave of fan mobs.

"Shouldn't we go after then?" the photographer asked. But Tracey just shrugged, "Nah… let's get some snack with the others"

When the coast was clear, Scott chuckled menacingly like a little gnome he was, "Now it's time for phase two" he quickly removed his camouflage suit and put back on his tourist attire. "Ok guys… you know what to do"

"Yes sir!" the employees said in unison.

As the 'man' himself made his way towards the gang's hangout area. He smiled innocently at them like nothing was happening. "Oh hey there everyone. I see you all had your share of battles" he was playing it cool, laying things out smart while holding a certain special invitation in his hands.

"Hey there Scott" the gang replied.

"Here to scout for some new trainers to challenge the Battle Frontier?" Anabel asked to which he waved off in denial, "No no, not at all. I was just here to uh… ummm…" he turned to the employee's hiding spot where they put a sign saying 'To get documents for the Pokemon HQ'

"Uh… looking for some documents for uh… the Pokemon HQ. Yeah, that's it. Some documents"

"Well, the Pokemon lab office is on the other side of the district" Drew pointed out. "I'm sure they have the documents you're looking for. The chubby man nodded a bit hesitantly, "Huh? Oh yeah, the office ahehehehe" the man then knew that it was time to unleash his plan, "Oh yeah, before I go. I remembered I had some tickets here for the---" but before he could finish, a familiar voice echoed in from the Pokemon center causing the gang to turn that way.

"Oh no you don't! Glameow, shadow ball!" before Scott knew it, he and his crew were suddenly busted out of the area with a good explosion from a certain caring mother. "I'll get you for this Johanna!!!" (sounds like: We're blasting off again!)

When Johanna arrived on scene, she dusted her hands together with a strong looking pout. "Geeze, the nerve of those people. They'll do anything to get their hand on MY Ash" she mumbled under her breath so no one could hear her clearly. As she looked back, the gang's face were kind of a mixture of odd, strange, mysterious and just plain weird. They didn't know what just happened, or what was even going on for the past six minutes.

"Uh ok… can someone tell me what just happened?" Ash said with a quizzled tone. But no one had much of an answer, except for Zoey who seemed to have a knack of explaining things. "Well from my point of view: Norman and Caroline came by and said that they were going to have a picnic by the beach. And then they were taken by a mob of his fans. A few minutes later, Scott came by, but then he was blasted off by a shadow ball attack"

"Yeah… ok" but then an idea popped into his head, "Hey guys, why don't we all go to the Downtown district for some lunch? My treat" the whole gang quickly agreed with a small round of cheers. "Alright then, come on. We can take the bus there"

When Johanna finally arrived at their table to give the ticket… she found out that they've seemed to have left already. "Huh? Hey! Wait! Come back here!"

**(An hour later) (Downtown district)**

After finally making their way to the Downtown area, the gang were once again, amazed by the fact that the place was huge. I mean…… a single district in here was as big as Varidian city itself and that was big, thank you very much.

The tour on the bus covered most of the areas, but what the gang really wanted to see was the giant supermall that was located at the center of the district. The place had everything from wavy cars to gizmos you can't even begin to imagine. The whole building was big and getting lost seemed inevitable for someone who doesn't know where's he's going. After awhile, they finally decided to check out the new fashion store that recently opened up.

Though Ash and some of the boys didn't really liked shopping for clothes, those who participated in Pokemon contest knew that it was a necessity to keep up with the latest trends. "Man… this whomps" Max sighed as he looked at his sister browse through the racks of different clothings. "Hey May, are you done yet?" it took her moments before she could even respond, "Five more minutes Max" she replied. But Max only seemed to sigh even deeper, "That's what you said ten minutes ago!"

Ash laughed at this and knew right away that it would probably take hours before they could move, "Hey I got an idea" he stated to the guys who were waiting, "Why don't you guys go around for awhile and we'll meet back at that café in two hours" he pointed to an outdoor café which had the name 'Fine and Dine' slandered on top of the sign post.

After they synchronized their watches, the group disbursed into smaller numbers and separated away from each other. While the rest of his friends were out having fun, Ash decided that it was time for him to get a new makeover as well. He had to admit that he was falling behind on the fashions of today and thought that having something new to wear might spark up the crowd. "Hmm… maybe it's time I get some new clothes too Pikachu (Pikapika)"

He then reentered the store and browse at the first piece of accessory his eyes laid on. However… unknown to him, there were several figures a few blocks away spying on him like Team Rocket.

**(On one of the benches)**

Norman and his wife Caroline were about to unleash another operation to get Ash and May together, but due to his identity being exposed by Scott's employees, he had to disguise himself using a cheap fake beard and an old 1970s paperboy hat. As he used his bird-watching binoculars to spy on his daughter, Caroline gladly took a sip of water from her canteen without any worries of being found out. Unlike Norman, she wasn't exactly that popular being shown on TV.

"Hmm… going good so far" Norman mumbled as he continued to spy on Ash. "But we're going to have to do something to speed things up a bit"

"Now honey" Caroline cooed, "I've been doing some thinking. Maybe we should let Ash decide who he wants to be with. We can't exactly force someone to like our daughter. Besides, I think Max can take over the gym when he's grown up" but Norman burst, "Nonsense Caroline! This isn't about the gym! This is about May's happiness! We must press on before it is too late!"

But then suddenly, a chuckle came from behind causing them to turn their gaze over to Scott, who was eaves dropping on them. "You might as well give up Norman. My plan is already in motion. And you'll soon know that fighting against me is futile… mwahahahaha!"

"Oh yeah!?" Norman countered, "Why don't we make a wager? If my May can get Ash before Anabel, I win" Scott raised his eye with a slight interest. "Hmm… what's the price?" he said slyly.

"Oh nothing much……… just the 'usual' offer" he emphasized the word usual to blend it with the words. With a smirk from both adults, Scott could reply, "Deal…" with a handshake to seal the bet, they both had similar thoughts on each other's minds.

"_Look at that smirk of his"_ Norman said in his head, _"You can't trust a guy wearing that getto. He'll probably ditch me the moment I let go of his hand"_

"_Look at that fool"_ Scott laughed in his head, _"He thinks he can outsmart me? You can already tell that his face is just full of lies. The moment I let go of his hands, he'll make a break for it. Well I'm not falling for that same old trick!" _Just as soon as their hands parted… the two adults dashed off towards the cloth shop to get a close up view of their battlefield.

**(Inside the cloth store)**

Ash was trying on some new hats that would go with his clothes, but as he tried on one after another, he figured out that none of them suits his taste. In the end he decided to wear his old one and moved on. Hopefully the girls were probably done shopping now. But as he made his way to the accessory section, he saw May trying out some of the cheap necklaces which she wanted to match with her clothes. She was having a hard time choosing between a butterfly shaped crest or a dolphin symbol.

"Hmm… I wonder which one looks better on me?" she asked herself as she gazed upon her neck through the mirror. But then suddenly, Ash's face appeared on the mirror catching her off guard and ill prepared. "Having a hard time choosing?" he asked with his usual smile. May blushed at first then nodded in reply. Seeing this, Ash decided to help out. He quickly remove the dolphin from its string (I think that's allowed) and put it together with the butterfly necklace. So instead of having one, she gets to have two of them. "Here ya go" Ash smiled up as he showed her the work. "Now turn around and let me put it on you"

May was reluctant at first, but then decided to comply in the end. She removed the bangs on her back neck and allowed Ash to put the necklace around her. The moment his fingers touched her skin, it was a slight jolt surging through her body like a wave of electricity. Once the accessory piece was put on, Ash held her shoulders and twisted her body to face the mirror once more.

To say the least, May was quite impressed with her new look. The two crests on her neck matched perfectly with her clothing and if she were to show this to a crowd, they'll probably believe that it must've cost a fortune.

"Hey… that looks nice on you" Ash commented which turned the girl to blush again. "T… thank you" May replied holding the necklace tightly. She then walked towards the cash register to pay up, but when she opened her wallet, she realized that she had spent her last of her bills on buying all those souvenirs. "Aww man… what luck?" she thought to herself, "I forgot to ask mom and dad to give me money back in the hotel"

But then Ash came to her rescue again, "Excuse me" he called the clerks attention, "How much is the necklace?" this caused May to shout out in embarrassment, "Wah?! Nonononononononno! You don't to buy it for me Ash! It's..."

"Don't worry May" Ash flashed out his usual grin, "Besides… I think you look a lot prettier with it" this caused the girl to stop mid-sentence and blushed madly like the color of her clothes.

Unknown to the both of them, Norman and Scott were holding up score signs to give out points for themselves.

Norman-1

Scott-0

But only Rosa was able to notice them. Thought she was quite fascinated with some of the products the humans were able to conjure, she found a slight bit of entertainment coming from these two clowns. So instead of stopping them, she decided to amuse herself with their tomfoolery.

"Oh that reminds me" the clerk said suddenly which caught their attention, "That one comes with this pendant as an extra. It's the last one I have in stock, so take good care of it" he gently hand it over to Ash where he gazed at it with awe. It was almost like May's Moltres medallion except this one had a Lugia picture on it. "Whoa… a Lugia. I haven't seen one of these before"

"Hey Ash" Anabel called in as she walked to the boy's side. She then noticed the medallion on his hand, "Wow… that's a nice looking pendant. Where'd you get that from?"

"It came with the pair of necklace I bought for May" he replied, "It's the last on in stock" and then suddenly, an idea came upon his head. "Here, you want it?" the girl was reluctant at first but then accepted it in the end.

Scott saw this and immediately changed his score! Norman only shot him a smug.

"Hey guys" Kenny called out after purchasing himself some new threads, "Are you done yet? We have to meet May and the others at the café in one hour, and I want to see other shops too you know" Ash and the other coordinators agreed and quickly dashed off to another store before they meet up with the others.

But as Norman and Scott followed intently behind them, they immediately spotted Johanna, who seemed to have positioned herself in an ambush formation with the concert ticket in hand. Both guys knew that if she handed Ash that ticket, Dawn will be all over him and the war will be lost. If they wanted to fight to go on, the will have to either get rid of Johanna or get rid of that ticket!

"Truce?" Scott offered

"Truce…" Norman replied.

And with that, they immediately concocted a brilliant plan to get Ash and co away from Johanna's trap.

While Ash was busy chatting with his friends, Johanna smirked under her lips as her plan was slowly coming to fusion. She was hiding behind a pillar carrying a bag of makeup she just bought from the shops nearby. This was to help her put up a small alibi so that no one would believe that their meeting was planned and coordinated. "Hehehehehe… yes… that's it. Closer… just a little closer" she muttered as she ready her ticket to give them. "With this baby… Dawn's future is secured…" in an instant she began imagining her side of the future.

**(Johanna's imagination)**

She could already see Ash and Dawn dancing at the Galaxy concert, hands held in the air cheering and screaming. As he concert ended with a loud bang the two of them looked at each other with smiles on their faces. After they left the place, they arrive at a luxurious restaurant with valets and servants all around them.

Once they were done, Ash would take Dawn out to one of the beaches at night where the full moon would glow brightly at them. "It's beautiful here…" Dawn stated as she gazed upon the waves that came to her feet. When both Ash and Dawn locked eyes with each other, fireworks seemed to have appeared out of the background, causing this scene to become even more romantic than one could ever believe.

As the two of them closed in on each other's proximity, Ash gave out one giant affectionate hug which surprised Dawn by a mile. Eventually she returned the hug and two of them stayed there… perhaps until the sun rose.

**(End of imagination)**

Johanna squirmed herself as the thought rapidly poured into her mind like milk in a bottle. Her drool became more obvious as her knees weakened by the mere thought of having a perfect son in law. "Hehehehehehe. I'm such a good mother. I wouldn't be surprised if I became the mother of the year. Hehehehehe" she said to herself as she prepared the ambush. Once Ash took the step onto the red tile, her eyes quickly sharpened like razor blades, "Here goes nothing!"

But just before she could move in for the kill, two men disguised as painters came in and blocked her path, "Excuse us coming through!" said the chubby one with shades. "This section needs painting and we can't have this place looking a run down slum now can we?"

"Not at all my friend!" the tall guy replied as they blocked Johanna's path. "Sorry ma'am, please wait there for a minute or two. We'll be done in a second" the mother was gonna try calling out to Ash, but the 'painters' simply put out a radio and turned the volume to max so they wouldn't hear her.

"That was weird" Ash stated as he looked at the painters as they told them to move on. Once the boy and his friends got through, Scott and Norman pulled out their disguises and smirked.

"Mission accomplished…"

**(Time skip) (1 hour) (Fine and Dine café) (03:45 PM)**

After regrouping at the designated café, the gang decided to order around some snacks to kill some time. While the others busied themselves to some hotdogs and corn chips, Ash gulped down his whole can of soda with one go. "Ahhh… nothing like a cool refreshment after a whole day of battle!" he said with a wide smile, "I could get used to this" Richie had to agree, "You said it. This place practically has everything in it: Battle arenas to hold matches, malls, great hotels and a lot of food to go around. I might actually decide to live here instead!"

"You got that right" Max agreed, "They even have schools in the residential areas too"

But just as the gang continued to blabber on about the place, Brock suddenly noticed a poster on the sides. "Hey guys" he called to the gang's attention, "Look, there's a firework display happening tonight. We can get a good from the beaches in the Old Town district. Anyone up for it?"

"Fireworks? I love fireworks!" May replied with her eyes sparkling like the stars themselves. "I'm so there" Dawn followed up with a nod, "Me too! I haven't seen fireworks by the beach before. Hey, why don't we have dinner there?" her suggestion was quickly agreed all around by the other younger generation. Having a little break from battle could beneficial for the body and mind.

"I'll go save us a spot then" Brock volunteered as he packed up his things, "Make sure you guys bring some supplies and a change of clothe just in case you might wanna swim. I have a feeling it'll be really crowded over there"

"Ok Brock" the gang said in unison. When the Pokemon breeder was gone, Ash decided to order another batch to fill up his stomach. After so many intense fighting, he believes that he was going to need a lot of fuel to keep his stamina up. And Rosa couldn't have agreed more. Though she is against letting Ash have fast food all the time, she wanted to be happy a little while longer. Who knows, maybe after battle he'll lose all that weight he's been gathering around his stomach.

**(Arena district)**

Havic, the ex-boss of the gang just arrived at the battle area after hearing from one of his men that a kid of extraordinary skills appeared and whooped all their butts like nothing. Not only that, he seemed to have earned a certain level of respect among the non-gang trainers around the city. Though nearly 40 percent of the trainer populace was part of some gangs, there were those who refused to join and become somewhat independent. But only those who are truly strong can take such a stand against such a wave.

"Ahh… I love the smell of fresh sweat in the evening" Havic said jokingly to his personal bodyguard crew. "Now where's this kid that's been causing you guys trouble?"


	51. Meet The Parents Part 2

**Chapter 51: Meet The Parents Part 2**

**(The Plaza Mall) (Downtown District) (04:00 PM)**

The gang were pretty much enjoying themselves at the mall today after their recent shopping. After a little snack at the Fine and Dine, they visited many other places. The arcade was the first choice which Drew was able to get the top time record in the VR car racing simulation. He was adored by a lot of girls and some were even planning to start a fan club of their own. Paul was no different. Even though he did not get any top score, his cool pose and annoyed look attracted a lot of attention on their own.

Duplica and Dawn were also getting some of their fame through shooting basket ball hoops. After their little practice at Mauvile city arcade they were practically pros in that game.

After getting through the arcade, the gang decided to take a little stroll around the block just to kill time. They weren't supposed to meet Brock in about two or three hours at the beach so anyway.

"So what now guys?" Kenny asked as he took a sip from his soda can that he got from a vending machine. "We still got a few hours left until the fireworks starts. And I bet Brock is probably saving a spot for us at the beach in the Old Town district"

"Well…" Dawn thought for a moment, "We've already did most the shopping and going back to Arena district would be a waste of time… hmmm…" but just as she was thinking, the gang suddenly came in front of the movie theater. "Huh? Hey guys look! A movie theater!" the gang quickly began scrolling the different movies that were showing today.

"Wow! Look, they have Raichu in Space 2!" Max said excitingly, "This movie wasn't supposed to be out until next month! Can we watch it May? Can we can we can we?" but his sister was having some other thoughts on watching the new romance movie, 'Gardevoir, Lights of Bluemoon city' it was a romantic drama that was inspired by a famous selling book telling about a Gardevoir that live a life of poverty and was turned into a princess by a fairy-god-Chancy. (kinda like Cinderella, Pokemon style) "Oh my! I've read the story about this movie!" May squealed with delight. "I have to watch it!"

Paul and Ash on the other hand was more interested in the movie 'Slaking-kong' that appeared to a hit to the people all around. The movie was about a Slaking that was found in the wilds by a woman. Apparently, Slaking went berserk when it arrived in the city and began running amuck, causing mass mayhem. (Imagine King-Kong with Slaking as the main monkey)

"Well, they're showing at the same time" Richie noticed on the schedule, "Come on. Let's get ourselves some tickets before they sell out"

But as they approach the ticket booth, Anabel suddenly got a strange feeling about her surroundings. As they moved closer towards the ticket salesman, she had to admit that the guy looked oddly familiar. The chubby clerk wearing shades, a tourist attire underneath his working cloth and a mustache that looked like it had been stapled onto his face. "Greetings, can I help you?" he greeted in a strange tone. (Scott)

Richie and Max nodded back, "Yeah, we'd like to buy some tickets for Raichu in Space"

Seeing that the line wasn't gonna move for awhile, Ash decided to buy popcorns and drinks for everyone since the movies were going to a little longer than expected. But as he approach the stand, he couldn't help but feel that the guy at the counter looked very familiar.

"Can I help you there sonny?" said the clerk. (Norman)

"Uh… yeah. I'd like to buy some popcorn and soda" Ash replied looking at him oddly. "Hey… have we met before? You look kind of familiar" the clerk simply fake out a laughed, "Oh ummm… ahehehehehehe… I get that all the time sonny. Hahahahaha. So how many popcorns and sodas?" a little satisfied with the answer from the clerk, Ash decided to drop the subject and purchase his snack before the movie starts.

After distributing it to the gang, the boy made his way to the ticket booth. "What will it be sonny?"

"One front row ticket for Slaking-kong please" but the clerk simply gave out a disappointing sigh, "Oooo Sorry there kid. Looks like we sold out the last one"

"Oh… ok then, how about Raichu in space?"

"Nope, just sold the last one a minute ago kid. Why don't you watch Gardevoir Lights of Bluemoon city? We still got plenty of seats left"

"Aww man…" Ash groaned annoyingly, "And I thought I could watch something interesting today" but then Dawn and Duplica suddenly wrapped themselves around both his arms with a chibi look, "Oh come on Ash" the emerald haired trainer begged, "Why don't you watch the movie with us? I'm sure you'll find it interesting" Ash looked at both of them confused at first, but then thought that a little change could do some good, "Oh… ok. I guess there's nothing better to do. I'll take one"

"A good choice hehehehe" the ticket man grinned evilly as he handed out the ticket. Once the gang head into their respective theaters, Scott removed his disguise and took out his walkie talkie. "Ok… phase one is complete. Move on to phase two!"

"Yes sir" said the guy on the other line.

**(Theater number 7 Playing: Gardevoir Lights of Bluemoon City)**

Ash and the girls quickly found themselves a nice area where the audiences were sparse. But to May's surprise, everyone who were watching the movie seemed to be all couples. Some were holding hands while some were putting their heads on their partner's shoulders. As they finally settled down, the lights quickly dimmed and movie began. "I wonder if they got all the Pokemons right from the book" Anabel wondered with a slight hint of excitement.

"I hope the scenes are just like the book" May said dreamily as the movie slowly began to play

The whole group was sitting on one row. Ash was at the center with Pikachu and some of his Pokemons on the right side. Luckily the place was dead empty except for a few pairs of lovers. Ash knew that the theaters weren't allowing any Pokemons, but it seemed like someone bribed the security to make this a special exception. Turtwig and Cyndaquil sat on one chair with popcorn and sodas, Pikachu was sitting on Ash's lap while Dophan, Swellow and Totodile watched from the sidelines.

However… unknown to all of them, was that there was an suspicious looking customer on the back row. They couldn't really tell if that afro haired person was a he or she since that fake mustache seemed to hide the person's gender identity. (Johanna)

**(Theater number 4 Playing: Raichu in Space 2)**

Richie, Max and Todd were in the theater room waiting for the movie to start. They settled themselves on a row and gradually ate their popcorn. It was an exciting moment, like every time when you're in a theater. But when Max entered the place, he noticed that practically half the theater was empty. He knew that the ticket salesman said that the ticket was sold out, but there seemed to be plenty of seats left to take. As the screen curtains raised up, the boy simply ignored the question in his head and focused on the movie. He can ask himself about those things later.

**(Arena District)**

Havic was taking a 'stroll' around the arena after hearing the news that a new bunch of kids were kicking the cake off the gang. When he passes by a battle field, the contestants immediately turn away like they were afraid of him. And perhaps they were afraid of him! Just by being in Gary's elite crew already makes him a trainer to be feared. His skill in combat were inhumane and his tactics were pretty much head on assaults.

"Alright, so where are these new kids?" Havic asked his escorts after walking around for several hours with no success of finding the trouble makers. "I thought you said that they'd be here till night"

"M…maybe they left" said one of the goons with a slight hint of fright, "B…. but he was really powerful! All of his Pokemons were like, super strong! And his friends were all POW and WHAM and like…… uber! I'm telling ya boss, they're one mean machine!"

"So where are they?" Havic looked around again for the kid who matched his description, "You said a bunch of kids came in here and beat you in fair fight, but I see here are (cell phone ring) Hold on a moment" the shaded man quickly picked up his cell phone and pressed the answer button, "Yeah it's me. Speak up"

"Hey" it was Emma, the Dark Queen of the gang, "We need to meet at Uno Café… now. Steve said that he's got important news to tell us"

"Can't it wait?" Havic whined, "I've got work of my own too you know"

"Its top news Havic" Emma replied, "Gary's also here…" with that kid's name alone, Havic already knew that this was something that he couldn't ignore. When someone calls for Gary, it definitely had to be important. Brendan and Red never really attended their meetings but they were still part of the group. He wouldn't expect them to be in the meeting. "On my way" he said finally. After tucking back his phone back into his pocket, he turned to his escorts with a serious expression on his face, "Gotta go. You guys deal with the new kid when you find him. Laters…" and with that he dashed off into the district gates, leaving behind his crew to hang around with nothing to do.

Unknown to both him and the others… was that a certain red clothed boy was listening to everything he said. He grew out a smirk before slowly walking off to the other side of the city.

**(Back with Ash and the girls)**

"No princess, where are you going?" said the Gallade acting as the prince in movie. Gardevoir rushed down the stairs quickly as the toll bell struck twelve several times. "Princess, please wait!" but as Gardevoir entered her chariot, a glass slipper slipped off her foot falling to the ground below. Once the door was closed, the valet quickly mushed the Rapadash and off they go.

As the chariot exited the palace grounds, the prince raised his hand, "Guards, after that chariot!" several knights in armors quickly gave chase with great speed, but before they could pursue the chariot any further, the palace gate suddenly closed up on them, causing the knights to stop.

A sad song was played not long after the princess was out of reach. Gallade's head sulked down like his heart had been torn in two. When the knights were finally able to get out of the palace grounds, he knew right then that they had no chance of finding her. Gardevoir would've been long half way across the city by now. But as he shot his head down, his eyes came into contact with a certain glass shoe (or was it a slipper?) "My dear Gardevoir…" he said to himself, "All you left me was this shoe and a broken heart………"

It was then a Jynx butler came into view, "You highness, are you alright?" he asked worryingly, "The suitors are still waiting for you inside" but then Gallade shrugged him off. "No Jynx" Gallade replied, "I will not love another but her. I swear on my honor… that who should ever wear this glass slipper… shall be my bride to be"

As the movie progressed on, some of the couples in the theater were on the slight verge of crying. The movie was so touching and dramatic that it touched the very soul of the viewers. Ash's Pokemons were also in tears as they could understand the emotion being brought up. Turtwig was using his razor leaf as tissue and Swellow was drying its tears with its feathers. Heck, even Dawn had her handkerchief soaked. Ash and Zoey on the other hand, just seemed to be enjoying the movie and was even somewhat impressed by the voice dubbing of the Pokemons.

While the movie was going halfway already, May suddenly noticed the happy pairs around her. The boys had their arms around their love ones while the girls were simply snuggling cozily to their partners. There was a warm feeling going all around and before she knew it, she was already gazing her eyes onto Ash. The boy was too much in the zone to notice her stare, and it looked like he wasn't even interested in his half finished popcorn bag anymore.

Taking the courage to make the first move, May decided to move her hands upwards, pretending to yawn and stretching her arms. As she slowly let them fall back to position, she let out a soft groaning sound as her left arm slowly attached itself around Ash's shoulder. Her heart started to pump faster and her cheeks started to burn up. If she successfully makes this move, then her relation with the boy could take up to a whole new level. But just when she was about ninety percent complete, the person who was sitting behind Ash (Johanna in disguise) let out a slightly loud fake cough which surprised the boy slightly. May quickly withdrew her arm with a flushed face as she silently cursed the person behind her.

"Pardon me, I have a slight cough illness" the person replied holding a tissue onto her mouth. _"Man… that was too close for comfort. I'm not gonna let Norman get all the glory and definitely not Scott! I'm gonna have to improvise a new plan soon. This ticket is a once in a life time opportunity and I won't let it go to waste! Ok… think Johanna. How can I meet with them and not look all suspicious?"_ her head began to go into overdrive, causing her brain to slightly spin until an idea popped in, "I got it!" she said outloud which caused the other audience to give her the 'shhh' sound, "Oh… sorry"

"What a strange person" Ash mumbled to himself only loud enough to let his Pikachu hear.

**(At the movie entrance area)**

After wandering aimlessly for a whole day, Team Rocket found them a job of selling snacks at the snack bar in front of the movie theater. It wasn't the best job in the lot, but at least they could help themselves to some junk food when they're done.

"Hey there, I'd like to have two large soda pop" the customer requested with money on hand. "Coming right up" Meowth replied holding his paw up, "Hey James, the kid needs some soda over here"

"Coming" the blue haired villain replied after producing the two liquid containers. "Here you go, enjoy your drinks" once the customer was gone, the guy let out a slight sigh, "Talk about manual labor. I'm getting cramps just wearing this getto"

"We've only been working here for two hours ya blue haired balooka" Meowth replied standing on his highchair to get an even height with him, "Besides, you were the one who got us this job in the first place. Let's just try to make the best out of this ok?"

"Ok… but I still don't like it" it wasn't long then till the exit door opened up pouring out several audience members. "Well it looks like the movie just ended" Meowth analyzed, "Come on, let's get back to work" but just then a customer approached them, "Excuse me sir" it was Richie, "Do you still have some Pokeblocks in a can?"

"Why of course we do" James replied, but when he turned around his face froze, "GAKK!!!" he held a scream in his throat, which caused Richie to look at him with a quizzled expression, "Is something wrong?" luckily for TR, Richie didn't exactly meet them too many times so he couldn't exactly remember how they look like. "No no no no! Nothing, nothing could be more right" James replied quickly handing him the can and retrieving the money. Once Richie was gone, the blue haired villain grabbed Meowth from behind and huddled in, "Remember that twerp?"

"Yeah" the talking cat nodded, "It's the twerp who looks like the twerp. That means those twerps must be here as well. We got to tell Jessie about this and fast"

"But you know she doesn't like having interruptions when she's getting her nails done. We'll just have to get them when their guard is down" the two of them quickly gave out a short peek at the gang that was assembling in greater numbers. Raichu in Space 2 ended first, following Slaking-kong. The last movie where Ash and the girls were wasn't going to end in another ten or so minutes.

"So guys, are you all ready for the fireworks at the beach today?" Todd asked the gang, holding his camera up, "I'm ready to take some good pictures today"

"I called Brock a minute ago" Tracey added, "He said that he managed to save us a good spot and is waiting for us right now. We should go and meet him as soon as possible"

**(Back with Ash and the girls)**

As Gardevoir and Gallade finally planted their kiss on their wedding gown, Dawn and many others let out a soft cry of joy like never before. The sight of two destined lovers finally coming together was something no soul could ignore. As the movie credits rolled in, the lights suddenly brightened up causing Ash and his Pokemons to squint slightly. "Well… I guess that's that" the boy implied as he returned his Pokemons to his Pokeballs (except for Pikachu and Rosa of course) "Come on everyone. We still need to get to the beach in the Old Town District for the firework festival"

"Right" the girls replied holding their smiles together.

As the mass of the audience pushed through the tight hallway exit, Ash had to keep himself around so that he and the others wouldn't get separated. This was also the time when Johanna put her plans into motion, "Now's my chance" she thought before making her move, "Hey Ashaaa!!" before she could even present her ticket, a mass wave of people came out of nowhere and tackled her right out thought the exit. "W… wait a minute!Hey Da(crowd ramble)wn! Wait up! Hey stop pushing!" but the crowd was simply too loud for anyone to hear her.

With the people pushing and pulling all around, Ash was suddenly thrown off course from the others, leading him down a different lane. "Ouch! Hey, stop pushing will ya! Hey, what the?"

"Ash!" Dawn called him from the other side.

"Dawn! Go outside and wait at the snack bar with the others. I'll find a way there s…" before he could even finish, the mob of people began to push harder, drowning the boy in a wave of heads and bodies. It would probably be hours before he could find his way out again.

**(Back outside) (06:00 PM)**

Richie and the rest of the crew were waiting patiently outside the movie theater exit for Ash and the girls. They knew that the movie was long, but they never knew that it would take this long. They were supposed to leave for the Old Town district in ten or twenty minutes from now, but if they don't get out soon, then they'll have to walk from the Downtown district to the other, which could take about an hour or two at least.

"What's taking them so long?" Max whined as he checked his watch, "They should've been out by now. I hope they didn't have an extension or something or we'd miss the firework festival for sure" Sparky nodded with a slight yawn as well as he sat on Richie's lap. "Well… the bus doesn't leave for another twenty minutes" Tracey notified them, "I think we can still make it. Besides, Brock's already holding a spot for us back there"

"I'll go check" Kenny volunteered as he moved in towards the theater exit. But as he approached the large fluffy red door, it suddenly opened up in front of him by a swarm of people rushing out like madmen. "YAHHHHH!!!" the poor young coordinator barely had the chance scream when pairs upon footsteps stomped down onto his face. From combat boots to spiky bottoms to sharp high-heels, none was left out. The other trainer had an urge to look away but Paul simply scoffed with a slight hint of amusement in his tone.

"………I'm gonna feel that in the morning" the Shinou coordinator groaned painfully.

"Hey everyone" came Ash's voice, "Sorry we're late. We had a bit of trouble finding our way"

"That's ok" Tracey replied, "We still got time before the fireworks start. Come on, let's grab some food for Brock"

Shopping around the grocery store wasn't as hard as one would actually think when you have friends along with you. With the whole party gathering supplies from all around, they were able to get things in the tray faster than you could drive your car to the barber shop next door. (Eh?)

After awhile, they reached the cashier area to where Tracey paid for the goods. But unknown to all of them was that they were being watched from a certain chubby man. (Scott) "Begin phase three" he said to his radio phone.

On the other side of the shopping mall, Johanna was sulking down on some water after finally making it out of the theater exit. Apparently after that stampede, she seemed to have lost the once in a life time ticket and now she was waiting for some miracle to happen. "Oh brother" she sighed, "Man, what a day…… my bones feel like they're all breaking" she then took a sip off her water bottle and slouched down onto a bench on the sides.

"J.J?" a voice perked in to which caught the woman's attention. When Johanna looked up, her sight was greeted by a certain blonde haired trainer. "Cynthia? What are you doing here?"

"I was out sightseeing when I came in here to look for some new clothes. What about you?"

Johanna then decided to come clean with her plans. She explained everything to her best friend from the moment Ash came to Dawn's life and to her plans on getting them hooked up. But now… she was currently out of cards and Scott and Norman were probably on their way developing a plan to get Ash too.

"So let me get this straight" Cynthia stated taking a sip off her can if soda, "You believe that Dawn likes Ash more than a friend and that's why you're doing this to get him to notice her?" the woman reluctantly nodded back in reply. To say the least, Cynthia seemed to look pretty disappointed with her friend. Sure, she knew that she was doing this for her daughter, but after hearing her tale, the three of them seemed to be taking this matter way out of hand. "I'm not really sure if I'm the one to say this J.J, but I think you should stop doing this"

"Huh? Why's that?"

"I understand you're doing this for Dawn, but I think you should consider Ash's feelings as well" the Shinou battle champ explained as she got into a comfortable position, "When I battled him back in the Shinou stadium two years ago… I knew then what kind of person Ash was. He's strong, kind and very gentle with everyone who has ties with him. He has a lot of confidence in his skill and he trusts his Pokemons completely. To tell you the truth, I've never actually seen anyone who's more dedicated than him in my life" she looked at Johanna who seemed to be very intrigued with her words, "They're still young J.J, and they still have ways to go. I'm sure Dawn wouldn't want Ash to like her back because someone persuaded him to"

The mother looked to the ground in shame. Cynthia was right, she didn't really need to go through all this length just to get Ash to like Dawn. If the boy had any feelings at all for any girl, the only person who can decide that will be him and him alone. She completely had no right to intrude into her personal life. If Dawn ever finds out what she had been doing there's also no doubt that she would despise her as well.

"I…"

But before Cynthia could allow her to reply, she suddenly got up and extended her hand to help her, "Come on… there's a firework festival at the Old Town District, and I sure don't want to miss it" she flashed out a goofy smile to relieve the tension of the area.

Johanna seemed… hesitant… at first, but then again… there was no reason for her friend to act this way. She gladly accepted her hand and stood proudly with a smile on her face. "Thanks Cynthia…"

"No prob… J.J"

**(Time skip 07:49 PM) (Old Town District beach)**

After getting their supplies from the mall, Ash and co finally arrived at the beach site, only to be greeted by the sight of tourist and trainers alike. The whole place was packed and boy it barely seemed like there were any space left for them.

"Wow… look at all those people" Ash stated as he looked at the beach inhabitants. "I wonder how we'll get through all of that"

"What I'm more curious about is where Brock is" Drew implied holding his chin up high. As the gang used their visions to find their friend, they need not look far, for the sound of the slanted eyed man could easily be found near a bunch of pretty girls in their swim wear. "Yup… that's Brock alright" Ash replied. "Come on let's go"

As they approach the area where Brock was, they could already see several slap marks on his face, symbolizing every rejection he received up to date. "Oh hey guys" he greeted painfully with a smile that bore the mark of a desperate lover.

"Hey Brock" they all said in unison.

"Got rejected again?" Max snickered at him.

"Of course not!" he snapped back, "These are just proof that women like to leave their mark on the man they set their eyes on!" he pointed to some of the slap marks on his cheeks and chin as a gesture to what he meant. "But enough about me, you guys are quite late. Did something held you guys back?"

"Oh we kinda got lost in the mall" Ash replied with a sweat drop. He then took a look around and noticed that there were more people around than he actually expected. There were several life guards guarding along the coast with their watchful eye, tourists and trainers were enjoying themselves by swimming and having a small barbeque party, and from the looks of it, there seemed to be a small rock band playing for the festival as well.

"So Brock…" Todd came in, "Did you save us a spot" the Pokemon breeder simply grinned back at himself, "Definitely… I was able to save the best spot in the whole coast! Follow me" they immediately agreed and followed the boy through the beach. However… they began to wonder why they were going so far from the main crowd.

After two or three minutes of walking, they finally arrive at an open sand field surrounded by giant boulders. It was the perfect picnic spot for a gang of ten or twenty. There was plenty of space and heck it was even connected to the sea itself. As they all looked at the distance of the ocean, they could see the central island and a fleet of ships going about the area. A wild guess would say that these are the ships that are supposed to shoot out the fireworks.

"Alright everyone, we're here" Brock announced to his friends as he showed them the area where they will be staying for the night. "I was able to get this spot by accident. Who knew that such a perfect spot like this is hidden so close to the crowd?"

Satisfied with the location and privacy of the place, Ash and the others quickly unpack their cargo and help set up the campsite. Two portable tables were set up, a campfire made, several cotton mats for the Pokemons to tug in and several bottles of water for the thirsty throats. Once they were done, they all helped themselves into preparing the dishes and the glasses.

After all the preparations were done, the gang quickly changed into their swim wear outfits and dove into the water like dolphins in the sea. As expected, the water was salty, but it was also very refreshing for the body. They did not expect to see any Pokemons in the deep blue sea of Valmarian city, but that was probably why the place was so unpopular to the world. As they all swam and dove and enjoyed themselves to the fullest, none of them noticed the two figures hiding behind the shadows.

Norman and Scott were in position both with binoculars and radio walkie-talkies. If one would look at this from another POV they would almost look like two teens peeping in the women's changing room.

"Prepare for phase three" Scott raid to his radio. But just as they were about to commence operation 'Get Ash to fall in love with one of the girls' two women came out of nowhere and pulled their ears until they were bright red, "Ow ow ow oweeee!!" the two men yelped all together as they turned to their aggressors. To their surprise, it was none other than Caroline and Johanna, the two motherly figures of their daughters.

"Ok boys, I think we've just had about enough of this silliness" Norman's wife as she stayed her hands on his ear, pulling it slightly bit by bit just in case he wasn't listening. "You can stop your silly plans now and start acting like a man"

"But darling ouch ouch! We were just trying to help Ash choose"

"Precisely" Johanna implied, "And you boys can stop now. Because I don't think it's right for us to decide on his choice" they both let go of their ears now that they realize that they were listening intently, "Listen Scott… I know that Ash will make a great Battle Frontier and Norman, I also believe that Ash would become a wonderful gym leader. But no matter what we do, I think Ash should make that decision alone. He's still young… I believe he still has time"

"And fighting like this…" Caroline added, "… won't exactly win us any favors dear" 

"But Caroline… what about May?"

"I think she likes it this way" Cynthia voiced her opinion out, "Come on Norman… there were plenty of girls in the world that wanted to be your girlfriend…… but of all of them you picked Caroline right?" the two of them blushed at each other before turning away, "No one told you who to pick… and I think you still made the right choice. So why don't we let Ash decide who he wants and sit back. This is their time Norman…… not ours"

The two men lowered their heads slightly in shame of what they've done and what they were just about to do. Right now their plan was full proof and with the hints in line, Ash was sure to go for one of the girls there. But after hearing this uptight word from the women, they really felt like they were ants not even worth stepping on.

"Boss?" came the person on the other side of the radio. "Boss, we're in position and ready to commence the operation" every adult turned their heads to Scott who still looked like his mind was undecided. He tightened his grip on the radio and looked back at the others as if they were waiting for him to make a move. It was a hard decision for him to make but a decision nonetheless. With one single command he can ensure the fate of Anabel's destiny and the instant fame of the Battle Frontier, but is that what Anabel wants… or it is something he wants? Who could tell?

With a heavy heart and mind, the man lifted the radio up to his face and gave his signal, "Cancel the operation…" with that, he put it back into his pocket and smiled happily along with the others. "I guess… we were getting a little reckless about all of this" he confessed, "Taking love life into our own hands is like playing with a Moltres. You don't know if it will burn you or like you"

"I guess we all had to make a choice" Johanna sighed happily with relief. "Too bad that this choice wasn't ours to decide… right Cynthia...? Cynthia?" she then realized that the blonde girl was no longer there. She had already joined up with Ash and the gang and was happily helping herself to a share of barbeque and salad. The adults laughed at each other and quickly joined up.

"So… does everyone agree on forgetting everything?" Caroline asked for a truce and perhaps… a peace treaty between the parents. (except for Scott who was simply Anabel's guardian)

"Agreed" they all said in unison.

**(Uno café)**

A dark gathering was happening today at the Uno café. A tension was rising and even the café manager could feel it coming from a distance. Gary and his elite crew were all there and they were waiting for the last member to enter the field. The only time there has ever been a gathering like this was only the time when there was going to be a big battle, but right now, everyone's attention seemed to be centered on Steve.

"Sorry I'm late" said Havic as he entered the café. "Traffic held me up back at the roads. So what's so important today?" as he looked around, he noticed that Gary was having one of his bad look moments. Whenever he gave out that look, they all know that they should watch whatever they say. That face was probably so scary that a rookie would be wetting his pants in a matter of seconds. Knowing this, Havic immediately shut himself up and took a seat on one of the tables.

Once the door closed shut with a tight lock, Steve began his meeting, "I guess that's everybody" Emma was sitting on the table at the edge of the room with her arms crossed. Jaques was right beside Gary, but unlike the others, he was not afraid of him. He had grown slightly fond of his boss and was probably one of the very few who he would open up to. Brendan and Red were also surprisingly in the café, but they barely had any attention for each other.

"Ok everyone… listen up" Steve continued with his laptop slightly opened. "I have bad news, some big bad news and small good news"

"Start with the good news" Gary ordered to which the hippy guy was more than glad to comply.

"Well… the good news is, we're now considered the strongest bunch in the city. The bad news is…… so are the Bail Outs" a snicker could be heard coming from Havic's area. "What's the big bad news?"

"Some of the Elite Fives are challenging us to a battle" Steve replied instantly, "I don't know if this is some kind of a trick, but three of them have been seen in the area, challenging some of our best trainers in battles. Right now they're harmless, but this is really something we should remedy… before it gets out of hand"

Gary let out a small smirk off his lips before gathering his thoughts. "If this is true…" Emma added, "Then I say we should go out there and meet them head on!" she slammed her fist together with a grin and a battle ready spirit. But Gary had other plans. If what Steve says is true, these minor skirmishes could escalate into a real gang war and people could really get hurt. Taking a stand, he turned to his crew, "Alright then… here's the plan" the gang member stiffened slightly to his words. "Havic, Jaques, you two go and get this situation under control" the two of them nodded in unison. "Steve, I want you to find out where and who of the Elite Five's are" the guy nodded back in reply, "Emma, you handle crowd control. Any Bail Out coming in, I want him (or her) out"

"You got it boss" she grinned ear to ear as she prepare for her next battle.

"Red, you're on defense" the boy simply flashed out his fake smile without saying a word, "Brendan, you're on scouting duty" the white clad boy simply gave a look a 'hmph' positively. "Alright then… let's move"

"Hold on a minute" Steve said suddenly which caught their attention, "I still got one more thing to report boss"

"Well make it quick" Gary replied impatiently.

Steve sighed out with large amount of sweat dropping from his forehead. He took out a tissue and wiped around his face. He knew that this news was gonna make his boss irritated, but he should report this now, rather than regret it later, "I'm not really sure if you could call this good news or bad news, so I'll just classify it as gray news ok"

"Just out with it Steve" Emma urged him with a pissed off face.

"Well…… I was checking the city's gate entrance this afternoon like I always do. And it looks like all the trainers… well… at least 9/10 of them have already signed in"

"What are you implying?" Gary raised a quizzled brow of confusion. As Steve noticed the increase impatience of the boy's tone, he opened up his laptop and typed something on its screen. "Well… I was just my usual routine… until I found……… 'him'…" he showed the picture to the gang and with one glimpse of the picture, everyone… even Brendan seemed to have stiffened slightly to the growing emotion.

Gary balled his fist and tightened it so much that it nearly bled from all the pressure. The picture on Steve's laptop… was none other than Ash Ketchum…… his so called… eternal rival. Taking a slight breather to cool himself down, the boy turned to his allies and sharpened his eyes like daggers to a open throat. "Steve……… find him……… the rest of you… take care of the Bail Outs" and with that, he walked out of the café with his hands in his pockets. Jaques was not long behind to follow his boss to the outside as well.

With Gary and Jaques gone, Red and Brendan followed behind, taking turns on who goes out first and last. After half the group was out, Havic adjusted his shades and turned to the rest of his remaining crew, "Alright you guys. I don't want this news getting out. If everyone knows that Ash Ketchum is in town then there will be a panic. Steve, can you find a way so no one can access the information grid?"

"Already on it"

"Good. Emma, you make sure that no one but us knows of this. We don't want the Bail Outs looking for him you got me?"

"Right…"

The ex-boss of the gang glided his hand onto his head and frowned deeply. He knew that Ash would come sooner or later, but the guy couldn't have come at the worst possible moment. With the kid around, Gary will now focus most of his attention on him and not on the Bail Outs. They strength was already stretching thin with the districts coming to their control, but with Ash here… it was like fighting two different enemies at four different fronts. At first, the Bicento Brothers were going against them along with Soledad and her small band of loyal friends… and with the Bail Outs moving in with their forces, there was no doubt that they were gonna lose some territories to this battle.

"Man… of all the times to show up, why today?" he groaned angrily before storming out of the café.

**(Back with the Ash and the gang)**

As Ash and the whole gang chilled out at the beach along with their Pokemons, Brock's special dinner meal was served. They all had their own plates and the Pokemons were given their share as well. If one were to look at this situation from their point of view, they would probably say that this was just a calm before the storm. With the Valmarian league closing in with each passing second, some could already feel that whatever happens in the tournament… would probably be remembered for the rest of their lives.

But just as Ash was floating along the waters, near the giant boulders, he gaze his eyes onto the stars as they glittered brilliantly through the night. But things were not as pleasant as the world allows. Deep within the heart of the boy, embedded by a knife that rips through his soul, was sadness.

He could easily hide his emotions through his smiles and happy go lucky attitude and perhaps, he can even forget about it…… but he was soon to realize… that scars like these…… can't be healed by anything… even by time.

His heart was wounded…… not physically but mentally.

_I want you to quit the tournament!_

The boy soon found himself sitting alone on the boulder overlooking the campsite. He could see the smiles on everyone's faces. The laughs they were all giving. He wished he could be there and laughed like them, but he would just be lying to himself. Right now, he needed to think. Have another moment of reflection. He had done nothing wrong, but yet something seemed to have turned the other way. Everything was going right… until… until this happened.

_You are the most selfish annoying person I have ever met in my entire life!_

The pressure on his heart suddenly thickened causing him to grasp his chest for air. The pain continued to ponder on him, drain him, and eat him until he was nothing left but dust. To have his friend, his _best_ friend to suddenly turn on him like that was just too much.

As the boy continued to fight away the anger, the sorrow, and the hatred… he could already feel himself losing his grip on reality. Darkness was returning to him. It almost felt like the time when he was possessed by the king's spirit. He was there… but at the same time… he was not. But before he could let the shrouds of shadow consume him, a voice perked up from behind.

"Hey Ash" surprisingly for him, it was none other than the Shinou ex-battle champion, Cynthia. She was holding two cans of sodas on her hands and from the looks of it, one of them seemed to be for him. "Cynthia?" Ash replied with a little look of surprise and confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same question" she handed him one of the soda cans and quietly took her seat next to him. "I can tell by the looks on your eyes on what you're thinking Ash" he looked at him with her sharp brown eyes focusing her gaze onto his heart and soul. It was like the girl was reading him like a half open book. This is because, during a Pokemon battle, it's practically impossible to predict Ash's next move, but when it comes to a none-Pokemon related topic, the boy was as clear as the blue sky during your summer vacation.

"You're thinking about that fight you had with Misty… aren't ya?" Ash sat still for a moment, taking the young woman's presence within his mind, but in the end he just nodded in reply. "You know Ash…… you and I are very much alike" this caught the boy's attention, making him jerk his head towards her face. "I know how it feels like to have a fight with your best friend, and I know what you're going through"

"Really?" Ash said finally after a long moment of silence

Cynthia nodded and smirked back in reply, "Yup! Back when I was still a newbie Pokemon trainer, me and Johanna got into a fight. It was really a silly topic and we both swore we would never speak to each other again" she let a small chuckle escape her lips as she continued with the story, "Hehehe… those were the good old days"

"So how'd you guys become friends again?" Ash asked, taking some interest with her story.

"I don't know" the blonde champ admitted sarcastically, "I remember that it had to something with her Glameow though. But anyway…… the point is… no matter how deep the wound is……… anyone can overcome its pain" she grasped his hand and held it with her own, "Ash… you're probably the strongest person in the world that I know of. You have a bright future ahead of you and a tough decision to choose…"

"A tough decision to choose?" the boy looked back at her with confusion plastered all over his face. "What do mean Cynthia?"

"Trust me… when this is all over, you'll know what I mean" she smiled back at him as she let go of his hands. "But no matter what comes to you Ash… you should always remember that you're never alone. And if you ever need help… your friends will come to you in a heart beat. Besides……… I'm still looking forward to our rematch" if Cynthia would say this to him about three or four years ago, the boy would be doing back flips like a clown. But this time, he only smirked equally back. "Hey… I'm looking forward to it too" he grasped Cynthia's other hand with his and enticed it into a silent promise. If you would look at this from a 'certain' perspective, they would probably look like two warriors giving out a battle oath to meet once again on the battlefield.

As the two of them continued to hold hands on top of that boulder, the ships at the bay of the city began shooting out the fireworks, causing the whole city to turn their eyes up top. Ash and Cynthia probably had the front line view of the whole scene. With the spot the boy picked out, it almost looked as if they were on a romantic date.

But as the firework continued to decorate the sky with its magnificent colors, Cynthia couldn't help but feel a slight hint of pleasure with the boy's touch. Ash's hands were so gentle that they even felt like cotton made entirely out of clouds.

But her wonderful feeling was soon cut short, when sudden surge of fear crept through her spine. As Cynthia turned her head back, her sights were greeted by one angry Johanna, a pissed off looking Norman and Caroline, and one ticked off Scott, all having their eyes set on her.

"Cyn…th…ia…!!!" the Shinou content champion groaned with great anger rising from her body. "You dirty… cheater!" the blonde champ was quite confused at first on why they all had killer instinct plastered on their bodies, but when she looked at her position with Ash, she could already tell why.

Her hands, entwined with Ash's hands. A nice romantic spot fit for a date. Two cans of soda to keep their throats wet and a perfect scene to make that first move.

Oh yeah…… she was in trouble now.

"W… wait a minute!" the blonde trainer pleaded for the to listen, "This isn't what it looks like!" but the other adults didn't buy her story, "I can't believe you Cynthia, after all you said!" Caroline yelled back with a frying pan on her left hand, "All that talk about making him choose was just so you could keep him for yourself!" came Norman's reaction.

"I can't believe I trusted you Cynthia!" Johanna added with a vein throbbing on her head, "To think that you would go so low to seducing poor young Ash (sop and sigh) I will never forgive you!"

"This is a break of the peace treaty contract!" Scott added with a deep dark frown, "We'll battle for Ash later! For now, I'll deal with you!" Johanna quickly pulled out a mallet from her back and readied it for battle, "I was only supposed to use this for self defense, but I think I can make an exception for you!" Cynthia knew right then, that she had fallen deep within the bad sides of the parents. Wit their eyes glowing with rage and determination to strike her down, Cynthia quickly released Ash's hands and dashed towards the edge of the beach. They were lucky that the firework festival was going on, because if those guys acted like this in front of a live crowd, then their reputation would be destroyed utterly.

At that very moment, Ash could do nothing, but wonder what the heck just happened there. Well… for a kid who has a keen sense in battle, he sure was pretty blind.

In the end, the only thing that could be heard in the distance, was Cynthia begging for her pursuers to stop chasing her.

Today was the first day in Valmarian city. But who knows what tomorrow will bring? Only time… can tell.


	52. The End of Rivals, The Birth of Enemies

**Chapter 52: The End of Rivals The Birth of Enemies!**

**(Che'val-yere hotel) (Ash's room) (Downtown District) (08:25 AM) (6 days before the Valmarian league)**

"Haaaaa……" that was the sound of a certain young Pokemon trainer yawning in the morning. Ash was happily tugged in his bed like the boy he was… but he knew that he couldn't sleep forever. With his alarm clock ringing out loudly and the sun shining in his face, it seemed like the whole galaxy was trying to wake him up from his slumber. The boy squint his eyes and tugged away from the light. He covered himself with the blanket and silently slammed his alarm clock shut.

But in the end, he would wake up by the sound of a very familiar voice. "Your majesty… it's time to wake up now" came Rosa's voice. But no matter how hard she tried to nudge the boy awake, all efforts seemed to deem a failure. However… this didn't seem like something new to be experienced by her. If Hsa was anything like Ash, then there's no doubt that he was lazy as well in the morning. "Come on your highness, your friends are waiting for you at the first floor lobby. You wouldn't want to keep them waiting. They said they're going to the arena district again today"

The moment Ash heard 'Arena District' his eyes widened almost instantly like it was being pulled by the force of nature themselves. "Arena District?! I'm so there! Let's get ready Pikachu!" He quickly dashed off from bed, looked at himself in the mirror, cleaned himself up and changed into his battle attire. Thanks to yesterday's shopping, the boy now had himself an abundance of clothes to select from. His previous set of clothes were so badly ripped and torn from his adventures that his mother 'ordered' him to change into something neat.

Ash still had his trademark cap which was quite worn out to say the least. He quickly put a mental note to himself to get that cap repaired by a tailor in one of the local shops. But putting the headgear away he turned towards his once favorite outfit. He now wore a black T-shirt, covered by a hoodie jacket with the top part dangling at the back of his neck and short sleeves, a pair of fingerless gloves to keep his throws firm, light blue cargo pants for to keep himself warm and some new sneakers for his foot. This was probably just the attire he wore back in the Hoenn region, but hey… I guess he's just one of them old fashion kids.

"Alright… are you ready Pikachu? (Pika!)" the little yellow mouse replied with a determined look on its face, "Great… let's go!"

"Wait a moment!" the Guardian shouted suddenly, freezing Ash on his tracks. "Don't forget this your majesty" she held up the crystal shard gesturing to the old empire's most sacred treasures. "Battle or no battle your highness, I cannot allow you to leave without this"

"The crystal shard?" Ash analyzed, "But wouldn't it be better just to leave it here?" the pink Lucario shook her head, "No your highness. An artifact like this should not be left unattended. Believe it or not your majesty, but you are now in possession of the last remaining proof of our empire. I beg of you to keep it with you at all times" she pleaded till her heart poured out and welled the entire room with her emotions. Though that single shard would probably fetch a high price in the market, Ash knew that it was something of great importance to her…… to everyone on Gregro Island. For Sha-hear to entrust this object to him was probably an honor some wouldn't even believe…… but Ash knows little of the meaning of honor.

"Alright…" Ash said finally with a smile. He took the shard from Rosa's paw and tucked it nicely into his chest pocket where its top piece showed out slightly around the sides. "I promise, I'll keep it with me at all times. Now come on! Breakfast is probably ready and I don't want to be late! Look out Valmarian city, here I come!" Rosa simply let out a satisfying smile off her face before following behind. The boy may be an idiot, but when it comes to promises, she knows that he can keep them… no matter how heavy the weight may be.

**(Hotel lobby)**

After taking the elevator six level down, Ash was greeted by the sight of all of his friends, having a little meal together on one table. There were bacons and eggs, bread and jam, fruit drinks of different flavors and many more for his brain to count.

"Hey Ash, good morning" Richie was the first to greet him with a welcoming smile. Professor Oak came next, "We were just having breakfast. Would you care for some lemonade?"

"Yes please!" came his instant reply. As the boy looked around, he noticed some of the members weren't around. Scott was probably busy preparing for the Valmarian league along with Frontier Brains, Norman and Caroline should be taking their shopping trip about now, Johanna would definitely still be asleep and Cynthia wouldn't be waking up anytime sooner than them after the little misunderstanding incident that happened last night.

Brock, May, Dawn, Drew, Duplica, Richie, Anabel, Tracey, Todd, Max, Paul, Kenny and Zoey were there, but it looked like the group seemed to have dwindled out a few members. The one that caught Ash's attention the most, would probably be his best friend Misty. She was always by his side, not matter how thick or thin the situations he might be placed in… but now… his side seemed to have been replaced by a hallow chair. A feint ghost of her cheery face appeared before him, letting his imagination take plunder of his vulnerability.

But Ash was not one to fall for his own mind. He quickly shook his head and slapped his cheeks several times to bring himself back to reality.

The meal progressed on without much too much trouble… well at least for the humans. Just when Pikachu was having a peaceful treat along with the gang's other Pokemons, Anabel's Espeon appeared out of nowhere and began poking on the little mouse's ear. (Pikapika?) Pikachu looked back at the psychic cat with an odd face. At first he just thought that the little purple Pokemon (I believe Espeons are purple unless I'm color blind) wanted to play a game with him or something, but then to his surprise, Espeon suddenly began rubbing its cheek on him making the little electric Pokemon blush with embarrassment.

Buneary, noticing the small relationship blooming with the two of them, suddenly began to interfere. The rabbit Pokemon pulled Pikachu away and confronted Espeon head on. Looks like Ash wasn't the only one who had admires in his list.

"So are you all planning to go to the Arena District again?" professor Oak asked taking a sip off his coffee. The gang members who were present gave out positive replies. "Of course" Drew added, "We need to keep ourselves in tip top shape if we're going to battle our opponents. Besides… practice does make us… perfect" he finished up with a smirk.

"We've been able to defeat all the opponents we've challenged so far" May stated, "And there's no telling who's strong and who's weak out there, so the more we train, the easier the competitions will become. Right guys?" she asked everyone around her which was mostly replied with a nod. "Well that's something new coming from you" Max added sarcastically.

But it wasn't long then until Samuel remembered something important. "Oh that reminds me. Speaking of battles Ash, I've brought all of your Pokemons here already. They're all staying at the backyard right now"

"What? All of my Pokemons?"

The professor nodded, "Yes, I knew this league would be a long one so I decided to bring all your Pokemons here just in case you need to switch. Come, I'll show you to them" and with that the whole pack left the table and followed the professor to the hotels backyard. It was a slow walk, but when they Ash got there, he wished he had one of those bullet proof vests they gave to police forces. When he walked through the entryway of the yard, he was immediately assaulted by dozens of his Pokemons. "WAHHH!!!"

Corphish, Noctowl, Torkoal, Chimchar, Bulbasaur and Kingler were among the first to pin him down to the ground, followed by Muk who seemed to still be slithering to the area. Snorlax was sleeping under the shade of an oak tree, Glalie and Heracross were flying around, Sceptile was relaxing on the branch of a tree with a stick still on its mouth and of course his 30 Tauroses were stampeding in the area too. "Hey guys! How are all of you!?" Ash greeted his friends with his usual bright sunny side up smile. They all replied positively with their own smiles as well.

As Ash greeted all of his old friends, the others couldn't help but notice that the boy had caught so many Pokemons already (only 4 percent of the whole collection from what I've heard) "Oh that reminds me May" professor Oak turned to the Hoenn girl, "I also brought your Bulbasaur as well" he pointed towards the grass type Pokemon that slowly approached them with a heart shape mark embedded on its forehead. May quickly recognized the little chump and hugged her back happily. "Bulbasaur! I never expected to see you here!! My my… look how big you've grown hahaha!"

It wasn't long then till Ash got an idea for their morning plan, "Hey guy, why don't we all have our Pokemons meet each other? We can all head to the arena later in the afternoon" the others didn't seem to mind at all. They quickly release all of their Pokemons and allowed them to feed on the food given to them.

Kenny released Prinplup and Alakazam to play with his friends, though the penguin Pokemon still looked like it wanted to be alone.

But as the gang introduced each other one by one, Paul decided to let his Pokemons join in while he took a stroll on seeing the other Pokemons Ash had caught. The one that was worthy of noticing would definitely be Sceptile and Dophan which Ash already had with him, but it was their strength that snatched his attention. From his POV Sceptile would probably be the only tough looking Pokemon in Ash's arsenal.

"So Ash" professor Oak came to the boy, "Do you want to switch any of your Pokemons today? You're only allowed to carry six, but you can leave the rest here. I'm sure they wouldn't mind a little rest from your adventures"

"Sure thing professor" came Ash's instant reply, "I'm sure all my Pokemons are pretty tired. So I'll have them all changed (Pikapikachu!) Hehehe… except Pikachu of course"

"_Ahem!"_ came Rosa's psychic cough.

"Oh… and Rosa too hehehehe"

But just before the boy could switch his Pokemons, the entry door quickly swung open catching both their attentions. To the boy's surprise, it was none other than professor Birch, professor Elm and Professor Ivy, the famous researchers from Johto, Hoenn and the Orange Archipelago and from the sound of their tones; they seemed to be arguing about something.

"I'm telling you! This P-wave goes way over the charts!" Birch shouted at Elm holding a device on his hands. "And I'm telling you, it's a big waste of time!" Elm countered holding waving several document papers on his shoulder.

"Both of you be quiet!" Ivy shouted at them, causing the two to quickly silence. By the looks on the veins throbbings on her forehead and the tension on her neck, she seemed to have been enduring their behavior for quite awhile now. "You're supposed to be renowned scientists and here you are acting like children! Pull your acts together and come up with a solution already! Because if you argue about this one more time, I am so going to separate the both of you!!!"

The two scientists soon felt like they've turned to ants while Ivy morphed into a giant behemoth. They lowered their heads and said together, "Yes ma'am…" silently.

With the two of them finally quieting down, Ivy soon noticed the stares she was receiving from the group, "Oh, professor Oak! I did expect you to be here so early" but then she noticed Ash and the gang, "Oh hello there Ash, when did you get here?"

"Hello there Professor Ivy, Birch, Elm" Samuel replied to all of them, "I was just showing Ash where his Pokemons were. By the way… what were you arguing a minute ago?"

"Oh it's nothing worth mentioning professor" Elm stated waving his hand off, but Birch had to argue with that, "We'll let the professor say if it's worth mentioning! (ahem) Anyway professor, I've been studying the effects of that P-wave that has been going around lately"

"Oh you mean that super psychic wave that's been happening in Kanto, Johto and Hoenn?" Samuel tried to confirm it which was replied with a nod from professor Birch.

"Yes… and since normal P-wave readers couldn't get as much, I decided to develop this!" he held out the device in his hands right in front of him, "It's the Psychic Reader Mk. II. It can hold up to eight times more psychic energy than the ones we use back in the lab. Here… let me show you" he turned the power switch on the device and read it over the area. "This device will allow me to pin point the strongest psychic wave in the room and with any luck I'll be able to find out where that super P-wave came from"

Professor Elm simply shrugged and tried his best to ignore his fellow colleagues ramble, but when the device suddenly began acting strangely, Professor Birch knew that something was happening, "W… what the? Whoa!"

"What's wrong professor?" Ivy looked back at him with a curious eye.

"I… I don't know" he replied while trying to keep the device intact, "The Psychic Reader is detecting a large amount of P-wave in this room. It's going way over the charts again! Ivy, get a reading on this!" the female scientist nodded and quickly scanned the area for anything that could be used to write down. As Birch continued to follow the gizmo's direction, he soon turned it towards Rosa, the Guardian. "My word!" Elm now seemed to be intrigued with the situation. "I have never seen a Lucario with those colorings before. "Is this your Pokemon Ash?" the boy nodded hesitantly in reply.

"Amazing" Birch continued to glare astoundingly at Guardian as the device on his hand continued to go up and up, "The P-wave on her is rising even more than my reader can handle! I must certainly have a look at…" but before the guy could finish his sentence, Rosa got annoyed by the sound of the P-wave reader and cut through it with one focus punch. "WAHHH!! My Psychic Reader Mk. II!!!!"

"_Annoying whelp"_ Rosa thought to herself before moving toward Ash's side. _"Are all humans like this your majesty? Or just the ones you know"_ she spoke telepathically to him to which he replied with an unsure smile.

While Birch was busy salvaging his gizmo, professor Oak decided that it was time for Ash to choose which of the six or five Pokemons he would bringing. He knew that Pikachu and the pink Lucario would be his first choice, but then who knows… he might actually make a change today. "Well putting that aside. Which of your Pokemons will you be bringing today Ash?" once the Pokemons caught the whiff of their masters scent, Ash's Pokemons immediately assembled right in front of him like soldiers preparing to be picked.

It was a tough decision to make for young Ash and he even wished that he could bring all of them with him. "Hmm… which one of you haven't I used for awhile now?" he thought carefully before gazing at each of them. "Man… I can't choose at all… I wish I could bring all of them with me professor"

"Then maybe you need a mother's guidance for this" came a new voice from behind. When Ash turned his head around, he was greeted by the sight of an oh-so-familiar face.

"Mom?" his mother waved back in reply, "Good morning sweetie. Did you have a good night sleep (nod) Great! I was just passing by when I heard you couldn't choose between any of your Pokemons (huh?) That's why I'll be glad to pick three of them for you! Sceptile, Corphish and Staravia would be an excellent start for today"

"Great… but that leaves one more" Ash replied counting with his fingers.

"That's why I wanted you to take this" Delia quickly pulled out a Pokeball from her pocket and showed it to him. When the scientist caught sight of the Pokeball, they all visibly flinched with fear. It looked like a regular Pokeball but if you take a closer look at it, you could see that there was a fire emblem at the center of the ball meaning that this was specifically made for fire Pokemons. "What is it?" Ash asked curiously.

"Oh that's right, I guess I haven't introduced you to him yet" Delia chuckled, "Ash, let me introduce to you…"

"NOOO!!!!!" the four scientists, Samuel, Birch, Elm and Ivy screamed out and hid behind Brock with fear embedded on their faces. But it was too late, the mother had already released the monster. And to Ash's surprise, it was none other than the Houndoom, Burno. "Ash, allow me to introduce to you. Burno, our new house pet" the boy was visibly shocked but at the same time intrigued to see the Houndoom he had saved a few months back. The wounds on its body were completely healed possibly thanks to his mother, and their horns were as sharp as ever.

"Hey, isn't that the Houndoom you saved on the cliff the other day?" Todd noticed this and was mildly intrigued as he begun to take pictures of the demonic dog. Ash welcomed the hot-canine companion and patted its head gently. Burno barked back with a smile and ended up purring on his knee. But when the dog caught sight of the scientist, he snarled at them, sending shivers down their spines.

"Ash" his mother called out, "Would you mind taking Burno for a little exercise? I'm sure that he'll be a great Pokemon just like the rest of them"

"Sure thing mom" Ash replied before kneeling down to Burno's height, "Nice to meet you Burno. I'm glad you're ok. (woof!) Alright then… is everyone ready!? Let's head on out to the Arena District!"

"Yeah!" and with that, Ash and his friends dashed off towards the bus stop where it would eventually take them to the Arena district.

"And there they go……… again…" Delia sighed slightly before taking a little rest on the wall. "Oh that's strange"

"What's wrong Delia?" Samuel noticed her confused reaction.

"I didn't see Misty with him today. Usually that girl is always beside him" but before she could think anything more about it, the Jennies that had been traveling with her suddenly appeared from behind, "Hey there Delia!" they said in unison. "We're here"

"Oh hey there Jenny and…… Jenny" Delia replied, "I thought you two were going to have a family reunion today" the two of them shook their heads in reply, "Some of our families haven't arrived yet so we're taking the time shopping around. Oh by the way, there was a package for you"

"A package? For me?" Delia looked at them slightly surprise as Jenny held out a square shaped boy in front of her. "Yeah, it just came in today at the delivery office. We were around so we decided to take it to you. They said it came all the way from Mahogany town in Johto" the name of the town quickly earned the mother's attention and with speed faster than a quick attack, Delia snatched the box from the Jennies hands and took a slight peek at its contents. A small smile crept over the woman's lips as she analyzed what was inside the box. She then gently placed it on the table and made sure that no one else opens it.

**(Connecting bride between Old Town and Downtown District)**

A conveniently placed hotdog stand was attracting several pedestrians along the main road today having its business boom like never before. However… the clerks that were managing them were none other than Team Rocket, the major pain in the rear that doesn't seem to go away for any particular reason. "Hot dogs! Get your hotdogs here! Get them while they're still hot!" James commercialized to the street along with Jessie.

"I'll take two of them please" came a customer.

"Of course of course" Meowth replied as he happily produced the two products, "Here you go and have a hot doggie day" as the last customer went off with his treats, the three crooks regrouped at the stand to have a short meeting break. "This is great guys" Meowth began, "If we keep this up, we'll be able to make enough money to but ourselves a new car"

James looked pleased with the result of their honest working, "And since Jessie spent the last of our money doing her nails, we might actually turn a profit here"

"Hey!" the red head shot back, "Having beautiful nails is part of my daily life as a coordinator and besides…… doesn't it just makes me look pretty?" she posed for them to which the other two members sweatdrop. But as the team of trios worked on their small time job, a bus paused at the entryway of the bridge, giving them a good look at the passengers on the side windows. To their surprise, it was none other than Ash and several of his well known friends. They didn't seem to notice Team Rocket starring blankly at them since some of them were busy talking inside.

When the bus passed them by, the trios came out from their state of shock. "Hey… was that the twerp and his Pikachu?" asked Jessie to her companions. James nodded, "It looks like that bus is taking them to the Arena District where I've been told that there a lot of Pokemon trainers" this perked up Jessie's ear quite nicely. With a whole district full of Pokemons, who knows what kind of ideas these goons might come up with.

"Alright then everyone! Change of plans!" Jessie hallered the team, "We'll follow the twerps to the other district and steal all the Pokemons there"

"But which one Jess?" Meowth looked back with a questionable face, "I mean, capturing Pikachu is one thing, but capturing an entire load of Pokemons might take some timing" but the woman simply laughed back at the talking cat, "Ohohohohoho. This isn't just some normal Pokemon theft team" she began, "Don't you two know what will be happening next week?"

"The Valmarian league?" James answered in a question like manner.

"Correct. And if we pull of this one big heist of the century, think of what will happen"

**(Jessie's imagination image) (Jessie's POV)**

Newspapers from all over the world will be bearing the names of Team Rocket. When the world finds out that our organization pulled off the biggest heist of stealing all the Pokemons just right before the Valmarian league, other wanabes like Team Magma and Team Aqua will be walking on our boss's feet like rats!

"And soon, the boss will know of our exploits and when he does…… he will promote us into the highest rank of his elite forces. Our reputation around the headquarters will skyrocket! And the others will be begging to hear our stories hehehehe"

**(Back to normal POV) (Still in Jessie's imagination)**

Jessie, James and Meowth were walking around the Team Rocket HQ in a line formation. The three of them were dressed in pure black and their shoulders and chest were decorated with many medals and honor rolls. As they walked through the halls, they stumbled upon a number of veteran Team Rocket members. When they caught sight of their faces, the 500 men and women saluted at them with respect. They were now the peek of the organization, the heart of fear itself.

**(Back to reality)**

As Jessie finished sharing her dream run with her team, she turned to them with eyes blazing with fire, "Alright, now who's with me!?" the two of them held their hands up high with smirks and smiles on their faces. "With that kind of honor, count me in any day!" Meowth replied as he took off his clerk attire. "What better way to show it to Butch and Cassidy's faces than to go out with a bang!?" James added.

The three of them quickly changed back into their original uniforms and pushed the hotdog stand along with them. They needed a ruse to get into the another district without too much problems.

**(Time skip, 10:38 AM) (Arena District)**

After an hour of sitting and talking in the bus, Ash and his trainer companions finally arrived at the Battle grounds where it was once again it was filled with strong trainers from all around the world. As they set foot inside the area, the care taker of the field was the first to greet them.

"Oh hey there kids. Are you here for another round of battles?" they all to him in synch, "Alright then. Just sign your names here and you can pick the battlefield of your own. But please remember that first come, first serve ok. There are plenty of fast food joints to go around so take your time. Enjoy" just when the last of them signed in the registry, one of the trainers spotted the gang a few meters away.

"Hey everyone look! It's those New Kids! They're here!" he shouted out which caught the attention of many newbies and rookies alike. "Hey New Kid, I want to battle you!" said one

"No way, I was here first so I get to challenge you!" said another.

"Hey New Kid, I'm ready any time!" Ash's gang was probably swamped with trainers who wanted to battle him very badly. After defeating Havic's goons in a tag team battle yesterday, they probably earned more respect and reputation than most of the trainers around here.

But just when Ash was about to pick one of them, a familiar voice came out from behind, catching the attention of many trainers. "Hey, I'll be your opponent!" a voice many of them knew and respected well. With one sight of her, the rookies gladly made way for the woman who issued the challenge. When Ash, May, Max, Brock and Zoey caught sight of her, they instantly recognized the woman as none other than…

"Soledad!!!" the five of them shouted in unison. Yes, it was Soledad, the expert coordinator of Pewter city and two time champion of the Kanto Grand Festival. She was practically an almost living legend. "It's nice to see you all nice and healthy" she replied holding a smile across his face.

May was the first to greet her back, "Soledad, it's so wonderful to meet you again!" she let out a small hug. Soledad returned the hug and was then greeted a familiar red head, "Hello again Soledad" it was Zoey who was second to greet her. "Hey, aren't you Zoey?!" Soledad recognized her almost instantly, "I guess you could say that I expected you to be here. I'm guessing you're all here for the Valmarian league correct?" they all nodded in unison. "Well then, any of you want to have a little practice battle?" May instantly raze her hand in front of her face and was planning to even declare it as a rematch. "Oh me me me! Pick me!"

"Ok ok ok, take it easy May" the Kanto contest champ smirked as she tried to calm the excited girl down. She then turned to one of the referees who seemed to be having a short break for himself, "Hey ref, mind if we have a contest battle on one of the fields?"

**(A few minutes later)**

After getting reorganized and disbursing the swarm of rookies hounding their every move, Soledad and May finally got themselves a field to play in. Everyone pretty much stopped fighting when they heard that two top coordinators from two different regions were battling it out.

"Are you ready May?" Soledad asked holding a Pokeball on her hand. "You might have won in the Hoenn grand festival last year, but you haven't seen how strong I've become" but the Hoenn coordinator simply smirked back in reply, "Oh yeah? Well me and my Pokemons have become stronger too Soledad! This time, I will defeat you! Come on out, Skitty!" a cat Pokemon appeared out the Pokeball in a chibi form. When Skitty knew that it was out, it immediately began chasing its own tail, giving out that cute look.

Soledad noticed this and smirked, "A Skitty huh?" she began, "Well then I choose… Slowbro, as my Pokemon for the day!" a pink-chubby Pokemon appeared onto the field with a fixed dumb look plastered its face. "Come on May, show me what you've got!"

As both trainers prepared themselves for the fight to come, the referee looked at both sides before raising his flag up, "The battle is about to begin! This battle is between 'ace' coordinator Soledad from Kanto and new comer coordinator May Maples from Hoenn! This is a regular battle with no time limit!" there were several whispers going on around the area during that time as well.

"May Maples? The coordinator who won the Grand festival a year ago?"

"Yeah… I heard that she's really good, but I've never seen it myself"

But Ash didn't bother to listen to them, he was more interested to the title the referee used, "Hey… what did he mean by 'ace'?" he asked to anyone who knows. Luckily for him, Brock seemed to have bought a guidebook that explained why. "Well… from the guidebook here" the squinty eyed boy began, "It says that Valmarian league have the rights to declare 18 trainers and 18 coordinators and declare them as 'aces' this title can only be given when a trainer/coordinator has achieve more than twenty victories without any lost in between. If the ranks are full then a trainer can earn the title of 'ace' by defeating a trainer of the same class. Draws are not counted as a defeat"

"Well that's pretty useless" Drew added with a frown after taking a sip from his pre-ordered orange juice. "It's only a title. There's nothing fancy about it" but then Brock had to decline his comment, "It says here that all aces have will receive a special ID which can be used anywhere within the city. The IDs gives the ace a twenty percent discount on all stores, 'first to go' privilege on every carnival ride, and a lot more" he then paused for a moment to let the information sink in to his companion's heads before continuing. "And last but not the least, 'aces' are also a minor competition between combatants as well. The one who holds the title of ace for more than eight weeks and two days will have their names imprinted on the 'Grand Ace Hall' located in the Old Town District

Dawn already had money signs imprinted in her eyes when she heard of the wonderful discount. Drew also had to consider his comment as well when he heard about the fame and fortune he would receive by becoming an ace.

But just when they could continue with the conversation, the referee signaled that it was now time to begin the match. "Trainers! GO!"

"Skitty, use tackle attack lets go!" May, as hot headed as she was, attacked first.

But Soledad remained still and did not waver in the attack. She watched carefully and allowed Slowbro to just stand there and wait for the attack. Zoey also noticed the woman's late reaction and carefully analyzed every move Soledad was going to make. Just as Skitty was about a few seconds away, she counter attacked. "Slowbro, dodge!" even with its slow maneuverability, the lazy psychic Pokemon dodged the attack stylishly using its hard tail as support, "Good work, now use hyper beam!" once again, Slowbro was able to use one of its most devastating attacks which caught Skitty by complete surprise.

"Oh no Skitty!" May looked shocked along with her other friends as Skitty was thrown on the other side of the playing field, but it was still ready for combat. "Alright Skitty, move in for doubleslap attack!"

"Slowbro, stand your ground and use confusion!" the chubby Pokemon quickly began using its psychic attack causing Skitty to slip off the dirt ground. "Good, now use water gun while it's still down!!"

As the battle raged on at the fields, Drew and the other coordinators on the sidelines watched intently on the ace's moves. After watching intently on every perspective, Zoey announced her observations first, "It appears, Soledad is using her trick strategy again" several nods could be seen from several members. "Trick strategy?" Brock questioned not understanding the concept of the battle.

"It's a strategy that many trainers use" Zoey explained, "Its mostly focuses on counter attacks and dodging. She used that strategy against me back in the Kanto Grand Festival. Not only is it effective, but it's also very hard to overpower"

"I see…" Brock noted, "So how do you fight against that kind of strategy?" the others didn't really have a clear reply.

As May's Skitty slouched back after the attack, Soledad now moved on to the offensive, "Slowbro, use hyper beam full power!" the psychic Pokemon immediately unleashed a devastating attack onto the cat Pokemon, sending it high up in the air. "Now Slowbro, hyper beam one more time!"

"Skitty, use tail whip!" Skitty's tail met with the beam attack causing a huge smoke up in mid-air. But this is just what May wanted. She knew what tactic Soledad was using and she knew that there were only a handful of ways to counter it…… and to her luck, this was one of them. A smirk escaped her lips as she prepared for a counter maneuver.

"What is May planning this time?" Dawn questioned as the battle ensued even longer than any of them expected. As the smoke above gradually fell to the ground, Kenny's eyes widened up as he realized what May's plan was. "Hey guys look! The smoke is covering the whole battlefield!" it suddenly hit them! This was clearly May's idea on how to counter Soledad's trick strategy.

With the smoke covering the whole field, Soledad couldn't tell where Skitty was nor where it could attack from. And without knowing her opponent's movements, Slowbro would be unable to dodge. "Alright Skitty, it's time we came up top! Go for a swift attack!" a large number of stars began showing up from one corner of the field causing a large amount of damage to Slowbro. "Oh no! Slowbro, counter it with a hyper beam attack!" the large pink Pokemon released its attack, but by the sound of it, the attack seemed to have missed. In fact, May was hoping that she's use that attack, because now, the smoke seemed to have gotten thicker, which proved beneficial to Skitty.

"Alright Skitty, keep using swift at it and keep running!" the cat Pokemon nodded and quickly unleashed a large volley of stars at Slowbro, making it impossible for Soledad to pinpoint the location of her opponent's attacks. "Slowbro, use endure!" the psychic Pokemon quickly held out its paws and covered its body as best it could. After a rough ten to twenty seconds, the smoke began to vanish.

"Oh no, the smoke's clearing" Max warned his sister, "Watch out May!"

Once the place was clean, Soledad smirked out… but that smirk quickly vanished when she could not see Skitty anymore. "Hey… where'd it go?"

"THERE!" one of the audience shouted as many of them pointed to the front of Slowbro. To Soledad's surprise, Skitty was only a few centimeters away from Slowbro with its cat like smile imprinted on his lips. "Now Skitty, let's finish this with iron tail!" the cat Pokemon somersaulted from the ground sending Slowbro a meters up in the air, "Followed by another wave of swift!" May ordered with her fist pumped up in the air.

But Soledad wasn't gonna be taken down that easily, "Not today May! Slowbro, go for a body slam, full power!" the large water Pokemon flashed out and spread its body wide. Even with the swift attack hitting dead on, Skitty had only signed its own doom. When Slowbro slammed its huge body on the cat… the crowd let out a gasp. A move like that can be very dangerous and yet at the same time, very effective.

After a few moments of intensity, Slowbro finally got up from its prone position and once again became clueless to what was going on. Skitty on the other hand, became incapacitated.

"Skitty is no longer able to battle!" the referee announced, "This match goes to 'ace' Soledad of Kanto!" the audience erupted into a loud roar of cheers and applause like before. Soledad seemed pleased with the results of the match, and quickly returned Slowbro into its Pokeball. May however, went over to Skitty's slouched body. "Skitty, are you ok? (Skit…) You did great Skitty, get some rest. You've earned it" she gladly returned it to its Pokeball with a smile on her face. But what happened next, took her by a slight surprise. Soledad was right in front of her clapping her hands with a smile equally as wide as Ash's.

"Hey there May" she greeted.

"Hey there Soledad" she replied, "That was a great battle back there"

"I could say the same to you May. I even thought that I was going to lose there for a second" Soledad replied modestly, "You've certainly improved quite a lot since we last met in Johto. I would love to have a rematch with you when the league starts" it wasn't long till Ash and the other members of the gang came up to cheer their friend as well.

"That was a great battle May" Dawn cheered her up, "I really thought you had her back there" 

Brock nodded in agreement, but he had other things to worry about, "Anyway, you should probably get Skitty to the Pokemon center over there. I'll help ya"

"Thanks Brock"

After getting reacquainted with Soledad and Ash's friends and a little bit of introducing each other, Soledad offered to everyone, "Hey guys, since you're all hanging out for awhile, why don't I treat you all for a little snack? I'm sure you're all hungry after a little show" the gang nodded back in agreement.

**(An hour later)**

Even with the frequent pleads of challenge offers being given to Ash and his companions, the boy decided that they should all battle with a full stomach at least. Thanks to Soledad's 'ace' ID they were able to get themselves a good price for the food. "So what have you guys been doing? From what I've heard, the lot of you came by yesterday correct?"

"Yeah" Ash replied for them as the others gradually chow down on their grub, "We came here in the morning and battled a few trainers"

Soledad raised a brow of slight amazement as she drank from her tea cup, "I see. So you must be the famous New Kids I've been hearing about for hours. I'm surprise you made it here at all. You're probably the last group to ever make it here in the city" some of them blushed embarrassingly.

"Well… we kinda had a few detours" Drew added, "And not to mention a lot of problems too" he shot a slight look at Rosa who was happily chowing down some Pokemon food as well.

"Anyway" Dawn interrupted, "Soledad, you know a lot about the Valmarian league right, since you've been here longer than any of us. Can you give us on some hints on how it's gonna come out?" the young Kanto coordinator thought for a moment, looking at the clear blue sky before replying, "Hmm… they haven't given out any specific details yet. The only announcement the head chef ever made was that every trainer was to report to the Arena District at ten in the morning at the day of the tournament. I'm guessing, this is where they'll hold the preliminary rounds" the gang looked around and observed the area that they were in. It was probably a good idea to hold the preliminaries here as well. With hundreds of battlefields, referee hold out areas, Pokemon centers and fast food joints, this would be an ideal place to hold out the more initiative rolls.

"I heard that the first round will be a one on one round battle" Soledad added, "This is meant to show that a Pokemon trainer can adapt to any situation no matter their opponents may be. From the million of trainers you see here… only half of them will be joining the second round"

"Man… bummer" Todd stated with slight pity of those who would lose in competition. "And to think, a lot of them made it all the way here for nothing" the others seemed to have same reaction. But this did not hamper Ash's plan of becoming Pokemon Master. "So what happens in the second round?" he asked finally.

But before Soledad could explain, another voice said it for her, "The second round changes every time" the gang turned around to greet the sight of a blonde Pokemon trainer.

"Cynthia!" the gang cried out.

"Hey there" the blonde champ waved at them. On her side was none other than her best friend Johanna and Norman Maples, the gym leader of Petalburg city. "We knew we'd find you guys here" she added with a smile. And it wasn't long then, till several trainers noticed the woman's presence as well. With the woman's long blonde hair and unique sense of style utilizing her black coat, Cynthia was easily recognized by thousands of trainers mostly from the Shinou regions.

"Hey… isn't that Cynthia?"

"No way… the Shinou champion?"

"Didn't she win the Valmarian league last year?"

"Is she friends with those New Kids?"

And the list of gossips went on and on and on, until people began talking gibberish. "Hey Cynthia" Ash was the first to greet her back. "How are you doing? And… what's with the ice pack?" Cynthia was carrying an ice pack on top of her head where Johanna had slammed her mallet. Though the girl resisted the urge of pointing at J.J. she just waved it off with a lame excuse, "Oh I uh… fell… ahehehe" she then recomposed herself as she changed the topic, "Anyway, you three were talking about the Valmarian league?" they all gave out positive answers. Cynthia and the other adults quickly grab their own seats and joined up with them. "Well… from what I told you guys before. The first and second rounds of the preliminaries are mostly just one on one fight to test the true strength of the trainers. Though sometimes there are chances that the second round could change"

"What about the third and fourth round?" Kenny asked.

"The fourth round is a bit… unusual… at times" Cynthia made a face which gestured to the mix expression, "I remembered it to be a dual battle"

"Dual battle?" Richie noted the familiar term.

"Yeah, it's a battle when one trainer gets to use two Pokemons at once" she explained, "I wasn't used to it back then, but after awhile, you get the hang of it"

As they continued to talk and reminisce about the old times and battle strategies, Soledad suddenly recognized Johanna's face. "Excuse me" the pink haired trainer sounded unsure, "But are you… Johanna by any chance?" Dawn's mother looked at her questioningly before nodding. To the Shinou contest champ's surprise, Soledad rushed on her feet and grabbed her hands like trophies, "Oh my goodness! Ms. Johanna, I can't believe it's actually you! I've heard stories about you back when I first journeyed in Kanto. I never actually thought I would see a living legend like you before my very eyes!" to say the least, Johanna seemed to be quite flattered and embarrassed by her reaction.

After an hour had passed by, the gang finished up with a well deserved lunch filling their stomach to the greatest capacity……… except for one though.

Even though everyone had eaten about three hundred grams of calories, Ash still seemed to be just starting. Burger after burger, sandwich after sandwich and soda after soda all drained into his skinny body like some sort of vacuum cleaner. But just when he was about go on his next meal, a chibi face caught his attention making him halt his eating barrage. "Eh?" he turned his head to the side of the table where a girl who looked like was still six or seven years old. "Can I… help you?" Ash asked trying to get himself back to his meal.

"Hey there oru" said the pigtailed girl with a wide sunny side up smile. "Uh… hey there (Pika?)" Ash replied dumbly, "Can I have that oru?" Ash looked at her with a raised eye brow until he noticed her finger pointing at the crystal shard in his pocket. "Huh? This?" the boy took it out from his pocket and starred at it for a moment. This caught Rosa's attention as well.

"Sorry, but this is…" but before Ash could finish his sentence, the little girl snatched the shard off him faster than he could react. "HEY!!" Ash suddenly plopped from his chair knocking Tracey off his chair and began chasing the little rascal through the fields. To the boy's demise, there were several battles going on and boy it did not look good for Ash.

"Hey watch it!" said one

"We're trying to have a battle here!" said another.

"Hey, what's going on!?" said the third.

During the chase, Ash was engulfed in flame, electrocuted, sprayed with water, slammed to the ground by rocks and harassed by psychic attacks, but thanks to his four years of experience of being killed and resurrected over and over again, the boy became practically used to these pains.

After five minutes of none stop running through the fields and getting attacked, Ash finally caught up to the little girl that stole his shard. "huff huff huff… I huff… got you… now!" as he turned to the next corner, he was suddenly greeted by a small band of trainers. A blonde haired snobby looking rich kid, who looked like the leader of the pack, was carrying the little girl on his arms like a baby. "Now now Eesal… what did I tell you about stealing?" he cooed to the pigtailed girl.

Eesal only smiled back in reply.

"I'm terribly sorry for my little friend here" the rich kid apologized to Ash as he took the crystal shard from Eesal, "She has a certain… fondness of shiny objects and crystals like these are her favorites. I hope she did not cause you too much trouble"

"No… not at all" Ash lied. That girl got him to more trouble than they actually know. "Can I have my shard back please?" the rich kid gladly complied and handed him the crystal piece. "Say… aren't you part of the New Kids that came into the city recently?" Ash nodded dumbly in reply. "My word, I have heard of your skills, but never actually seen them myself. In just one day you became quite famous"

"Oh why thank you" Ash blushed slightly.

But then the blonde haired snob patted his own head, "Oh my dear, where are my manners? I haven't introduced myself. My name is Kevin, I'm from Veilstone city from the Shinou region. This little angel here is my little friend Eesal, she's also from the Shinou region"

"Hey there oru!" the little girl replied waving her hand at him.

"That beauty over there is my good lady Claire" Kevin continued.

"Hey" Claire replied with a slight smirk.

"The brute over here is Binor, an expert with ground and rock type Pokemons" the big looking guy simply scoffed without saying a word, "And of course, my young blue haired friend over here is none other than Kyle, an expert of water Pokemons"

The blue haired boy let out a pop of his Popsicle and nodded back.

"Nice to meet you all" Ash replied, "Are you all Pokemon trainers by any chance?"

"Why yes, we are!" Kevin said sarcastically, "In fact, I was actually looking for you and your companions"

"You were looking… for me?" Ash looked back dumbly to which Kevin smiled back. "Yes you see… when I heard about the reputation that you and your friends have accumulated in such a short notice, I decided to come and see it for myself" Ash knew right away that it was a challenge being offered and a silent one too. "Hey, if you want a battle, bring it on! I'm ready!"

Kevin let a grin slip off his face as he snapped his fingers, "Binor… you're in" the large brute simply punched his fist together with glee.

Just as Ash reentered the battlegrounds, he was immediately approached by one of the referees. "You there! Young man!" Ash flinched to his yell, "What do you think you're doing going through the battlefields like that! You were lucky there were only light attacks happening or you would be so dead right now!"

"S… sorry" Ash stuttered slightly frightened by the referee's reaction.

"Sorry!? How about talking about damage report, then you can be sorry! And one…" but just before he could finish his sentence, Kevin interrupted. "I'm sorry, did my friend do something wrong?"

"Yes he did! Thanks to his recklessness, he…" the man one again stopped mid-sentence when his eyes came in contact with Kevin and his Elite Five crew. "K… K… K… K… Kevin! Umm… what what umm ahh…"

"I heard you yelling at my friend here and I thought that there was some kind of a problem" the referee darted his eyes back and forth from Kevin and Ash and from Ash to Kevin. "H… h… him? Is he with…?"

"He's with us, yes" Kevin cut him off, "So… is there a _problem_?" the referee shivered down right to his spine as he turned from a giant into a tiny mice, "Ummm no! No! Not at all sir! I was just uh… explaining the rules to the uh… new kid… right kid ahehehehe" before Ash knew it, the referee already dashed off towards the rest room as if he was going to wet himself or something. Once the ref was gone, Kevin turned back to Ash, "Well then… shall we get on with the battle?"

"But all the fields are taken" Ash replied as he pointed towards the battle area. And to his truth, all the fields seemed to be occupied and there seemed to be a long line for all of them. But this was no obstacle to Kevin. With one snap of his fingers, Binor moved in towards one of the lines.

"Hey, I'm next" he openly declared which caught the attention of the trainers who were waiting in line. With one look of the man, they all spread out making it easy for Ash to take the field. Even the trainers who were still in the middle of their battle recalled their Pokemons from the field. With one wave of Kevin's hands, the repair crew moved into the area and repaired the battleground faster than you could say uncle.

After ten minutes past and Ash and Binor taking their position, the rest of Ash's gang arrived to see what the commotion was all about.

"The battle is about to begin" the referee announced as the crowd began mustering in the area. "This battle will be a one on one with no time limit! The field we pick today will be a rock field. This battle is between Pokemon trainer 'ace' Binor from the Hoenn regions and the New Kid from Kanto region" Ash face faulted slightly as his name was changed.

"Another ace huh" Drew noted

"Trainers, choose your Pokemons!"

"I'll go first then" Binor declared, "Let's rock and roll… Golem!" a rock dinosaur Pokemon appeared.

"A Golem huh" Ash smirked, "This will be a good tryout for my old friend… Sceptile!" a grass type Pokemon appeared, holding a wheat straw on its mouth. "Ok Sceptile, it's time to work out! (Sceptile!)" the Pokemon replied with a smirk.

But then Binor simply laughed, "Hahahaha! A grass type?! Of all the things I thought you'd pick, I never expected that one! Hahahahaha!"

After the referee noticed their preparations he waved his flag, "The trainers have chosen their Pokemons! Trainers are you ready? (nod) (nod) Then let the battle……… BEGIN!"

"Golem, let's finish this quickly with a tackle attack!" the rock Pokemon quickly charged in, but Ash was ready. He had analyzed that there were three things you should focus in battle. Speed, Endurance and Attack Power. From his POV Binor seemed to focus on Attack Power rather than balancing them out. "Sceptile, dodge it and use leaf blade!" with speed faster than a mark one jet, Sceptile dodged Golem's tackle with great ease and countered with a leaf blade, sending the rock Pokemon to the other side of the field.

Binor's eyes slightly widened as he never expected a grass type to do that kind of damage to a type of its weaker element. Even Paul, the Shinou trainer seemed intrigued on how strong Ash's Sceptile was. Because from the looks of it… Sceptile seemed to be one of the senior members of the boy's arsenal. Its posture was more than enough proof that it was strong.

"Alright, no more fooling around!" Binor yelled out, "Golem, use magnitude!" the rock Pokemon quickly jumped up and slammed its feet onto the ground causing the entire playing field to shake. But thanks to Valmarian city technology, they were able to keep the velocity of the attack within the field so it wouldn't bother the audience or the other battles that were raging on other fields. Sceptile was caught in the attack, but it stayed firm. "Sceptile, hold on and use bullet seed!" the grass type Pokemon held it grounds and took aim. Once Sceptile got a lock on its target, it quickly unleashed a wave of seed bullets knocking the rock Pokemon down. "Alright, now move into a counter attack and use pound!"

"Golem, use your rollout attack!" Binor ordered out which Golem followed to the letter. "Sceptile, switch to leafblade and jump!"

Binor smirked, _"Heh… is this really the famous Ash kid I saw on TV? Everyone knows that leafblade has no effect on rock types when they're moving"_ he thought slyly.

"Now Sceptile, jump!" the grass Pokemon leaped into the air higher than anyone expected and when it was up in mid-air, it almost looked like it was… flying.

"What the?!" Binor was shocked, "How can Sceptile fly like that?!"

Even some of Ash's companions were wondering how did Ash taught the Pokemon how to fly. But as Brock observed closer he saw through the strategy right away. "Oh! Look at that!" the slanted eyed boy pointed at Sceptiles arms, "Sceptile isn't flying… its gliding! Those leafblade must be light enough to keep Sceptile up there long enough for Ash!"

With a smirk on his lips and a Pokemon in height advantage, Ash let out the order, "Sceptile, use solar beam go!" with one deep breath, the grass Pokemon unleashed a beam so powerful that it sent a shockwave causing the audience to visibly shake in fear. "Oh no! Golem!" Binor panicked as his rock Pokemon returned to his side. To his amazement, Golem seemed to still be able to battle. "Golem, are you alright? (Go… lem)" the little Rock Pokemon struggled on its feet, but not even that could weigh down Ash.

As Sceptile returned to the ground, it took out the wheat straw from its back and plugged it back on its mouth, crossing his arms afterwards with a smug that clearly stated 'is that the best you can do?'

Binor noticed this and believed that he needed to rethink his strategy. "Ok that's it! No more Mr. Nice guy! I'm taking you down New Kid! Golem, go for an all out attack! Give that Sceptile everything you've got!" (Golem!) the rock Pokemon charged in with great speed and attack aggressively, leaving no room for a counter attack. But with Ash's cunning and ability, he was able to make an opening several times and pound that Pokemon back to the dirt where it was born.

But as the battle intensified dramatically, the two trainers knew that this battle had to end at some point. Even after taking such a large amount of beating, Golem was still able to hold its ground which earned him a lot of respect from several trainers watching the fight. But what was more impressive was the fact Sceptile barely even took a hit. It was as if, the grass Pokemon wasn't even taking this battle seriously.

"Alright Golem, use everything you got on this final attack! Double Edge!!" Golem curled itself into position, preparing for one last kamikaze attack. As it charged for one last breakthrough, Ash moved in as well, "Sceptile, let's go for a leafblade attack full power!" the two trainers watched intently like their faces were glued on the two Pokemons battling.

The audience couldn't even dare to blink as their eyes were tightly opened like never before. All sides held their breath… heck even Kevin seemed to be very interested in the battle.

But just when the two Pokemons were about to make their debut, another attack came out from the sidelines, breaking the tension of the moment!

"Blastoise, hydropump!" a powerful jet stream of water rushed out of nowhere, slamming Golem out of the ring. Luckily, Sceptile was able to notice the attack and dodged before it could inflict anymore damage onto him. The whole crowd was stunned! Who in their right minds would interfere with such a great match like this?

"Hey! What gives!?" both Ash and Binor and the crowd looked around to see where the attack came from. "Who interrupted our battle!?" the rock head trainer complained, "I was just about to win!"

"Be quiet you jumbo headed palooka" came another voice from the east. When the crowd turned their heads to the source, they again spread out, making way for another group to enter the field. To Kevin's slight surprise, it was none other that Gary with his Blastoise and his crew who walked in.

"Oh no… it's Gary!" said one of the crowd in amazement.

As Gary and his elite troupe (excluding Red and Brendan) approached the Bail Outs Elite Five, Kevin rose from his seat to greet them in a gentleman like manner. "Why hello there Mr. Oak" he bowed slightly. "To what do I owe this pleasure of your visit?"

"Cut the knot pretty boy" Emma growled with her fist rising above her chest, but Steve calmed her down. "You know well why we're here Kevin" Havic answered, "Your boys have been causing us a lot of trouble. They've been challenging our boys at our territories"

"Oh is that so?" Kevin replied innocently, "I haven't really noticed. I can't keep track of everyone in the group you know hehehehe" he flashed out his annoyingly innocent smile. Emma resist the urged to punching the man to oblivion for it will not benefit anyone in particular.

But before this could escalate into a full scale bar, Soledad interfered, "I'm going to have to remind the both of you, that the Arena Distric is a neutral territory……" she said with a commanding tone, "If you goons have cause any problems, you're gonna have to take it outside" that bold statement was probably almost like signing a contract with death itself. But to her surprise, Kevin just flashed out another smile. "Yes yes yes… I believe you are correct, Ms. Soledad. Forgive us for trespassing without your permission" if the snobby guy's voice could get any more sarcastic, he would probably be recommended to a director for a movie. "We shall take our leave now. Come Binor, we have drawn enough tension here" the rock Pokemon trainer nodded and recalled Golem back into its Pokeball. Once they were done, they all left, without having the match finished at all.

Once the Elite Five were gone, Soledad turned back to the gang, "Geeze, those guys are a real pain in the rear" she complained.

"Who were they?" Richie asked.

"That was Kevin and his crew members of the Elite Five" Soledad explained, "They're the top boss of the Bail Outs gang, which is pretty big for some reason. I wouldn't want to mess with them though. They're pretty tough" she then turned to Gary's gang, "Are you guys leaving too?"

Havic and the others were just about to walk away too, but then Gary's presence seemed to have glued them onto the field. "Gary?" Ash arrived not long after the Bail Outs left and noticed his old time friend and rival there. But when he got a close view of him, Ash saw the new boy's all time scar mark. "What happened to your face!?"

"Nothing important" Gary replied as coldly as his voice could possibly get. "I guess you haven't changed a bit after three months of traveling after all……… Ashy boy"

Shiver…

That was the only word that could describe the feeling that passed through the entire district. With the boy's name finally said out loud it felt as if Armageddon was coming to a close.

"Ash Ketchum!? The champion trainer of all the regions!?"

"I knew I recognized him somewhere before!"

"I thought he forfeited the Valmarian league"

And the list of rumors went on and on and on going further and further like never before. Havic slapped his own face and rubbed it all the way down to his neck. Gary had made a foolish move today for the gang. By telling the whole city who the boy was, there was not a doubt in his mind that this would result in a major war. Trainers will begin to panic, small time gangs will become more independent and the city would be engulfed into chaos in a matter of days.

"Terrific…" Havic mumbled under his breath, "Just when things couldn't get any worst"

To say the least, Ash was quite surprised to see Gary here and seeing him from his point of view, the boy in front of him didn't seem like the Gary he knew back at Pallet town. The expression on his face was a mixture of anger, hate and slight bit of jealousy. The clothes he wore were different too. Usually when Ash met him, he would usually be wearing a lab coat like professor Oak or his favorite purple outfit. Even the aura that resonated from him has changed. It was no longer the rivaling approach he got from him… but more like the deepest, coldest parts of the earth itself.

The two of them starred at each other for a long time, not letting one's ego go over the other.

"Hey… isn't that Gary?" Dawn whispered to Brock, "The one we met back in Shinou when we saved those Sheildon?" Brock nodded in reply. "Yeah, that's him alright. He's been Ash's rival ever since the beginning of his journey…… but…… I don't remember him having a scar on his face before. I wonder if he got that during training"

"But didn't you say that he quit Pokemon battles before?" Dawn asked curiously to which the slanted eyed boy agree to as well, "He did…… but right when Ash won the Hoenn league he just suddenly went back to training again. Even professor Oak wondered why he changed his mind again, but I guess we'll never know"

Just as the gang turned their heads back to the two rivals, not even the gods could tell what thoughts were passing through their minds. How was one supposed to react when they met their opponent?

And so… with the words that would shake the very foundation of the entire world, Gary lifted his hand and pointed at Ash with his face not changing its expression one bit. "Ash…… I challenge you to a battle" he said as coldly as before. The audience gasped deeply like the air itself seemed to have stopped. They've only heard about people issuing challenge to Gary but never even thought about him issuing a challenge. To have him challenge you to a battle was like…… having a Groudon knocking on your doorstep saying 'Pizza delivery!'

Even Ash himself looked quite shock. He knew this day would come eventually when he arrived at Valmarian city, but he never thought that it would come this early. But thanks to his coherent genes, Ash let out a forceful smirk as he accepted the challenge. "You're on!"

Once again, the field was theirs. The audience that were mumbling, whispering and shouting was put to an instant silence when both Ash and Gary took to their position. The cleaning crew immediately arrived on the battlefield, repairing all damage that occurred during Ash's previous battle. But during the repairs, the referee decided to announce the battle.

"The battle will now begin!" he began, "The field we will be fighting today will be a grass field! (the field turned to a soft fluffy grassy area) This is a battle between 'ace' Pokemon trainer … Gary Oaks from Pallet town and Pokemon trainer Ash Ketchum, also from Pallet town! Trainers, choose your Pokemons!"

"_So Gary's an ace too"_ Ash noted to himself before choosing his Pokemon, "Alright Pikachu, you're up! (Pika!)"

The crowd let out another gasped when Pikachu took on to the fields. To see the most famous electrical mouse in action, live, was like a once in a life time chance!

"Pikachu huh" Gary stated, "Blastoise, you're in" the water turtle which was already out of its Pokeball took itself to the field. The water Pokemon had many old bruises and battle scars which gave the impression that it was a seasoned warrior. Though it may look wounded on the outside, the gang could see that Blastoise was still ready and able to battle.

"Ash's Pikachu should have an overwhelming advantage over a water type like Blastoise" Dawn analyzed. Brock nodded in agreement, "That's true. But remember what happened when Ash first battled Kenny's Prinplup. Who knows what kind of surprise that Gary might have under his sleeves?"

But Max simply ignored the two of them. He just continued to cheer on for Ash, "Go Ash! You can do it!"

Once both trainers were satisfied with their choice, the referee waved up his flag to signal the cleaners to move out. "The trainers have chosen their Pokemons!" he began, "This is a regular one on one Pokemon battle with no time limit and no substitution! The one with a Pokemon standing wins. Trainers are you ready? (nod) (nod) Then let the battle……… BEGIN!

"Pikachu, thunderbolt!" Ash was the first to strike out this time. As Pikachu charged up to maximum power, the little mouse released a bolt of electricity about 6000 thousand volts. The attack was so powerful and so quick that even Gary didn't have time to order a dodge………… in fact…… it looked Gary didn't even want to dodge. The boy just stood still and let Blastoise take the hit head on.

"Hey what's Gary doing?" Drew looked astounded from the shock, "Is he gonna let Blastoise take the hit?"

"It looks that way" Paul replied to him.

But as the attack made contact, everyone jolted from their seats like Armageddon just happened. Blastoise took the lightning attack dead on just as they all expected, but what caught them off guard was that fact the water Pokemon wasn't even damaged. It looked like it was still fresh and uninjured from the attack.

Duplica's eyes widened considerably, "No way! Blastoise didn't even flinch!" even the crowd was surprise. They all that the water Pokemon would give some sort of painful reaction, but Gary's Blastoise didn't even felt a thing… literally! And to think that lightning bolt was the move that made Pikachu famous.

"Tch… weak as usual" Gary smug, "Blastoise, hydro pump" he said coolly. The turtle Pokemon quickly aimed its cannons downwards and unleashed a powerful splash of water sending the little electrical mouse all the way back to the other side of the court. But Ash wasn't going down that easily. "Pikachu, use iron tail on that water and hurry!!" Pikachu quickly spun around with its tail causing the water to lose its grip. "Now use iron tail on Blastoise!" with lightning fast speed, Pikachu moved in for the counter attack.

"Blastoise, withdraw" Gary ordered with his tone kept cool and calm. The turtle Pokemon hastily hid itself into its shell allowing itself to be a standing target for Pikachu. The iron tail attack slammed again and again, but to no effect. Ash may have hit the target but it wasn't taking that much damage. "Grr…" Ash gritted his teeth, "Pikachu, fall back and use lightning bolt on it one more time!" the little mouse ceased its tail attack and quickly fell back into position before unleashing another powerful lightning attack.

"Now Blastoise, use rapid spin…" Gary ordered out calmly. Blastoise immediately came out of its shell and spinned around fanatically like a Frisbee in mid-air. With the water Pokemon's quick velocity, the lightning attack proved useless, catching Pikachu and Ash off guard. The rapid spin attack damaged Pikachu a lot, but still the little guy was in fighting condition.

"Pikachu, volt tackle!" again Pikachu charged in with another one of his famous moves, but even that didn't surprise Gary. "Blastoise, endure" the attack hit, but it looked like Blastoise seemed to have found its recoil counter. "Now Blastoise, use… hyper beam" with Pikachu so close to the water Pokemon, the attack slammed at the little mouse at point blank range sending the guy up far back to Ash's corner. "Pikachu!" Ash panicked.

The audience gasped shockingly like they've just witnessed a miracle. Even Ash himself couldn't believe what was happening. Every move he struck at Blastoise only returns with a stronger counter attack and it seemed like Gary wasn't making any obvious openings either. With Pikachu badly wounded, Ash had to result to using his ultimate weapon.

"_This isn't good…"_ Ash thought to himself, _"If I don't do anything soon, Pikachu won't be able to last much longer. That Blastoise can really take a punch. I guess I'll have no choice but to use 'that'…… but…"_ at that moment, Ash shook his head to throw away the thought before ordering, "Pikachu, use absorb now!" his companions let out several shocking gasps as they all knew that technique well. Ash was going to perform his ultimate move… the Lightning Storm.

"Is he…" Drew uttered coherently

"I think he is…" Brock answered worryingly, "But I never thought he would use it this early.

Paul only gave out a slight look of interest as he had seen that powerful move only on TV. The ultimate attack that left so many trainers shaking in their boots was now about to performed right in front of his face.

Though some of Gary's gang looked quite frightened, Gary himself only smug back, not caring what was going to happen. "Blastoise, use tackle…" the turtle Pokemon quickly rushed in, hoping to end the battle quickly. But just as its body was about to make contact, the electrical shield that Pikachu generated took effect and shock the water Pokemon unexpectedly.

"Alright! The electric shield worked!" Max cheered in victory, "And that Blastoise is paralyzed! Go Ash! This match is all yours!"

With Pikachu recharged to full power, Ash knew right then that victory was his. With one chain of command, he may as well seal victory over the whole stadium. "Alright Pikachu, let'em have it! Lightning Storm!" with Blastoise still paralyzed from the tackle attack, there was no way for it to defend itself against the onslaught brought upon it. Pikachu leaped high into the air, just a bit further away from Blastoise. And with one super power charged up, the little mouse unleashed a wave of lightning all across the battlefield, destroying everything it touched.

The attacked lasted for about ten to twenty seconds the most and when Pikachu was done, it looked as if it was still fresh and ready for battle!

"Alright! A direct hit!" Tracey cheered.

"There's no way a water Pokemon can stand up to that!" Dawn added with Buneary cheering with pompoms on its paws.

The whole crowd seemed to have agreed as well. There was not one Pokemon in the entire world that could take on that many blows and still stand. But when the smoke finally cleared… they all stood and sat corrected.

Blastoise… was there……… and……… it was still standing.

Ash and his friend's jaws would've dropped right off their heads if they could. They couldn't believe it. Of all the Pokemons that they had faced, none could match up to that kind of attack. Even Drake's Dragon Pokemons barely stood a chance against that move. But here it was….. a water Pokemon, still standing with both its head and hands well and ready.

"Is that the best you can do Ashy boy?" Gary smirked tauntingly as he turned back to the battlefield, "Blastoise, show him what real power is all about! Hydro beam cannon!" the turtle Pokemon nodded and aimed its cannons right at Pikachu. And to everyone's surprise, a beam was fired right out of Blastoise's cannons, creating an explosion so big that it would make a TNT look like a bonfire.

Right at that very moment, the whole crowd couldn't help but stare. Brock, Dawn, May, Duplica, everybody……… None of them could believe it. Something that they thought that could never ever happen in a million years had come true. Their jaws hung slightly open and their eyes widened considerably like saucer plates. For once in their tiny existence, they wished that this would all have been one terrible nightmare… because right now…… the unsuspecting truth had been thrown right in front of their faces……

Ash Kechum…… lost…

**(Bridge connecting from Arena to Merchant's District)**

Kevin and his band of Elite Fives were taking a stroll further away from the Soledad's territory and back to theirs. He knew right then that Ash's identity would be revealed and he really needed to prepare himself for the coming chaos. So to make sure his territory goes undisturbed, he decided to have a little group meeting on the bridge.

"What do we do now boss?" Binor asked out while putting his hands on the railing of the bridge, "There will be a wide spread panic going on around soon and I don't think it will be beneficial for anyone when it happens"

"All the smaller time gangs will rise up immediately" Claire, the fire Pokemon trainer added, "The minor skirmish with them will soon turn into an all out war unless we have a strong presence there" she then paused for a moment before speaking her idea, "I suggest that we should stop attacking Gary's territory, at least until we can stabilize our position"

"No way!" Binor argued, "We'll be showing ourselves weak to our bigger enemies! I'd say we fight all of them head on!"

"We'll be fighting on three fronts then" Kyle, the silent water Pokemon trainer interrupted surprisingly. He was not one to speak unless it was absolutely necessary. "We don't have the man power to take on Gary's men, Soledad and the Bicento brothers… and with that Ketchum boy here, it may be possible for him to be another thorn"

Binor and Claire immediately stopped fighting and began using their heads to think of a plan.

"Then I guess it's settled then" Kevin said finally, "We strengthen our position first before going against the others. I doubt we'll have anything to worry about Gary and his men. Because from what my sources tell me… he might divert some resources on focusing on Ash rather than us" he let out a small smirk pass his lips while the others nodded in agreement. "Binor and Claire you take the Residential Area 1 and 2. Kyle, you take the Merchant's District and…" but before he could continue that sentence, a small emotional feeling came from the Arena District catching his attention, "Oh my… it looks like something big just happened at the Arena District" he let out a sarcastic grin before moving out. "Come on Eesal, let's go get some ice cream"

"Yay! Ice cream for me oru!" the pigtailed girl squealed with delight.

And with that, the whole group moved out, completely oblivious to what their leader had just said.

**(Back in the Arena District)**

"Pikachu!" Ash quickly leaped from his stands and approached his little yellow buddy as it fell unconscious on the grass field. With swirly eyes and a wounded body, the referee waved his flag up high to signal the victor, "Pikachu is no longer able to battle! The match goes to Gary and Blastoise!" even though there were no sounds of applause nor the cheers of the crowd, Gary didn't seem to mind it at all. He returned Blastoise into its Pokeball and returned to his crew.

"You did great Pikachu" Ash cheered up the little young fella, "You did your best and so you deserve a nice good rest" he tugged the little mouse onto his shoulder and let out a small smile until his friends approached him.

"Ash, are you ok?" Anabel asked worryingly. But to their surprise, Ash seemed to be taking his lost quite well. "Yeah, I'm ok. It's Pikachu I'm worried of (Pika) hehehehe… I guess that took out a lot more than I thought"

"Well… it's just like you said…" May smiled proudly at the boy. "You can't win'em all in one day"

"Yeah…" Ash replied a little disheartened by his inglorious defeat. But just when things were starting to slow down a bit, Gary and his crew approached them with an annoyed look. Ash was the first to notice him and decided to be a good sport and congratulate his victory, "That was a great match, Gary" he extended his hand for a game well played. But then to his surprise, the purple clad boy didn't even bother to return the gesture. He just starred at him with burning anger raging in his eyes.

"You're weak…" Gary boldly claimed, "I always thought of you to be strong Ash…… but I guess I must've overestimate you. I never thought you'd be this easy to beat"

"What was that!?" Ash groaned angrily, "Listen here buster! Just because you won one round doesn't mean you've won the Valmarian league. Just you wait! I'll come back and beat the pulp out of you yet!"

But those words didn't even look like they bore any meaning. Gary felt this and was clearly not bothered by his words, "You should think before making empty promises… Ashy boy. If your Pikachu can't even handle Blastoise, then you're as good as lost. "Your Pokemons are poorly trained… and they haven't reached their fullest potential…… I'm disappointed"

Ash's hand dangled in the air, as he stood there, shocked on what just happened. He never expected that to come from him… especially 'him'.

"And to think that I was expecting something better from you"

The crowd let out a soft gasp all together. Gary wasn't just insulting him, he was taunting the boy, throwing mud in his face. "Gary… what are you…" but before Ash could finish, the 'boss' cut him off.

"You don't belong here Ash…" he then turned away and began walking with his crew. But just then, he stopped and turned around, to add one last grain of salt to the boy's injury, "Oh… and by the way... you can have this back…" he quickly took off the necklace on his neck and threw it right in front of the ground. It was a silver chained necklace nicely made by those who loved their craft…… but what struck Ash the most… was the object it was attached too. It was the other half of the Pokeball he shared with Gary.

The impact of that action wounded Ash's heart even deeper than anyone could possibly think. As he took the necklace onto his hands… everything seemed to have died down… like someone pressed the mute button on the TV.

And so… the rivalry between two great friends had finally ended…… with all ties gone and the chains broken… this single day marked the very moment… when two powerful trainers… became enemies. With the Valmarian league closing in fast, will Ash be able to strengthen himself beyond his own limits again? Only time… can tell.


	53. Enter Brandon, The Trainer of Trainers

**Chapter 53: Enter Brandon, The Trainer of Trainers** (Chapter inspired by the music 'I'll make a man out of you' in Disney Movie Mulan)

When we last left our heroes back in Valmarian city, both May and Ash suffered a crushing defeat from their long time rivals Soledad and Gary. But even with those defeat, it did not break their spirits. During their battle, Ash and his friends encountered another group which called themselves the Elite Five, a band of trainers that possesses incredible skills. With all of this in mind, the gang was now faced off with a challenge they will probably never forget.

**(Che'val-yere hotel lobby) (10:00 AM) (5 days before the Valmarian league)**

Ash was sitting alone near the lobby water fountain with a serious look on his face as he stared at the necklace tossed to him by Gary. He did not know what happened to him or why he had said that, but he knew that something seemed to have changed between his rival of today. When he battled Gary back in the Arena District, he could already tell that something seemed… different. Usually most of his battles would be fun and enjoyable no matter if he won or lost. But when he battled Gary, he did not feel the tension at all.

It was like the simple competition was turned into a 'real' fight. Like he wasn't trying to win, but it was more like he had to win! The emotion gripped against his heart, causing him to shake fearfully as he tightly held the necklace. From that point on… the two of them were neither friends… nor rivals…… no…… oh no…… they were now… enemies.

Enemies…

Never before had Ash considered himself to have an enemy… unless of course they were Team Rocket. But they were more of an annoyance rather than enemies.

But as the boy continued down his train of thoughts, Rosa knew that it would be best if no one disturbed him unless they wanted to go through her first. She immediately went into Guardian mode, which means any living thing that comes within a ten meter radius of him will be analyzed and if necessary…… struck down.

However… on the other side of the lobby, Richie and the others seemed to having a hard time themselves. Ever since Ash came back with the necklace, he seemed to have… isolated himself from the others. The boy practically locked himself in his room thinking and didn't even bother to have supper or breakfast.

"Do you think Ash is alright?" Drew whispered quietly, hoping not to let the boy in question hear them. Duplica whispered back, "I don't know… but he's kinda out today" the two of them turned back to the table where a delicious looking meal was prepared for them by professor Oak. "He's not even interested with breakfast" Brock added with a sigh. It was bad enough having Misty out of the gang, but without Ash… nothing seemed to be normal anymore. Everyone seemed to be in the negative mood too, heck even Paul had a slight hint of worry coming out of his face.

I guess it was understandable for Brock on how they all felt. The younger members of the gang all looked up to Ash as a... super man of some sort. They all thought that he was the pillar of indomitable strength, like a tower that would never ever fall no matter how hard the storm was.

But just when they were thinking deeply about this whole situation, Ash suddenly stood up from his seat, catching the attention of every member of the gang. He slowly tucked the necklace into his side pocket, adjusted his hat to fit his head and quickly left the hotel with several of his Pokeballs on his belt. When he left through the automatic doors, none of the gang knew whether to follow him or just sit still and hope for the best.

"Shouldn't we follow him?" Dawn mumbled to the crew as they turned their heads towards her. Several had negative replies while some seemed to be undecided.

**(Reception desk)**

As Ash walked through the doors of the hotel, three familiar figures stood at the reception desks disguised as employees of the hotel. Not to my surprise, it was none other than Team Rocket, again here to make another attempt to steal Pikachu.

"Well now… there goes the twerp" said Jessie who was disguised as a receptionist. "It's strange that he's not going with the other twerps" Meowth included who was disguised as a busboy. "I wonder where he's going"

"Well who cares!" James stated who was disguised as a Valet door servant. "He's alone! So that means he's going to be at his weakest! Without any help from his allies, he'll be nothing but a sitting duck!"

"Right!" they all agreed. But just when they were about to throw away their disguise and leap into action, Dawn suddenly passed by, causing them to go into incognito mode.

"Hey Dawn, where are ya going?" Brock's voice came along. The blue haired coordinator turned her head around and smiled, "I'm going out to find Ash" she explained, "He might need someone to boost him up. Someone's gotta help him get back on his feet" and with that she dashed off to follow the boy that she cared for the most without even looking back. _"Besides…… he helped me get back on my feet a lot of times too"_ she said to herself with a slight smile on her lips.

Once the girl was out of sight, the trio of bad guys popped out from their hiding place to begin their plan. "Great, now another twerp is joining the lot" Jessie whined along with her partner James, "One is alright, but two is definitely a crowd at this point"

But Meowth disagree, "One or two it doesn't matter! As long as we swipe that Pikachu, we'll swipe all the other Pokemons they have as well!"

"Right! Let's go!"

**(Uno Café)**

Havic and his compadres were taking a little break in their usual hangout in the Downtown District east point. Ever since Gary had defeated Ash's strongest Pokemon on an even battle, the topic has become the highlight of the city. Rumors and gossips were being thrown around, spreading faster than the plagues themselves. In just about two hours, the audience disbursed from the scene and told all of their associates faster than you can say 'go'.

And just like Havic predicted, the city's secret gang society went into chaos. Gangs were now fighting each other for complete supremacy over the districts, police force were now in full mobilization now that the Jennies were in town, and with the whole war being fought on three fronts, it was up to Havic to keep things in order.

"Man… this stinks" Emma whined as she finished her can of soda. "Hey waiter, one more round"

"Easy on the Root Beer Emma" Steve warned, "You wouldn't want to go to battle too hyper now would you?"

"Mind your own business Four eyes" the girl shot back, "I battled over twenty trainers last night! I drink what I want and when I want to! Hic!" her shouting was followed by a slight hiccup. If one would look at her, she would kinda resemble that of a drunken person, but in truth, she was just tired from all that fighting last night.

"Hey Havic, do something will ya!" Steve turned to their ex-boss for some support, "She's acting all weird on me"

Havic simply let out a boring sigh, "Let it go Steve. We're all just tired from yesterday. A little rest can't be that bad"

"Oh yeah sure, take her side why don't ya!" Steve pouted like an angry kitten and turned his head around, facing the other way.

The ex-boss sighed even deeper again, after slouching back onto his seat. With Gary focusing his attention on Ash and his friends, Havic had been assigned into keeping their borders stable. The Downtown District and Industrial District remains firmly under their control, for now at least.

The Bail Outs controls most of the northern part of the city which includes the Merchant's District and The Residential Areas.

Soledad's gang on the other hand, holds a tight grip in the Old Town District. Her grandfather owns an inn there which made it an ideal place for their Headquarters. But thanks to her small numbers, Soledad's group can only support small idealistic battles.

The Bicento brothers however… were very different. They had no interest in holding or taking territories for themselves. They most likely seek only the thrills of battle, therefore they could attack from anywhere without anyone knowing at all.

The Arena and Central District however, remained neutral zones for everyone, since security there was the tightest.

After a moment, the waiter arrived on Havic's table to serve him his usual morning take out. "Bacon and ham sir" the waiter nodded and left. Finally, the guy could have his peaceful meal. But just when Havic was about to dig in, his cell phone began to ring, making his groan with annoyance. He waited for a minute, to see if the caller would drop it. He waited another minute to try the mute button, but in the end, he had to answer it. "Talk to me…" he said to the caller as he dug in his breakfast.

This was going to be one long day…

**(Pokemon center behind Che'val-yere hotel)**

Ash was sitting on a couch starring aimlessly onto the ceiling thinking about what had happened. He had given all of his Pokemons, including Pikachu to Nurse Joy to have their usual check up, but except for Rosa of course. With her extraordinary ability to heal and regenerate, she could cure all her wounds with but a single thought… besides; she would rather die than to let the humans mess with her systems.

As Ash waited, flashes of his previous battle began to surface. His mind was confused and unsynchronized with his body, making him act before he even think. He resisted the urge of kicking the trash can beside the couch and locked his leg onto the floor.

_You're weak…_

Ash gritted his teeth as the words continued to ring upon his head like an annoying fly that can't seemed to be swapped away.

_You don't belong here_

His hands tightened their grip on his pant's fold nearly ripping them apart. He did not know why he was feeling this great anger rising before him. He had received many taunts and insults before, but this time… it seemed to affect his whole mind and body. He wanted to hit something at that moment. He wanted to hit something, anything!

But before he could go through that train of thoughts, Nurse Joy appeared, startling him out of his mind. "Oh I'm sorry" she apologized, "I didn't mean to scare you Ash. I just wanted to tell you that your Pokemons are done with their checkups. None of them are seriously injured so there wasn't much to do"

"Thanks Nurse Joy" Ash forced out a smile and quickly head towards the reception desk. He was quite amazed by the fact that there were more than sixty Nurse Joys in this Pokemon center and from his POV, they all seemed to look the same. Brock could probably tell the difference but he'd be too busy drooling over each and every one of them.

Once he got out of the Pokemon center, he headed out towards the training area at the back to have his Pokemon get a little stretch. Back in the days, training areas like these would be teaming with trainers, but now that there was an Arena District, trainers didn't even bother to look at the place anymore.

As Ash summoned out his Pokemons from their Pokeballs, he immediately sat out a bit exhausted from everything that's been happening so far. All that thinking was really taking its toll on the boy's weak body. Pikachu and the other Pokemons looked at their master as he slouched down onto the one of the waiting benches. Ash had given them orders to relax and stretch out for awhile, but with him giving out that aura of uncertainty, it was pretty hard for any of them to focus at all.

"Sceptile… Scep…?" (Is he… ok?) the pre-evolutional Pokemon asked, pointing at his master.

"Corphis corphis" (I hope so. He's been looking pretty glum lately) the crab like Pokemon replied.

But as they continued to glare at Ash… Pikachu sulked down to his feet as he couldn't help but feel partially responsible about the boy's condition. In truth, Pikachu seemed to have underestimated Blastoise. Seeing that he was clearly having the advantage in element types and skill, he thought that he let it go easy on the turtle Pokemon. But when Pikachu actually went to battle it, it was taken out by complete surprise and was overwhelmed before he knew what was happening.

After about ten minutes had past, Ash continued to sit on that bench and looked up to the clouds. He did not feel like doing anything today, heck he wasn't even doing anything today. He haven't had breakfast and now lunchtime was passing by already… and if Ash says that he isn't hungry then something must really be wrong.

Rosa wanted to cheer him up from the lost, but all words that she popped through her head seemed to be leading to nothing more than petty words. She was used to being a mother figure to Hsa back in the old days, but right now… she at lost for words. So instead of cheering Ash up, she decided to act professional instead. _"Your majesty"_ she began, _"It is almost lunch time. Shouldn't we go and find something to eat?"_

But the boy just waved it off, "No thanks Rosa. I'm not hungry"

"_As you wish"_ she replied worryingly, _"But at lea--…"_ she stop with her words when her ears suddenly picked up a slightly unnatural sound coming from the tree nearby. With her lightning fast reflexes, she leaped off the bench she shared with Ash and smashed her paws against the stump of the tree causing it to vibrate violently.

"AHH!" To Ash's surprise, a figure came crashing down from the tree branch a few moments later, making a small crater on the surface. "Dawn?" he checked for a moment and knew right away that it was Dawn. Her hat covered hair was her most likely trend which made her easy to recognize, even from a distance. "What are you doing here?" the girl laughed falsely at the boy's question. "Oh you know… just dropping in that's all ahehehehe"

**(Three minutes later)**

After getting the girl off the ground and getting reacquainted, the two of them found themselves back on the bench where Ash was sitting to have a little chat.

"Sorry about that" Dawn apologized, "I followed you here after you walked out of the hotel a few minutes ago. I didn't mean to spy on you or anything" but Ash just waved it off, "Its ok. I guess I have been acting a little weird lately. It's just that…… I have so many things up in my mind right now" his face died down, giving out a small frown.

Dawn looked back at the boy worryingly for a second before speaking up, "Is it… about Gary?" she asked even though she already knew the answer. Ash looked back at her with a slightly surprise face before nodding dumbly. The girl smiled back. Even if Ash was still in a very dark and deep depressing state, he was still kind enough to open up to people he trusts. Once again, Dawn gave out her usual 'Don't worry' attitude. "Don't worry about it too much Ash" (daijobu) "Just because you lost one battle doesn't mean it's the end of the world" the boy gave her a strange look, "The Valmarian league is still five days away, and maybe then you'll be stronger than before. Remember that time when I lost the appealing round in Hearthome city?" (See Pokemon Diamond and Pearl episode 49)

Ash thought for a moment to recall that pass even, "Oh yeah" he said finally, "That's where we had our first tag-team battle"

"Right!" she nodded back. "Remember what happened when I lost the appeal round"

"Yeah I remember" he replied, "You ran back to the Pokemon center right after that"

"And that's when Zoey cheered me up" she cut him off, "I can't really remember everything she said back there. But the one thing I do know is that… whenever I lose a contest or a battle… I would always think of that moment I had with her. Besides… you said it yourself that I should never lounge over defeat" Ash's eyes widened considerably to her last words. She was right, ever since he became the girl's master, he had taught her everything, including some metaphors from his adventures. Once he recalled their first travels during the Shinou regions, he kinda felt like a hypocrite.

After a few minutes of reconciling with himself, the boy's spirit raised above the roof causing him to feel like he was born all over again. "You're right Dawn…" he said softly to her, "You're right!!" he shouted this time. "Just because I lost one time doesn't mean that I lost yet! I'm gonna train harder than before and defeat Gary in his own game!"

The blue haired coordinator smiled proudly at him with a hint of love in her lips. "Now that's the Ash I remember!" she stated with her chest raised up slightly, "Come on! Let's have a battle! I won't hold anything back this time!"

"Neither will I!" and soon later, the strength that had been drained from Ash's body returned, causing him to burst with so much power and energy. Heck, the boy even felt like he could take on the whole city!

A few minutes later, the two trainers assembled on the practice field with their heads held high, "Alright Ash, I'll go first" Dawn announced with a smile on her face, "Buizel, spot light!" the sea weasel Pokemon appeared with a prideful smirk on its lips.

"Buizel huh" Ash recognized the strong water Pokemon anywhere, "A perfect Pokemon for battles. Now's my turn then! Burno, I choose you!" the demon dog Pokemon appeared, howling at the afternoon sky with a snarl. "Ok Burno, let's see what you've got! (woof!) Use flame thrower!" taking the initiative, Houndoom quickly let out a stream of fire off its mouth. To both trainers surprise, it was actually more powerful than either of them expected.

But Dawn learned that getting surprised by the enemy attack won't get her anywhere, "Buizel, dodge it and use aqua jet!" Buizel quickly regained posture and leaped away from the direction of the fire. Once it was out of range, the sea weasel dove in with water all around it and slammed against Houndoom faster than you can say 'ouch'.

"Burno, don't give in!" Ash cheered on, "Use ember attack to get it out of the way!" Houndoom immediately let out a small volley of fireballs which slammed nicely at Buizel's torso. "Good, now follow it up with fire fang!" the demonic dog Pokemon understood the master's plan and dashed off with a quick attack move.

"Buizel, water gun let's go!" but Dawn wasn't gonna let him win that easily. Learning from the best, the blue haired coordinator continued to give out attacks even when at a slight advantage. She knew that Ash was not a trainer to be underestimated. Even with the advantage on both Pokemon types and field, the boy can still turn the tide of battle with just one move.

The Hat Flip…

Ash only uses that move when he is at his most desperate moments. It mainly deals with his opponent psychologically and in truth, it actually works.

But right now, Ash didn't need to use that move. He was fine just the way he was right now. "Burno, use overheat and finish this!"

"Buizel, hydro pump!" as the two attacks met at the center of the field, a large puff of smoke occurred, causing the two of them to shield their eyes from the recoil. However, their immense power did not go unnoticed. As the explosion occurred, the trainers that were staying in the Pokemon center quickly came out to see what the fuss was all about.

"Hey, what's going on over there?"

"Is there a battle?"

"I don't know"

"Wow! Look! It's Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town! And Dawn from Twinleaf town!"

"Looks like we're drawing quite a crowd" Ash smirked at his opponent which she agreed totally. "Then let's give them a show to remember" Dawn smirked back equally, awaiting for the boy to make the first move. "Ready Buizel? (Bui bui!)" the sea weasel smirked and went into a combat stance. "Ready Burno? (woof!) Alright then! Let's do it!" but just when the two of them were going to unleash their deadly attacks, a pair of robotic arms appeared out of the sky and snatched the Pokemons before they knew what was happening. "Hey, what the?!" Ash and Dawn were taken by complete surprise.

It wasn't long till a pair of familiar gloating voices came from up top.

"Mwahahaha!" came Jessie's voice, "That was easy"

"Almost too easy teeheehehehehe" Meowth added with a cat like grin. The whole gang were riding on their usual Meowth balloon which seemed to be more deadly armed than usual.

"Team Rocket!?" Ash spat out their name venomously, "I knew I'd see you three sooner or later! Give me back Burno right now!"

"Burno?" the three bad guys looked confused at what Ash had nicknamed one of his Pokemons. "Oh I see" James understood, "He must've given that Houndoom a nickname"

"Nickname smickname" Meowth smug, "Who cares? Let's just swipe that Pikachu and the rest of them Pokemons for the boss!" the cat then press a button on the control panels which released a number of robotic hands up in the air. "Now let's see what's in the Pokemon center menu. Hmm… we have ourselves a Starly, a Jynx, some Pichus, oh and a Meowth that looks just like me" one by one, the Team Rocket balloon began snatching the Pokemons that were out in the field, causing the trainers to panic. "Hahahaha! This almost feels like my birthday presents!"

"Then let's grab some more and get going!" James added with a wide grin. "Ooooo… and grab that Lucario over there too!" this perked Jessie's ears and quickly took a look where James was pointing. "Oh my!" she screamed, "A pink Lucario! Pink is my favorite color! Meowth, grab that Lucario for me pronto!"

"And to think your favorite color was purple" the cat like Pokemon groaned annoyingly. But in the end he complied nonetheless. However… Rosa was a tougher fish to hook up than the other Pokemons. Thanks to her training routine back in the old days, she was able to dodge those mechanical menace with great ease. Heck, she even felt like she was just taking a morning stroll around the boulevard. But with all the Pokemons being taken away, Ash quickly got to work. He ordered up his Pokemon squad to take up positions, "Quick Dawn! We have to save them before they get away" the girl nodded back and quickly released all of her Pokemons to take the spotlight. "Piplup, Buneary, Pachirisu, Bayleef… come on out!" her strongest Pokemons arrived on scene preparing to do battle.

"Oh oh!" Meowth squatted, "We got bogeys coming in from down below!" but James and Jessie were more than ready to take them on. "Then let us take care of them!" the blue haired villain snapped back. "Cacnea, Victreebel, come on out and give them a battle!"

Jessie then followed, "Arbok, Seviper, take to the stage and prepare for battle!" two snake like Pokemons appeared, both looking fresh and eager to fight. "Now you two! Use poison sting attack!"

"Cacnea, use pin missile! Victreebel, use razor leaf!" with all the Pokemons unleashing ranged attacks, the balloon suddenly turned from a regular transportation vehicle to a mobile air fortress. It was nearly impossible for anyone or anything to get near it.

"Oh no you don't!" Ash gritted his teeth in anger as he waved his hand to his Pokemons, "Sceptile, cover the gang with bullet seed! Corphis, use bubble beam as well! Pikachu, get on top of Staravia and fly face! Take them out from the top!" with one single strain of command, the entire platoon quickly got in line and followed their orders to the letter. Both Sceptile and Corphis were able to fight back Team Rocket's range attack and mechanical arms. And after awhile, Pikachu was able to get on top of the balloon with relative ease. "Good! Now Pikachu, use thunderbolt!" (Pika----CHUUU!!) the little mouse unleashed a 10000 volt electricity attack causing it to blow a hole on the balloon. Luckily, the whole thing did not pop, so the Meowth balloon was able to land safely on the ground.

"Burno/Buizel!" Ash and Dawn called out their Pokemons as they returned to their sides.

But as the captured Pokemons returned to their respective masters, Team Rocket came out from their hiding spot to make one last stand. "Hold it right there! Those Pokemons are ours" Jessie boldly claimed even though she knew that she was wrong, "If you don't return them then I'll have no choice but to fight you!"

"Then a fight it is then!" Ash countered with a sneer. "Maybe that's the only thing that'll be able to teach the three of you!"

The bad guys smirked all together at Ash's futile attempt to taunt them.

"Ahohohoho" Jessie began, "To protect the world from devastation…"

"To unite all people within our nation…"

"To denounce the evil from truth and love…"

"To extend our reach to th…" before James could continue his next phrase, the Pokemon center alarm siren went off causing their stop their motto. "What the!? Can't you people see we're in the middle of our motto here!? Don't you have any respect for the bad guys here?!"

With Team Rocket caught off guard, Ash and Dawn knew right away what came after that. "Alright then! Pikachu, thunderbolt!"

"Piplup, bubble beam!" both attack made impact on the trios and before they knew it, they were already blasting off into the sky. "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off ag---ack!!!" but due to the city being enclosed with a dome, the trios were unable to go up into the sky and vanishing into another land far-far away. Instead… their faces were imprinted on the glass dome that overlooked the city.

"I forgot to mention" came James muffled voice, "Valmarian city is protected by a dome! We can't go blasting off like we used too!" Meowth sighed, "Thanks for the late warning!" and in a matter of seconds, the trios suddenly felt their faces slipping from the glass and slowly sliding against it. "Well this doesn't look good" Jessie added with a slight bit of sarcasm. After a few moments, their faces completely left the glass, and thanks for being sixteen stories high, they were lucky that they landed in the river rather than the hard ground.

**(Back with Ash and Dawn)**

Right after Team Rocket were blasted off to who knows where, the Pokemons that were temporarily kidnapped were finally reunited with their masters thanks to the efforts of Ash and Dawn and of course… their Pokemons. It had been a straining day to say the least, but thanks to Jessie, James and Meowth, Ash felt like he could take on a few hundred more fights. But just when things were finally starting to die down a bit, the head Nurse Joy of the Pokemon center approach the boy. "That was a terrific battle there you two" she complimented the pair.

"It was nothing" Dawn replied with a smirk, "We've been fighting those two for so long, it kinda feels like a routine"

Ash nodded in agreement, "Yeah. I can't even remember how I met those guys in the first place" but just as they laughed all together to relieve some stress from the growing tension, a number of police sirens came in from the distance. It looked like the police noticed the explosion and were quickly on their way to the scene of the 'almost-crime' "Hey look… it's the police" Ash pointed at the head vehicle that stopped a few meters away from him.

Right then, Ash and Dawn wouldn't be surprised to see one Jenny, but when the officers came out the vehicles, the two of them were nearly stunned when fifteen Jennies appeared. From their POV they all seemed to look the same.

"Uh… can I help you officers?" Ash looked at them worryingly as the Jennies looked at him with death praying eyes. He didn't know what he had done to anger the Jennies, but whatever it was… he was regretting it already. Even Dawn seemed to be getting some of the glares too. "Eh… Ash… why are they looking at us like that?"

Before the boy could even conjure up an answer up his mouth, the head Jenny of the group blew out her whistle, "Take them down girls!" immediately the Jennies tackled both Ash and Dawn to the ground, scaring Nurse Joy off her wits. Neither Ash nor his companion had a chance to defend or explain themselves when they were thrown on the dirt. "Hey, what's going on!?" Ash shouted, but was muffled up when handcuffs were placed on his hands.

"That'll teach you to have a battle during the day mister" the head Jenny said to them like they were the bad guys, "You two should know the rules that all unauthorized battling in the streets are prohibited!"

"But…"

"Don't interrupt me when I'm saying your rights!" the police officer yelled out frighteningly, "Now where was I? Oh yeah, your rights. You have the right to remain silent, you have the right to call your lawyer and (blah blah blah blah) And now that I've caught you two red handed, I'm putting you behind bars for a LONG time…" she smirked at them before ordering her younger sisters/cousins/nieces to put them in the car.

But then Nurse Joy came along, "Hold on a minute there Jenny!" all the cops halted on their tracks, "I'm thankful for your arrival, but I believe you have the wrong perpetrators" the head Jenny gave her a 'huh' look. "These two children weren't violating any rules at all. They were battling in the practice range which is quite alright in the rule book"

"But then… what caused the explosion?" Jenny asked with a curious brow.

"A trio of thieves was attempting to steal the Pokemons that were being cared for in the Pokemon center" Joy explained, "Luckily these two trainers were around and defeated them"

"Oh really?"

"YES!!" Ash and Dawn said in unison.

After finally explaining the whole inchalada of the event that happened a few minutes ago in brief moment, the head Jenny smiled apologetically, "I am soooooo sorry about this!" she bowed slightly as the other officers released the two trainers from their handcuffs. The grips of those metallic chains were so tight that it almost felt like Ash's hands have lost their blood circulation. Dawn on the other 'hand' wasn't as bad. Thanks to her slim figure, her hands could easily slip through those chains with a slight use of force of course. "With all the gang fights happening around town, it's hard to tell who the good guys are nowadays" Jenny explained with a slight hint of apology.

"That's ok Officer Jenny" Ash waved it off, "We all make mistakes"

"Yeah… like a certain someone I know" Dawn glanced at Ash making him blush slightly in embarrassment.

Jenny was relieved that the two of them didn't take their false arrest seriously or it would've been a catastrophe for her career. "Thanks a lot you two" she bowed slightly again, "Please, let me make it up to you. Is there somewhere you would like to go? I can take you with my cruiser" but they just waved it off altogether. "No thanks" Ash began which Dawn quickly agreed too, "Yeah… we have to get back to our hotel. Our moms would be worried about us by now"

"Well… if that's what you want" Jenny sulk down a little, "But if you two need any favor, just call any of my relatives. They'll be sure to help you out with anything"

**(An hour later, back at Che'val-yere hotel lobby)**

When both Ash and Dawn returned to the hotel, they arrived looking like total rags. Their clothes were dirty thanks to the battle they had with Team Rocket, but it only became worst when the police tackled them to the ground.

"Awww man! I just did my hair six hours ago!" Dawn whined as she pulled out her hair brush to fix the split ends. "Fighting Team Rocket is one thing, but being attacked by the police wasn't something I expected" Ash gave out a soft apologetic smile, "Ahehehe… sorry about that Dawn. I guess it's kinda my fault that you're all messed up"

But the girl simply scoffed, "Don't worry about it. This happens all the time back in Shinou. Besides………… I think it was worth it" she flashed out a bright smile in reply which made Ash blushed back slightly. "Thanks… Dawn" he replied shyly.

"Hey now, don't worry" again, her 'don't worry' attitude returned, lightening the tension of the place. "I'm only returning the favor. You shouldn't let people worry about you like that you know"

Ash's ears and eyes perked up a bit, "You… you were worried about me?" this made Dawn curse herself with her misuse of words. It was now the girl's turn to blush, making her turn away from the boy. "D… don't get the wrong idea here!" she fumbled through her sentences as she tried to come up with a good excuse, "I was just uh… I was just repeating… what uh… what the professor said! Yeah that's it!" but Ash didn't buy it. Dawn was hiding something and he was going to find out what.

But before their conversation could go anywhere else, a certain afro headed mother came in from the reception desk. "Oh hi there Ash… Dawn. Oh my, what happened to the two of you? You look like… like…" she dangled the sentence up her throat as she couldn't tell how to explain what she thought on how the two of them looked. If you could see through her POV, the two of them looked like they've jumped into a mud pile together and laughed about it.

"It's my fault Johanna" Ash happily submitted to fault, "I was kinda practicing in the field along with Dawn and my Pokemons until uh… we went a little overboard" Dawn nodded in agreement to the excuse that he made up. Fortunately for the two of them, Johanna seemed to have bought it.

"Oh well" the mother sighed, "Before you two clean up, why don't you head to the dining area first?" the two young trainers simply gave out a confused look, but they complied anyway. Other than being a five star accommodation, the Che'val-yere hotel had a lot more on the first floor than the reception desk and lobby. It also held a four star restaurant and several recreational centers to the guests well entertained. There a message parlor at the back along with a spa at the corner side overlooking the park. On the third floor, there was an outdoor pool fit for a small party and it also came equipped with a mini-bar to keep those throats wet.

As Ash and Dawn finally arrived at the dining area, the valet quickly let out a warm welcoming smile, "Ah, senor Ketchum yes? We have been expecting you"

"You have?" the two of them looked slightly confused except for Johanna who seemed to have something up her sleeves. Ash and Dawn both looked at her with a curious brow, knowing quite well that something was behind those doors. As the valet moved in to open the door, Johanna gave the two trainers a slight nudge to follow him.

When the doors finally opened, Ash was suddenly greeted by the sound of poppers popping and New Year's whistle blowing in the air. A bright astounding golden light illuminated from the center of the room, causing the boy to squint his eyes. When his visions finally refocused, a big welcome banquet was displayed before him surrounded by all of his friends and family.

"Surprise!" the gang said all together.

Ash and Dawn were both confused. Was this a surprise party for them or for one of them? Their jaws were slightly wide open and their bodies were frozen solid.

Balloons were decorated all over the place and confetti were littered almost everywhere. If one would look at it, they would probably say that the whole thing was a major rush job. Some of decorations weren't properly hung and the plates were barely in place. I guess they didn't expect the boy to be back in a couple of more hours.

"Hey guys…" Ash said dumbfounded by the whole thing, "What's this party all about?"

"We thought you needed a little spirit boost since you were so gloomy this morning" Richie explained, "So we decided to hold a party to dedicate our arrival at Valmarian city. Besides, we could all use a little time out once in awhile"

"It was all Brock's idea" Max added as he grab Ash's hands, "Come on, you got to see the side dish! They're awesome!" as the little young Maple toured Ash around the dining room; he came across so many materials and unfinished work that was hard to believe that all of this was just for him. He once had a whole village party for him, but this seemed to feel a lot more than that. "You guys… did all of this… just for me?"

"Well that's what friends do, right?" Brock replied with a prideful smirk on his face, "Sorry it doesn't look as good. I didn't think you'd be back so quickly. I had to ask professor Oak's friend to rent this place"

Ash flushed down embarrassed by the whole situation, "You… you didn't have to do all of this guys" he said modestly while rubbing the back of his head. But May denied that statement, "Well we had to get you to smile again" she openly stated with a smile, "Max was getting so worried about you that he almost cried" the young boy wearing glasses blushed angrily at his sister, "Hey! He didn't need to know that!"

"Oh stop being a baby Maxie" she grunted back with an irritating voice and before the gang knew it, the little siblings were having another fight all over again.

But the mere sound of their argument was more than enough to make the gang laugh again. With the mood finally lifting up from Ash's heart, the boy felt like he could do anything.

"You see Ash…" Cynthia came through the ruffled crowd and stood besides the spoken boy with a glass of water in her hand, "No matter where you go… or what you do… you will always have friends here. You should always remember that you're never alone" she gestured to all the guests that were attending the party. Some were already eating and some were already chatting with each other. "Even though you are apart… as long as you remember them here…" she pointed at his head, "… and here" she pointed at his heart, "Then, I guarantee, that you will never lost" when she meant lose… she probably meant it as metaphorically, not literally.

Ash touched the places where Cynthia had pointed out with a little hint of confusion imprinted on his face. He didn't quite understand the deeper part of the meaning of the metaphor, but he understood the basics, "I'll remember that one Cynthia… thank you" he bowed slightly at her which made the blonde champ turn a little red from shyness. "I know now that even when I'm on the battlefield… I have my friends with me… right Pikachu? (Pikachu!)"

"Hey, don't forget me!" Brock said suddenly, pointing his thumb at himself. "I've always been there for you haven't I?"

"Yeah, you too Brock" Ash flashed out another smile.

"Hey, you can also count on me too!" Richie waved his hand up high making his presence noticeable. "I haven't been around as long as the others but that doesn't mean I can't help you out"

"Don't forget us too" May grinned from behind along with her brother and Drew. "We've been with you this long, so we're going all the way in!"

"Yeah me too!" came Todd's voice. "Even though I don't know what I can do to help. Still… if you need me to do anything, just ask!" and the offer of support went on and on and on.

Ash couldn't believe it himself. Right at that moment, he almost felt like Mewtwo back in Fort Gregro Island. With all those wonderful emotions pouring in and out of his body, the boy let out a small sniffle as he lowered his cap to cover his crying eyes.

As the party progressed on… the boy swore silently to himself… that he was somehow going to return this kindness… in anyway possible.

**(Uno Café) (06:37 PM)**

The café was strangely empty this afternoon for manager of the establishment. Usually by now, Gary and his crew would be eating their usual meal. Havic would argue with Steve and Emma, and Gary would just be hanging with Jaques for another game of chess… but no… today the establishment was a ghost building. The meal that the manager personally prepared was still steaming hot, but with no one to eat them… it almost looked like a waste of calories.

"Where are they?" the manager asked the waitress who was also looking at the direction of the door. "I'm not sure sir" she replied, "But I'm sure they usually come during this time of night for dinner. I wonder if something happened" but then suddenly, the door bell rang signaling a customer had entered the café. "W… welcome!" the waitress stuttered out with a slight bow. "Welcome to the Uno Café. Can I take your…" she stopped mid-sentence when she realized that it was none other than Red, the crimson colored trainer.

The boy in red looked around for a moment to see if anyone was around, but to his luck, he had the place all to himself. "Well this is unusual" he said in his usual cheery voice. "I would've thought they'd be here by now. I guess I'll have to wait" even the manager couldn't help but get the chills from the boy. No matter how you looked at him, that fake smile could only fool an idiot who doesn't really know him. The boy was plotting something, and everyone could tell that it was something bad… really bad. "I'll take my usual…" the boy said to the manager which plopped him out of his daze. "Uh yes… right away sir"

With the manager off to get his 'usual' meal, Red took a seat on one of the tables and simply starred at the night sky. He didn't expect anyone from the gang to be here, heck he even knew where they were right about now. Havic and his friends were probably too busy patrolling the bridges that connect to the Downtown District and Gary would probably be preparing for another battle with Ash.

Knowing that no one was coming, Red decided to have a little down time for himself.

**(Time skip, the next morning) (09:00 AM) (Che'val-yere hotel) (4 Days till the Valmarian league)**

It was another perfect morning here in Valmarian city. With the sun rising high and the clouds moving in every direction, it seemed like the perfect time to go out and have a blast. And as a matter of fact… that was exactly what the gang were about to do. After the party that Brock dedicated for the team, every trainer who are part of the Valmarian league were up early and preparing for a whole day of training. But little did Ash and the others know… that their training regime will have a slight change of plans.

"Absolutely NOT!!!!" came a yelling voice from the lobby. The voice was so rough and so loud that even Paul got the shivers going down his spine. The whole gang turned their heads around and was surprised to see Scott talking with a very familiar trainer.

"Come on Brandon, think about it for a second" the Battle Frontier owner pleaded to one of his employees, "I've already said yes to the higher-ups in the Pokemon headquarters. You can't back down on me now" but the Pyramid King simply folded his arms together to give out that 'no way' look. "I'm sorry Scott, but I can't do it. I've seen what those trainers can do and I'd rather face a death trap dungeon than to go with them"

"Is something wrong Scott?" Ash asked breaking their attention. The chubby Hawaiian dressed man jerked his head around with a slight sigh, "Oh hey there Ash. It's nothing to bother really" he replied with a little waving gesture.

But then Brandon snapped back at him, "Of course it's something to bother! You're asking me to do the impossible!"

"Come on Brandon" Scott pleaded, "Just four days! Can't you hold out just for four days for me?"

It wasn't long till Anabel interrupted, "Is there a problem Brandon?"

"It's a big problem actually" the Pyramid King explained, "Scott wants me to hold a training session for the trainers who are competing in the Valmarian league, which is quite ridiculous if you asked me"

"What so ridiculous about that?" Ash titled his head slightly curious on what could possibly be wrong about training a few trainers to prepare for the worst. Brandon shot him a look, "Why don't you see for yourself?" he gestured them to follow him to a window on the second floor. He gestured them to look outside, "Look out there and tell me what you see" and when they did, all they saw were several young trainers and their Pokemons. "I only see a few trainers and their Pokemons" Ash described which was followed by several nods from the others.

"They're good trainers, I'll give you that" Brandon exclaimed, "But most of them still don't understand the principle of being a true Pokemon trainer. Therefore, I refuse to teach them"

"But isn't that the point of this training?" Brock pointed out, "I mean, you could teach them the principles during your training… right?" but Brandon just shot his an angry look which sent the chills down his throat, "Some things in life Brock… cannot be taught… It can only be experienced" the man added deepening his frown if that was even physically possible. "These kids need to learn things on their own. We cannot pamper them all the time"

"I'm not really sure what you mean Brandon" Ash notified him with a half puzzled half understood face, "But I'm guessing that you don't want to train them, am I right?" he was replied with a nod.

"Then, what if we decided to train with you?" May stated suddenly, "A little training to prepare for the Valmarian league couldn't hurt now could it?"

"Yeah! It sounds like fun!" Dawn added with a smile equal to May's. "Count me in" the two girls both raised their hands like they were kindergarteners playing in the playground.

Ash saw them and was immediately interested as well, "Yeah. So how about it Brandon? All of us here are great trainers. We can help you with your training" the other members of the gang quickly followed behind with positive attitudes to bolster Ash's statement.

"So how about it Brandon?" Scott said slyly, "With them around, I think you'll make an excellent 'trainer' for the young ones" but the Pyramid King was a persistant little runt. A vein throb could be seen bulging on his head as he tried to keep his cool.

"Absolutely not!!!" he snapped back finally, catching them off guard, "I don't care if Cynthia herself were to join the training session, I am never going to train any of them! I can bet my life on that!"

**(Ten minutes later…)**

"All right everyone… gather round…" Brandon sighed through his mouth as he assembled the trainers to the city's Northern Gate. There were about a hundred trainers that were attending the Battle Frontier Training session and surprisingly for the Pyramid King, Ash and the whole gang were part of it. Cynthia, had made a surprising appearance for all of them too, which put Brandon in a little tight rope position. As the trainers gathered together, they all turned their attention to the adventurer. "Ok…" Brandon began, "As some of you might know: My name is Brandon, also known as the Pyramid King of the Battle Frontier. The Pokemon HQ is holding this training session to help you youngsters keep up with the veterans"

Several trainers looked a little astounded to the man's identity, but Ash and the others didn't even look surprise.

When the whispering stopped, Brandon continued, "We will be having our training session at the old abandoned quarry outside this gate. We will return from there in four days time… and hopefully… you will become better trainers. When we leave this gate, no one will be allowed to enter the city again, until the training is finished. If your Pokemon is injured, there's a settlement nearby that has a Pokemon center. Is everybody clear?" a moment of silence passed by the whole crowd until one of the younger trainers raised his hand up, "Yes? What is it?"

"Um… so are we gonna sleep in town too?"

…

…

…

"No…" Brandon replied plainly, "We're going to sleep in the quarry. The caves there will provide as shelter for all of you"

"What!?"

"No way!"

Immediately the trainers began to whine and get really annoyed by the whole thing. Though Ash and the others didn't really have a problem with it, they were quite surprised on the number of complaining trainers. Brandon simply smacked his forehead and dragged it all the way down his face, grunting some words along the way.

Just when he could no longer take the whining, he immediately let out a burst! "ENOUGH!!" the whole crowd went silent, "If you cannot handle four days sleeping in the wilderness, then I suggest the rest of you leave now. I won't waste my time pampering you" again there was silence, "Good. Now let's move out"

In an instant, the northern gate opened up with a slight vibration. The weight of the gate must've been so heavy that it would make the besiegers use the statue of liberty as a battering ram to knock it down.

But before the gang left, Brock's voice came by from behind, "Hey guys, wait up!" he called their attention. "Sorry I took so long. I won't be able to go with you… so here…" he handed each and every one of them a packed up lunch box each with different colors, "This should be something that will get you through the first day. The rest you'll have to find or cook yourselves" the gang inspected their lunch boxes and were surprised to see their favorite meal all in one package. "Wow! Thanks Brock" Ash stated with a smile.

"No problem" the slanted man replied smirkfuly, "You guys better go. You don't want to get Brandon angry now"

But then suddenly Max came by to follow them, however… he did not get far when May pulled the collar on his shirt. "Sorry little bro, but this training session are for those who are competing in the Valmarian league only"

"What!?" the little boy screamed, "Aww… no fair! I want to go too"

"Sorry Max" Ash added with the apology, "We need to be in complete focus on this training so you'll just have to stay here for a few days. I'm sure Brock can keep you company"

The young boy looked at Ash for a moment before sulking his head downwards with a hint of disappointment, "Ok…" he said finally.

With no ties left, the gang packed up their gear and settled off, "Well… we're off now! See ya in four days everybody!" as the door closed on them, Brock, Tracey, Max, and Todd waved their goodbyes as the heroes of today begin their preparation for the upcoming Valmarian league.

"I hope they'll be ok" Max said worryingly. Brock noticed his sigh and immediately lightened him up, "Hey… don't worry about them. If those guys can make it to the city, then this training routine should be a snap" unfortunately, that didn't exactly make the boy feel any better at all.

**(Joke Time!!!!)**

1) Spell 'Racecar' backwards

2) Say 'FORT' twice, spell it twice, say it six more times and spell it six more times. Then answer the 3rd question

3) What do you eat soup with?

**(Abandoned Quarry)**

The training group arrived at the abandoned quarry faster than they expected. At first they were gonna travel for about six hours to get there, but to their surprise, the place was only a few miles away from the city.

The quarry itself was located right next to a river that was connected through a waterfall right on top of the mines themselves. A wild guess would say that it was used to supply the workers with water. On the other side of the quarry was a small forest patch with a narrow dirt road that cut right through it. From the looks of it, the woods were sparsely cut down to make way for the quarry's bigger equipments. If they came here during the spring, the whole place would look absolutely beautiful, but its beauty have been marred by the cold harsh winter.

"Alright everyone" Brandon announced, "We're here" as the group all turned to the quarry, they had to say it was quite hospitable for a mine. The caves that were dug at the bottom must've served as the accommodation for the workers when they changed shifts. Each hole was large enough to house at least a dozen people without fighting for much space. On the second floor, they could see dining tables and several old tankards that were used by the miners back in the days when the quarry was still in active.

"I'm assuming you all brought your own gear" the head trainer continued, "So you guys find a spot for yourselves to call home and rest up for a moment. We'll begin training in an hour so I expect you all to be in tip top shape" and with that the whole group disbursed all at once to find themselves a cozy place to live in.

As Ash and the others entered upon one of the caves, they were awed by the sight that was struck before them. The place wasn't just randomly dug to fit in, but it had been carved to the workers that home welcoming feeling. There were still several jagged corners that looked very uncomfortable to sleep on, but other than that, the place was well enough to be called a home.

"Dibs on the corner" Drew stated out as he hopped towards comfortable looking corner. Paul simply shrugged and moved on to another spot to set up his sleeping bag.

As everyone began to settle in, Ash decided to move on to the next cave seeing that this place was getting a wee bit crowded. But just when he was about to enter another cave, he found out that it had been filled up too by the other trainers. He frantically traveled from one cave to the other, but sadly, all of them seemed to have been filled up as well. Even the dining halls on the second floor were now heavily occupied.

After twenty minutes had finally passed, Ash finally found himself a nice secluded spot behind the waterfall. The cave was cold and a little more damp than the others but it was way better than sleeping out there under the snow. "Well Pikachu, looks like we'll be staying here for now (Pika?) I guess it's better than sleeping outdoors" in a minute, Ash unloaded all of his things onto the ground and gladly made himself feel like at home. The supplies he had with him were very limited thanks to his small bag, but at least his survival skills will be able to get him through the week.

All he had with him right then were a bag of fruits for his Pokemons (from his mother), a flashlight with extra batteries, a pair of flint stones to make a camp fire, a water canteen and of course, Brock's special meal. Luckily for the boy there was a table at the center of the room where he could lay out all his stuff. After getting all of his things out and setting up his sleeping bag, the boy checked the time on his Pokedex and realized he still had a good thirty minutes before Brandon comes back for their training.

He decided for a little nap, but just before he could close his eyes, a shadowy figure walked into the cave which caught his attention. "Hmm… this looks like a nice spot" to Ash's surprise, it was none other than Cynthia, the ex-champ of the Shinou region. "Cynthia?" he called out to her.

"Hmm? Oh hey there Ash" she greeted him with a warm smile, "I didn't know this place was occupied. Mind if I crash in?" she didn't really needed his permission since she already dropped her backpack onto the ground with a defining thud. "The other places are already full so we'll be staying here for a few days huh" the boy gave out a slight chuckle to give the gesture that it was alright for her to stay.

The girl didn't really bring much with her. Just some few good assortments that was necessary for her survival. Even though she was a highly recognized Pokemon trainer, she still needed to keep in touch with her outgoing self. She also had one of Brock's homemade cooking with her which would probably be eaten later today. But other than that, she had brought along some Pokechow for her Pokemons, some perfumes for those bad smelly days, some instant noodle foods and several bottles of water. Once the blonde champ put all her things out and settled her sleeping bag, Ash could instantly tell that she was a mix blend between May-Dawn-Zoey and Anabel.

May- because of her happy-go-lucky attitude

Dawn- because of her alerting sense to look good

Zoey- because of her natural talents to train Pokemons

Anabel- because of her poise and that amazing aura around her

The boy chuckled between his thoughts humerously before getting up from his sleeping bag to help the girl unpack. Cynthia could only stare back at him with a puzzled face, curious on what caused him to laugh.

By the time they finished, the entire training group assembled outside in their battle attires awaiting for Brandon's eventual return.

**(Fifteen minutes later)**

As expected, the guy was right on time. An hour just after the man left, Brandon returned with a truck and a whole company of training assistants. Once everyone was assembled outside the quarry the Pyramid King blew out his whistle to get their attention. "Alright everyone, listen up and listen well because I'm only going to explain this routine, once" the assistants quickly began bringing out several buckets of water from the truck as he explained, "Our first training session will focus on endurance. Each of you will carry a pair of buckets filled with water along with your Pokemons. You will start from here… until you reach the top of that quarry over there and back. I want all of you to do fifty laps at least. If you spill any water, my assistants here will be refilling you when you return from your lap. Any questions?" the crowd quickly gave out a sound of disbelief.

"What? No way! I'm not doing some routine exercise" said one.

"We're not here to train ourselves. We're here to train our Pokemons remember?"

"QUIET!!!" Brandon silenced them once more with his loud commanding voice. All that stress of ordering these young trainers was like holding a fieldtrip for your usual high school university. All that was missing was a guide. He then began messaging his head to relieve him of headache. "Just because a Pokemon is strong doesn't mean its master should be weak. No more questions. If it's too hard then I suggest you spend the rest of your time in the Pokemon center. Now move it!" before the gang knew it, the trainers were now huffing 'one two one two one two' over and over again.

"Well, I guess we should go too" Ash quickly summoned out all of his Pokemons and gave them one pair of buckets each. Those with no paws were given slightly smaller buckets and had theirs wrapped around their bodies with ropes. "Alright everyone, let's go!" with the boy's encouraging aura, he began leading the gang before they were even finished getting the buckets in. About an hour later, the whole group were finally prep and were on their way towards the top of the quarry.

But the first few rounds weren't exactly that amazing……… as a matter of fact, it was even worst that Brandon could've imagined. The leading trainer that was at the head of the group accidentally tripped over a rock and tumbled back down when climbing the stairs, causing those behind him to knock over like dominos. After the fifth lap things went from bad to even far worst. Just when the trainers and their Pokemons were able to get running again, one of the trainers suddenly slipped causing another human avalanche, but that wasn't the bad part. The bad part was when the mass of people came through, it blocked the path that continued the line making it impossible for the others to continue.

Brandon sighed heavily to himself as more and more accidents kept happening over and over again. If he's lucky, he might just be able to send all of them to the hospital and he'll be sent back to doing paperwork. IF HE'S LUCKY of course. But just as he was about to take a break from all this work, he noticed a certain pink Lucario starring at him just a few feet from his side. Her eyes didn't give any hint on what she felt or thought of him… they were just… there… and those eyes were starring at him. It creep him out slightly.

As time moved on, the gang once again felt like they were in one of those military boot camps back in the Hoenn regions. But thanks to those reluctant training in their previous adventures, the training course here felt like a breeze.

After the last trainer finished their lap with their Pokemons, they all dropped to the ground completely exhausted like they've just ran from Pallet town to Cerulean city back and fourth three times without stop.

Once the last of them dropped in, Brandon clicked his stopwatch and found out that it took even longer for them to complete the laps than expected. But those were probably due to the minor accidents happening along the way.

"Alright… it looks like you've all finished your warm-ups" he announced to them which left some of the trainers gawking in disbelief. If that was just a warm up than they weren't gonna stick around when the real training begins. "Let's move on to the real training"

And so the first day of training began… only three more days to go…

**(Time skip) (06:15 PM)**

The whole company dropped to the ground with their feet wobbling like they were jellies. Brandon's training routine seemed to be too much even for Ash and his gang, but it was effective nonetheless. Some of Ash's Pokemons felt like they've grown twice as strong as they were before, but that would probably just be exaggerating.

When the Pyramid King dismissed them from the field, the whole company dragged their exhausted bodies back into their caves. None of them were in the mood to have supper and heck… even Ash didn't feel like eating. All that training seemed to have drained the energy out of his body like a vacuum. Right now, he just wanted to get back into his cave and sleep.

The boy's sweat was soaking onto his clothes making him look like he jumped into the river and stayed there for two or three hours. He was tired, no question about that. His body was aching is so many places that he thought that was even impossible to ache. Every action he pulled out needed a little bit more force than usual, heck even speaking looked like an accomplishment of the day.

But just as Rosa helped him back into his temporary shelter, they were greeted by Cynthia, who didn't look like she was tired at all. "Oh hi there Ash, welcome back" she greeted as she sat on the chair that she found in the corner. She was reading a thick paperback book while eating the meal that she received from Brock. From Ash's POV she looked kind of like those professors back in those college schools back in Kanto except a lot prettier. "Wanna join me for dinner?" she gestured to the other chair which seemed to be a little worn out. Ash was going to deny it at first, but when he heard his stomach growling, he knew right away that he couldn't decline.

Though neither of them felt hungry at all, the two of them knew better that it was best to eat even though you don't feel hungry. Sometimes, the mind can lie to your body, telling you that you still have plenty of energy, but when you go into action, you suddenly feel like you haven't eaten in weeks.

Ash quickly pulled out the lunchbox Brock made for him and joined the blonde champ on the table. But before that, he quickly gave all of his Pokemons the fruit basket his mother prepared for him. Hopefully it would last them for at least a day or two, after that he'll have to go looking for food in the forest.

The meal Brock prepared for him was just as Ash wanted it. His lazy boy-stew with extra meat and veggies just the way he liked it. Before Cynthia knew it, the boy was already digging through his lunchbox faster than a pack of piranhas on a cow. The kid was practically inhaling the thing rather than taking bites to get the taste.

Seeing Ash at such a situation made her crack a chuckle which seemed louder than her normal ones. This made Ash stop digging through his meal and quickly flushed with embarrassment. He then remembered that there was someone else in this room and eating like a pig in front of her was just plain rude even for him. "S… sorry…" the boy apologized, "I guess I forgot my manners"

But Cynthia simply waved it off, "Oh don't be sorry Ash" she gestured, "You're actually the first person in a long while who actually ate like that in front of me" this made the boy felt even smaller than before. He must've been eating so loud and so fast that the blonde champ couldn't help but stare at him with amazement. Ash turned to a slight crimson red as he turned around slightly embarrassed by the whole deal.

Seeing his discomfort, Cynthia decided to start up a conversation before things get anymore complicated than they actually were. "So Ash" she began, which made the boy tore away from his embarrassing moment, "How do you feel about the Valmarian league?" Ash starred back dumbly at her question. She probably already knew the basis of his answer, but she wanted to hear it from the boy's throat anyway. "Well… I don't really know" he replied modestly, "I mean… I know there are going to be a lot of trainers to fight against, so I can't really tell what to expect"

The woman flashed out a smile, a true smile. In all her life, she seemed to have been hailed and worshiped because of her status as a Pokemon champion. Every time she meets someone they would always shout 'Oh my goodness, it's Cynthia!' or perhaps 'It's the Pokemon champion!' and usually it was followed by either a straight forward handshake or mostly that person would just faint. Heck, she couldn't even ask for direction without getting hazzled by her fans.

The only people she was ever able to cope with are mostly her friends in the Elite Four back in Shinou. But she rarely gets a chance to talk to either of them due to the fact that they were traveling all the time like her.

But now… here she was… having a nice average meal with a boy who couldn't care who or what she was. He was just being himself and wasn't a bit bothered by her presence until now.

"Good answer" Cynthia said finally before taking another spoonful of her delicious meal, "Want me to let you in on a little secret?" she moved closer to his proximity and toned down her voice, "Back when I first battled here in Valmarian city five years ago, I wanted to resign from the tournament"

"What!?" Ash yelped in disbelief, "Really? (nod) How come?"

"Well…" she rubbed her index finger on her cheek with a slight embarrassment, "You could say that I was quite nervous during my first few matches during the preliminaries. During my first and second rounds I was pushed to my limits already. My opponents kept getting stronger and stronger with each passing day. I was really scared that they might all might be stronger than me"

"Wow… those must be some tough trainers" Ash looked at her with a bit of amazement in his eyes, "So what made you NOT quit"

"Well… now that's the funny part" Cynthia replied jokingly, "You could say that: I was too afraid to quit. When I was at the Pokemon HQ to give them my letter of resignation, I kinda… turned tails and ran away ahehehe" Ash sniffled down a chuckle down his lips trying to contain his laughter. He could already picture it in his mind how it would look. A five year younger blonde champ running away from the reception desk was probably the last thing you would expect.

Cynthia got irritated with his chuckle and pouted, "It wasn't that funny you know" she turned away with a shrug.

"Sorry hehehe" Ash apologized through chuckles, "It's just that, whenever I look at you, I always thought that you were a strong, brave and intelligent person. Like someone who wouldn't do anything wrong. But hearing you do something like that is just too funny ahehehehe" he paused for a moment as he noticed the girl was still pouting like a puppy, "But anyway… I'm glad that you didn't quit" this caught the woman's attention which made her jerk her head back towards him. That was probably something she didn't expect him to say, "I'm not really sure how to say this Cynthia, but maybe that was your heart telling you what to do. (huh?) You see… Brock told me once that your mind and your heart can never think the same things. They will always disagree with each other no matter what the situation is. Your mind was telling you to quit but your heart was telling you to stay and fight on until the end. I'm glad you made the right choice" he flashed out his trademark smile which made the girl blush slightly.

"W… well uh…" for the first time in all her life, Cynthia was at a lost for words.

But then Ash decided to change the topic again, "So what book are you reading?"

"Oh this?" she tapped the book next to her lunchbox, "It's something I bought back in the city. It's called The Lost Happiny Brothers. It's not much, but it sure passes up the time"

**(Outside the cave)**

Dawn, the Shinou coordinator came out of her cave changed in her pajamas with a toothbrush in hand. Even though they were out in the wilds, she still had to consider her personal hygiene. "Man… what a day" she groaned out as she rubbed the back of her aching body. Even at such a weak state she was still able to walk a few more meters to wash up along the river. "That training routine really wore me out (Pi piplup)" even Piplup had to agree with her.

As the two of them reached the river, Dawn suddenly began to hear a feint laughter coming from behind the waterfall. She wondered who could be laughing at a time like this. With all of Brandon's training regime, she expected everyone to be asleep or dead tired pooped to even crack out a chuckle. Having curiosity take over her actions, the girl stood up on her feet and decided to follow the sound. She walked pass several caves which most of them had loud snores coming out and other strange sounds.

By the time she reached the back of the waterfall, she was surprised to see that the cave interior was lightened up brightly. She took a slight peek from the side lines to get a look on what was going on. But when she was able to get a clear view, her eyes were greeted with the sight of Ash and Cynthia and their Pokemons. And they were…… laughing.

Ash's Pokemons were playing with Cynthia's Pokemons like they were best buddies. Pikachu was riding on Garchomp's head giving out the impression that it was saying 'I'm king of the world' which was pretty funny if you asked me. Cynthia's Milotic was taking a peaceful nap on the sides along with Ash's Sceptile while the others had their fun.

The two Pokemon trainers were having a normal conversation just like any other, but for Dawn, it was probably a sight she could be behold.

As she turned to Ash, she could see that he was now relieved from all the previous stress that had been gathering up his mind. He was now more calm, cool and absolutely had no care of the world. It was like the boy didn't think of even becoming Pokemon Master at all.

This made Dawn smile to herself as she watched as the two of them continued to trade jokes around.

With the boy smiling happily again, she left the two of them alone, content with what she had done for the day.

The first day of training had begun and the Valmarian league was coming close. Who will prevail?


	54. Start Off With A Bang!

**Chapter 54: Start Off With A Bang!!!**

**(Old abandoned quarry) (07:57 AM) (3 Days till the Valmarian league)**

Ash and the gang were once again on the verge of exhaustion. They had to wake up at 05:30 this morning thanks to Brandon's super duper alarms system and before they could even adjust to the cold weather, they were already instructed to do stretches. Right after stretching the body to the limit, the trainer of trainers ordered them to swim on the river back and forth for about fifty laps with their Pokemons, which was more than enough to get them back to sleep.

Right after the training session was finished, Brandon decided to let them have something to fill their stomachs. Luckily, some of the other trainers have been able to pack more than they require. Food aplenty for some but for Ash and his companions, they had to go search it for themselves.

**(Quarry forest patch)**

But luck was not with our heroes today… for when they arrived at the forest patch, they discovered that the cruel winter have already taken all the fruits. Some of them were too spoiled to be eaten and some were just frozen up to the core.

"Looks like this one isn't good either" said May as she tried to pluck an Oran Berry from its tree. "Come on Skitty, let's go look for another one" her cat like Pokemon quickly agreed and began moving towards the next tree.

But just when she was about to move on, a sudden rustle in the bushes caught her attention. "Huh? Is someone there?" she called out but no one replied. Having curiosity take over her actions, the girl moved closer to the area. But sadly, the thickness of the forest was proving rather difficult for her eyes. "Hello? Is anyone around here?" she called out again but still to no avail.

But just as she was ruffling through the woods with her hands, a figure suddenly fell off the tree causing her to yelp with surprise. "AHH!" but as she looked closer at the figure, she was able to tell who it was, "Ash?" the boy rubbed the back of his aching head clearly recoiling himself from the pain. "Oh hey May" he greeted back along with his Pikachu, "Are you here looking for food too?" she nodded back hesitantly. "Yeah"

"Well I've got some berries from the trees" Ash quickly pulled out some berries from his pocket which caught the girl's attention right away. "Want some?" he offered which May gladly comply. But as she took a bite off the berry, she discovered that it was… frozen.

"Ah! These are frozen!"

Ash sighed, "Well of course they're frozen. It is the winter seasons after all"

"But how are you going to eat them then?"

Ash simply flashed out a smile, "Why, you heat them up of course. Once they're melted, then you can eat them"

"But won't that spoil the berry?" May pointed out which the boy had thought of already. "Not if you heat it the way I do" he explained. But before he could get to the details on how he was going to make the frozen fruit edible, another ruffle through the trees caught their attention. To their surprise, it was Cynthia, the long blonde haired champ. "Hey there you two" she greeted them as they greeted back, "You out looking for lunch too May?" the girl nodded back in reply.

"Yeah… Ash was just telling me how he's going to cook these berries without spoiling them" but the boy in question simply flustered back in reply, "Oh actually, I learned this method from Cynthia" he clarified. "You see here?" he pointed at the fruit, "When you melt the berry sideways, the water doesn't go directly into the berry but on its roots. If you do it that way, you'll be able to have it fresh"

The blonde champ smiled back, "And in return for teaching him, Ash would challenge me into another battle. Right Ash?" he gave out a nod and a few moments later they broke out a small laugh.

May gave the two of them a puzzled gaze as she could not understand what the two of them had in mind, "Huh? Hey, come to think of it. I didn't see you in any of the caves Cynthia" the battle champion turned her attention back to the girl and gave out another smile, "Oh I'm staying with Ash behind the waterfall" she then looked at her watch and noticed the time passing by faster than she thought, "Oh oh… it looks like we won't have time to cook all these. Let's head back to the quarry before Brandon shows up" the two of them quickly agreed since they wouldn't want to get on Brandon's bad side. The man made it clear that he would punish those who didn't show up on time. And if that is how he trains his students, they surely don't wanna know how he disciplines them.

**(Quarry exterior)**

The whole training party seemed to be having a nice little dining party for themselves. Even though they were only given two hours to rest and eat, it was more than enough time to cook up a meal and chow down before Brandon returned. Since Brock wasn't there to cook them their meals anymore, the gang had to rely on other food source such as berries, fruits and other delicacies that can be harvested in the nearby forest.

But on one corner, Ash, May and Cynthia were the last to have their meals.

As promised, Cynthia showed them how to cook berries without spoiling them.

"Ok you two listen up" the blonde trainer ordered. "First you have to set up the berry, like this" when the fire camp was finally set, she pulled out the lunchbox Brock gave to her and placed all the frozen berries in it. "Then you make sure that they are positioned correctly sideways. And once they're melted, the berries should still be ripe for eating"

As the woman continued to show them the ropes on how to cook it, Johanna plopped up from behind along with Dawn carrying some mushrooms and fruits they were able to get from the woods. "Hey there you three" the mother called in, "I see you guys are making your own lunch too" the two kids nodded.

"Yeah… Cynthia here is showing us how to cook berries" May explained.

"Oh…" Johanna gave her friend a sarcastic look of suspicion but remained friendly nonetheless, "Well then, mind if we join up? It would be a waste to have these fruits go bad"

"Sure"

After everyone was done with their meal and rested up for, Brandon reappeared from out of nowhere as if he was on cue. "Ok everyone, it's time for another training session" he announced which everyone groaned annoyingly, "Our next training sessions will involve---…" he stopped mid sentence when one of his assistants came up to him.

"Excuse me sir" the assistant interrupted "…but you have a call from the Pokemon headquarters. They said it's very important" Brandon nodded back and quickly turned his attention towards the training group, "Sorry for the interruption everyone. It looks like you'll to train amongst yourselves. We'll continue our training regime tomorrow" and with that, the guy jumped onto the truck and headed off to who knows where.

"Well that's odd" Ash stated, "I wonder what could've happened" but as the boy turned his attention back to the group, the whole pack literally sprung into the air with a jubilant cry of joy. They were probably happy that their torture er… I mean training was cut today.

**(With Brandon)**

As Brandon rode the truck back to Valmarian city, the assistant handed him the portable phone on the vehicles radio, "Yeah… it's me" the Pyramid King answered the call.

"Hey Brandon" came Scott's voice on the other line, "Sorry to call you during your training, but we have a bit of an emergency here down at the city"

"An emergency?" Brandon sounded a bit surprise, "What is it?"

"A class-B emergency" Scott replied flicking a pen in the air. When Brandon heard of this, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. A class-B emergency is only issued when a city wide threat is in session. "Give me the details" the trainer stated focusing all of his attention to the phone.

Scott knew that he had his undivided attention, "Last night the police caught four more trainers that were unconscious just like those we've found in the slums. They were hit with a powerful amnesia attack which caused them to forget what they've been doing for the last six hours"

"That was included in the report Chief Jenny gave, correct?"

Scott nodded back, "Yeah and from the looks of it. Our suspicions proved right. Someone is after 'The Fountain'. The higher-ups have doubled security around the Central District and some people are starting to get suspicious. I have some of my contacts in the city following up on some leads in the city, but they're having slow progress"

"So why do you need me for?" Brandon questioned looking a bit irritated about the whole situation.

"I just called you to double check on the securities back on the bridge" Scott replied holding his phone on his neck while scribbling something on a piece of paper, "It should take about a day to finish the whole thing. After that you can go back to training your students. Later" and with that he hung up the phone leaving Brandon to think of what he needed to do.

The Pyramid King slowly put down the phone and glared at the open road, "This is going to be a long… day"

**(Back with the training group) (02:00 PM)**

With no Brandon around to give them another training session, the trainers decided to have a little slack off time. With the sun up high in the sky, the place became somewhat… warmer. While some of the trainers decided to spend their free eating and sky gazing, Ash and his friends settled onto swimming in the river (again). Thanks to Ash's Houndoom and May's Blaziken, they were able to heat the whole section of the waterfall, making it more potent to the body.

With the water all warmed up, the whole gang who were participating in the Valmarian league immediately changed into their swimming attire and leaped in with a loud defining splash. Even some of the Pokemons were having a little down time themselves. But those who are weak against water mostly just hanged around the moat side.

'Fun' was probably the word of the word of the day.

With everyone enjoying themselves to the fullest, Ash decided to take a little breathing time beneath the waterfall to cool his nerves down. Even the hottest head needs a little time to chill.

"Ahh… now this is relaxing" the boy moaned joyfully as the warm water fell on his back creating some sort of massage pattern. His pal Pikachu was there next to him also moaning the same way. Their faces looked so alike that they would almost resemble each other. The two of them closed their eyes and slouched down on the rocks that gave them quite a comfortable position. But just when the two of them got into relaxation mode, a familiar voice caught the boy's ears catching him a bit off guard.

"Hey there Ash" the moment the boy opened his eyes, his sight was greeted by a certain blonde haired trainer in her one piece swimsuit. "AHH!!" Ash yelped out in surprise leaping five feet from his current position. It almost felt like his heart went up from his chest up to his throat. "Cynthia?" the girl chuckled back as Ash tried to recuperate from the shock, "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you there" but Ash didn't buy it. From the sound of her voice, it almost looked like she wanted to scare him off his pants. "I just saw you so calm that I couldn't resist tee hee hee" she then sat on the place where he jumped off a few seconds ago and slouched into that comfortable position. "Ahhh… you're right… this is relaxing"

As the woman sat there relaxed by the warm water given to her, Ash and Pikachu couldn't help but stare in awe as the ex-Pokemon champion acted almost like a ten year old. All this time, Cynthia acted like a pillar of strength that was almost impossible to topple down. The poise and grace that she usually gives out seemed to have been sapped away from her body bringing her true self into the land of the living. But Ash didn't bother to try and pry so he just joined up on the sides and relax along with her.

**(Valmarian city Pokemon center) (Arena District)**

Brendan and his newly found crew were taking a break in the Pokemon center after searching the city looking for Red. With only a few more days before the Valmarian league, they had to act fast before their enemies becomes out of reach.

Frank and his sister Griselda were sitting on the couch along with Rika who was working on some with her laptop. Brendan was still on the phone talking with his superiors and from the sound coming out of the other line, they could already tell that the bosses were not in a good mood. "Yes sir…" Brendan replied with a sigh, "Yes sir, I'll do that… good bye" with a simple click on the phone, his three companions stiffened slightly when he approached them.

"What did they say?" Rika asked, tilting her glasses sideways.

Brendan sighed again but this time, it was lighter, "Their suspicions proved to be correct after all" he began, "Red is after the Valmarian trophy, but they don't have the evidence to prove it. They want us to find out how many trainers he has with him and how they're going to pull it off.

"But how are we gonna do that?" Frank jerked up pulling his arms in the air, "We barely have any leads, and for all we know, he might have ears listening on us now. That guy isn't gonna make this easy chief"

"Which is why I got you all one of these" the while haired trainer quickly pulled out several envelops from his pocket and handed them all one. "These are invitations to the Valmarian league next week. From there we can blend in with the group and find out more information about him. There's also no doubt that Red would be there as well"

"That also came to my attention" Rika interrupted holding her laptop, "I've done a little research on Red's connections and it seems like everything he's been doing so far are within the rule book. His invitation checks out and the rest of his IDs are solid facts. Whatever he's hiding, he's not making it easy for us to follow"

"Which is another reason why I'm putting the rest of you in this mission" the 'chief' answered, "Once we're all in, we find out as much as we can about him and those close to him. I want to know where he sleeps, what he eats and whoever he talks with. Leave nothing out… understood?"

"Yes…" the three of them replied in unison.

"Good… now go and get yourselves registered. The Central District should still be open right now. Once you are done, I'll contact you again. Dismiss" and with that last word, all three of them departed, leaving the boy to reflect upon his actions.

**(Back at the quarry) (04:50 PM)**

The gang were having a terrific time in the river today. With their trainer out for the day they felt like doing things they don't normally do often. May and Dawn were splashing water against each other with their Pokemons. Drew, Kenny, Richie and Duplica were talking about several forms of strategies along the river shores. Johanna, Zoey and Anabel were chatting on some random topics while Paul quietly sat on a corner, watching their every move. Even people like Paul can change, but he cannot change his own habit of being a loner.

But just when they were in the middle of their fun, May began to notice that a certain raven haired boy was not with them, sharing their good time. "Hey… where did Ash go?" even Dawn seemed to have noticed it too. "Dunno… he was here a minute ago. I wonder where he went"

Johanna noticed their conversation and decided to help them out, "Are you two looking for Ash? (nod) I think I saw him go at the banks of the waterfall with his Pikachu. Please tell him not to play too far ok" the two girls sweat drop as they couldn't believe that Dawn's mother would actually take Ash as a child. The boy has faced death straight in the eye and lived to tell the tale so many times that the grim reaper would put him on the first to kill list. If he can survive death over and over again then playing outside would barely be a challenge for him.

"Wanna go find him?" May asked Dawn to which she gladly replied with a nod.

As the two of them traversed through the waters, true to the mother's words, he was right where she said he'd be. Ash was sitting at the base of the waterfall relaxing peacefully like he had no troubles at all just as they expected. But what they didn't expect was the blonde champion Cynthia to be right beside him. The two of them, along with Pikachu seemed to be enjoying the serenity given to them by nature. They tried to resist the urge of scaring the heck out of the boy, but seeing him so calm and cool made them think otherwise. They quickly hid themselves behind the waterfall and prepared to shout out real loud to wake the two of them up, but just before they inhaled in their breath, Dawn stopped them to eaves drop on the conversation they were having.

"This is relaxing… isn't it?" Cynthia stated, shifting her body a little to expose the aching parts of her body to the water. "Yeah…" Ash replied with a slight moan at the end.

After a short moment of silence, the blonde champ began again, "Hey Ash…… I heard from professor Rowan that you were able to catch an Entei back in Oldale town back in the Hoenn region"

"An Entei?" Ash recalled for a moment and quickly remembered, "Oh yeah. Although I didn't see it back in the hotel along with my other friends. I wonder if professor Oak released it instead"

"Well... it doesn't really matter if you kept it or released it" Cynthia replied with a smile, "The important thing is that you saw it. I've never seen an Entei in real life before"

Ash shifted away from the waters for a moment when he turned to her, "Oh yeah… that reminds me. Didn't you wanted to see Dialga and Palkia before?" the girl simply flashed out a slight smile off her lips as her eyes remained closed. Ash could feel the immense emotion pulsating from her body as she slouched back on the rock she was sitting on. He could not tell why, but he could feel that Cynthia could feel.

"That's right…" she said finally, "I've spent six years looking for those two, but never had any luck of finding them. I joined up with several archaeological digs back in the Shinou region, just to hope to get a glimpse of them…… but so far… all I've been able to find were evidences of it" she then turned to the boy with eyes gleaming of hope, "But from what I've heard. You and Dawn saw them in Alamos town… right?" Ash looked surprise from her unusual expression before nodding back dumbly. "Tell me… how did they look like?" she asked while at the same time closing her proximity with his face, "Were they exactly like the stories told? Did they look majestic and beautiful just like they said in the books? Please… tell me honestly!" her face was so close to the boy that Ash could feel her breath on his nose.

Ash thought back for a moment, thinking of the time he spent back in Alamos town for Dawn to compete in that contest. It was supposed to be a regular contest until Dialga and Palkia stormed through the city creating panic and chaos.

A few seconds later, Cynthia began to notice the boy's discomfort, "Sorry…" she returned to her normal position, "I guess I'm asking a lot from you to remember what happened a long time ago. It's ok if you don't want to tell me. I just… I just…… it's just that I've been dreaming to see them for so long that I'm sort of… desperate" Ash looked back at her and began to notice the blonde champion's feelings. The sight of her eyes was enough to tell anyone that this girl has dedicated her life into finding these legendary Pokemons.

She had spend six years of her life just to get one look at these Pokemons, but here… stood the boy who barely even had to lift a finger to see them. So you could say that she felt kind of envious of the boy.

"Umm… uhh…" but just before Ash could even conjure up a reply, two figures suddenly jumped out from the waterfall, tackling him down into the water. "WAHHH!!"

"Surprise! Got ya!" May smiled as she moved out of the way.

Once Ash was able to get up, he spitted out probably a whole gallon of water out of his mouth like a water faucet. This was the second time he was scared till he nearly wet his pants. After shaking some of the water off him, he turned to the two new surprisers as they laughed at him. "Sorry Ash" Dawn apologized, "We didn't mean to scare you" ha! As if anyone was going to believe that excuse.

Just then, Johanna appeared from the sidelines, waving at the pack, "Hey everyone, the water is getting cold again. You'd better get out soon or you'll catch a cold"

Quickly, Ash and the other two girls walked out from the waterfall and joined the young mother for a little snack. But then Ash noticed that Cynthia wasn't budging an inch, "Are you coming Cynthia?"

"Nah… you go on ahead" she replied with a slight smile, "I'll catch up with you two later"

Ash nodded and quickly followed the others.

**(Residential Area 1)**

Red, the mysterious trainer from Kanto was making his way through the Residential District with that annoying smile imprinted on his face. Right now he was keeping a low profile due to the gang war currently happening all around the city. During the day, its all squeaky clean, but when the sun goes down, that's when things starts to get ugly. Gang thugs would pour out from their hiding places quickly trespassing to the other territories to find some of their rivaling opponents to battle with. Usually this would result to minor chaos and small property damage, but when one the big role figure hits the scene then people would start evacuating the area.

No one dared move around the bridges that connected the districts at night, for those are the places where gang wars were abundant.

"I'll have one small burger please" said Red as he approached one of the fast food stands in the district. Luckily for him, none of the gang members were around or he'd be filled as one of those who should be thrown out list. Just as the clerk handed him his order, the boy's cellphone suddenly began to ring. "Hello?" he answered cheerfully.

"It's me…" said the person on the other line which could easily be identified as a female.

Red's face did not change expression, "Oh hi there. I was wondering when you'd call" his cheerful expression and laughable face was enough to fool anyone who cannot tell the difference between acting and real life expression. "So what news do you have for me?"

"Before that, I just wanted to tell you that you're playing a very dangerous game, Red"

"Tell me something I don't know hehehehe" the boy smiled as he continued walking.

"I just confirmation that the Pokemon HQ has been alerted by your presence. By tomorrow, they'll have ears and eyes going around you 24/7. Do you still think we can pull this off?"

Red chuckled to the girl's words, "Now now… don't be scared my friend"

"You might as well BE scared Red" the girl cut him off his sentence, "Just by staying with Gary's gang already puts you on their suspect list" this news only made the boy sigh, dropping his act when no one was around, "This is troubling news indeed. I thought staying with Gary's crew might give me an edge over them. I guess I was wrong"

"So what are you going to do now?"

Red looked up to the clouds and thought for a moment in silence. "Hmm…"

"Red?"

He smirked behind his lips as he put the phone closer to his mouth, "I think it's time……… I found myself a new friend"

**(Time skip) (06:00 PM)**

As the gang finally dried themselves up from swimming at the river, Johanna decided to cook up some leftovers from Brock's meal. Knowing of Ash's unending appetite, she had to cook a lot more than for just ten people…… a lot more that's for sure.

But as she cooked up her meal, she turned around and noticed Ash and his friends chattering about their daily lives. It was nice to have a peaceful day like this with nothing unusual happening. After spending a few days with the gang, she could already see why her daughter has been such a hyper little rascal. After spending a week with this group, she practically had more excitement than she had back when she was first traveling back in the Shinou region.

"Children, dinner will be ready in ten minutes" she called out to them to which they gave out positive replies. "Teeheehee… those kids are sure full of energy. Oh it makes me want to wish I was ten years younger"

Cynthia simply smiled back at her questioningly, "Really? I feel good just being myself. Besides, I wouldn't want to be called 'tiny' again"

But then Johanna began wiggling her body disturbingly with a pinkish blush on her cheek, "Oh but think about it Cynthia. What I wouldn't give to be young again. My… if I was ten years younger, I might actually fall for Ash as well" this made the blonde champ spit whatever was in her mouth uncontrollably like she just ate something disgusting. "Oh, what's wrong Cynthia?"

"N… nothing…" the battle champion replied wiping the drool off her lips, "You… you just surprised me that's all" Johanna simply tilted her head slightly curious on what could've caught her best friend off guard like that.

As the two adults continued to watch the kids play with a beach ball, the shriek of lightning sparked at the distance, catching the attention of the gang. When the beach ball fell to a halt, Richie picked up Sparky from the ground and starred at the darker clouds looming over the horizon. "It looks like a storm is coming" Richie stated obviously with a little nerve at his back.

"Yeah…" Ash agreed as he put his Pokemons back into their Pokeballs. When Johanna saw the clouds, she knew right away that the place wasn't gonna be a playground for any of them. "Alright kids, pack it up and get dressed. Get everything inside before the storm comes. We wouldn't want all our stuff to get wet now would we?" the gang agreed to her and began packing up their supplies back into the cave. Even the other trainers that were part of the training group seemed to have agreed to the mother's statement.

And just as quickly as everyone were back in their respective caves, the rain clouds stood right on top of them as if it was right on cue. (Note that the gang genders sleep in different caves not the same ones)

The rain poured down so hard and so fast that Ash was glad he was able to get a warm bath before the clouds came over. But then it was kind of sad since he wasn't able to get any of Johanna's cooking. Right now… he wanted something to fill his stomach, but all he got left were Pokemon food and some fruits that barely even fill a portion of his undying appetite. His stomach growled and his mouth drooled almost like they were in synch with each other. Rosa tried to help by sharing a portion of her fruits with her, but even that was not enough.

As his Pokedex time management struck 06:45 PM, the boy began to see that the sun was slowly vanishing from sight. Taking note of the coming darkness, he quickly lit up a candlestick from Cynthia's pack and placed it on the table where it was most efficient and effective. "There we go. That should give us enough light for tonight" and just right on cue, Cynthia arrived with two plates on her hands. "Hey there Ash" she greeted politely like a wife returning home from work, "Johanna said that you would be hungry so she had me brought you this" with one whiff of the gourmet, Ash's drool became more obvious which made the blonde champ chuckle with delight. The boy can be a real clown at times and to make her laugh was probably something worth celebrating.

When the plates were set on the table, Ash and Cynthia quickly took out their Pokemons so they could have a chow down as well. With all the Pokemons happily eating, the two humans took their respective seats near the table and began chowing down as well. Johanna's cooking was almost like Brock, but hers has more of a mother's touch rather than a father's touch. The creamy sauce was breath taking and the meat just literally melts into your mouth. The odor was so fantastic that it would make you almost feel like you weren't getting enough oxygen. (Man, I'm even making myself hungry!)

And before Ash was finished analyzing every aspect of the dish, he realized that he had already emptied his plate. "Eh!? W… what happened to my food?"

"You were eating it when you were thinking" Cynthia gave out a chuckle before taking another bite off her plate. But then suddenly, Ash's stomach sounded off again, filling up the silent tension in the area. After another moment of silence, Cynthia began to sniffle out a laugh while Ash turned bright red like tomato. The boy felt like he was probably the most embarrassed person in the entire world right at that moment. When the blonde champ could hold it no longer, she cracked out nearly as loud as Pikachu followed by the rest of the Pokemons in the cave (except for Rosa) This only made Ash shrink down to the size of an ameba (very very small)

After a whole three minutes passed by, Cynthia stopped her laugh and placed her cooking utensils down, "Here Ash…" she gestured to her plate, "If you're still hungry, you can have some of mine"

"Really?" Ash plopped back to his original size as he turned to his roommate, "Thanks Cynthia!" any thought of denying that offer was completely rejected from the boy's mind. Without a second thought, Ash began picking through the smaller pieces of Cynthia's plate and placed it on his. As he munched through the food, he began to chew them slower now so that he could get the full effectiveness of the taste. He simply closed his eyes and allowed his brain to process all the info.

As the boy gradually drained the meat into his taste buds, Cynthia took a good look at Ash's face, getting all the details into his head. She had to admit that he looked kinda cute even without his Pikachu on his shoulder. His face still retained some of those baby fats meaning that he was still a child, but his skills in Pokemon training and battle proved to differ. In truth, the boy seemed to have surpassed even her at such a young age. It seemed like the time of the new generation was fast approaching.

"Emm hmm… delicious" Ash said finally, opening his eyes only to noticed that the blonde champ seemed to have locked a stare on him. There was a small smile on her lips and a bit of sparkle coming out of her eyes, twinkling like stars. He looked at her confused on how to start up a conversation. But then a topic came to his head. "Oh yeah… sorry Cynthia…" the woman was caught completely off guard with that apology. She didn't even know what he was apologizing for. "About what Ash?" she questioned.

"We weren't able to have that rematch you wanted ahehehehe" Ash rubbed the back of his head shyly with a fake laugh.

When the blonde champ realized what he was apologizing for she returned another smile, "Oh that's ok Ash. We can have another battle tomorrow then..."

"If Brandon gives us a chance that is…" the two of them broke out a small laugh which was quite entertaining for the time. For the first time in her life, Cynthia felt at ease at the boy's presence. Whenever she was with someone, she would always have to put up a small tough girl act. But with Ash, she felt like she could just drop her mask and be who she truly was. Her shoulders lowered themselves as if they were exhausted. Her legs were loosened, after being stiff for so long and her bodily pressure seemed to have dropped considerably. For the first time in a long while, Cynthia had dropped her guard, feeling like she was protected by an invisible shield that emanated from Ash's aura. His very presence in this cave felt like there was an army of knights shielding her from all kinds of dangers.

They talked over and over again, changing from one topic to another, from battle strategies to everyday living. It was as if they were living together and that cave of theirs was their home. From seconds turned to minutes and from minutes turned to hours. But with all the laugh and talking going around, Ash's stomach suddenly began growling again, making the boy rub his belly with fake agony, "Ohh… I'm still hungry" he groaned.

Cynthia would've laughed again if she could, but right at that moment, she decided to reward Ash for his time. "Here Ash…" she handed him, her plate, and switched it with the empty one. "You can have the rest of mine. I'm not really that hungry anyway" but just the moment she got up from her seat, Ash noticed that her black leather jacket was dripping wet from the rain. "Hey… your jacket is wet" he notified her with his hand.

Cynthia quickly took note of her cold jacket and hastily took it off, "Oh dear… it must've gotten caught up with the rain. It was really pouring out there" but then suddenly her eyes widened when she felt Ash put his jacket onto her shoulders. She jerked her head around only to see the boy flash out his trademark smile, "We wouldn't want to have one of the world's most powerful Pokemon trainer get a cold now would we?" he said with a wide grin. As the girl looked back at him, she began to feel her cheeks suddenly burning as if someone placed heat tabs on them.

Without her jacket, Cynthia had revealed her inner clothing. Her inner shirt was sleeveless, exposing her pale white arms and her black leather wristbands to the world. She had a silver watch on her left arm which told the exact time of the Shinou region and a small jeweled necklace on her neck (duh)

When Ash returned to the table to finish his meal, Cynthia could feel the warmth coming out from the boy's jacket. His scent was imprinted on the inner part of the cotton giving the impression that he must've worn this for a very long time. There were several stitch marks on the outer part, giving the idea that it also must've seen a lot of action as well. By looking and touching the soft fabric itself, the blonde battle trainer could already tell what the boy had been through his life.

The slightly stained part deep beneath every string tells that the boy was a sloppy eater and garble down food at his own pace at times when he's really hungry. The blackened areas that were re-colored tells of dangerous situations that the boy had been through. This could usually be caused by an electric or fire type attack. And of course, the sewn parts seemed to tell that he's been attacked more than once in his life. The boy must've lived through a lot, heck she was even wondering how many dangerous situations he got himself into.

As she tightened her grip around the jacket, Cynthia could feel like the boy was right next to her, embracing her with his two strong arms. When she felt that, she began to believe that she was a princess trapped in a giant castle and Ash was the dragon that protected her from all harms. She truly didn't want this feeling to end. It felt so warm that the winter rain outside was completely forgotten. She could really get used to this kind of treatment.

But just when she was about to say something to thank Ash, someone barged into their cave like some wild animal.

Johanna and the rest of the gang suddenly plopped into the room, scaring the heck out of everyone, even the Pokemons. "Hey there Ash!" Johanna greeted, "I thought you might still be hungry so Dawn and I made you some more curry!" when they barged in, it was as if the street carnival had landed into the cave, creating all sorts of noise. Ash would've been angry when they barged in like that, but the rice curry persuaded him to reconsider. With one whiff of the platter, Ash's stomach began to growl more and more, causing him to blush even brighter.

"Don't you people know how to knock!?" Cynthia burst out suddenly, which frightened the group a little bit. Never before had she yelled before during their trip unless of course it was sending out an order to one of her Pokemons. Not even Johanna was able to comprehend as well.

The reason why the blonde champ was angry was because her guard was down. She never expected them to come in here and so she couldn't possibly expect to welcome them with open arms. As she looked back at their stares, she felt so… so… vulnerable. Her usual barrier was not there to protect her and even then… she almost felt like a helpless kitty that was lost in the city.

"Is… something wrong Cynthia?" Johanna asked with a slightly puzzled face. The blonde champ had to think of an excuse fast or risk embarrassing herself even more. She then turn a pouting face as she looked away, "S… someone could be changing! (yeah, good one) Next time, knock on the rock before you enter" the gang let out a soft chuckle to release the tension of the moment. But for Ash, he was now more focused on the bowl Dawn was carrying.

When the gang finally settled in, Cynthia decided to put her old wet jacket back on as she sighed heavily upon herself. She could not tell why she was feeling this way, but with everyone here in one cave, the oxygen in the air seemed to have thickened slightly. With Ash being occupied by the others, the blonde champ simply took her book and sat on one of the corner to try and get some peace on her own.

**(The next morning) (2 Days before the Valmarian league)**

When the next morning sun kissed the face of the quarry, the whole gang awoke from their slumber to begin their next training regime. To their depressive sighs, Brandon was there and it looked like he brought in more equipment than usual. The whole training group awoke all together at the sound of the Pyramid King's whistle at exactly 07:00 AM. Considering how early it was and how late the gang slept last night, everyone could tell that Ash and his friends were not in their peek right now.

"Alright troops listen up!" Brandon yelled out, snatching their attention, "Today you and your Pokemons will be carrying these weights from here to that mountain over there!" he pointed towards a small hill about six or seven kilometers from the quarry, "Once you get there, one of my assistants will explain the next exercise. You all have three hours to get there. Now go!" and with commanding voice, the group quickly called out their Pokemons and attached weights onto their bodies. Ash was the first to get up in front followed by three other trainers then the rest followed up.

When the pack was finally able to get up and running, the gang didn't seem like they have the strength to move on. Thanks to Johanna's hangover party, they all didn't have enough time to get some shut eye. Ash and the others had bangs under their eyes and their feet were wobbling… but that wasn't going to stop them. They kept on running even when their minds were telling them to shut down.

But as Ash ran in front of everyone else (thanks to his incredible stamina) Johanna seemed to have caught a wind off herself, "This brings back old memories from when I first started on my journey" she smiled happily which was quite disturbing for the others since they were all pretty much beat up. "This is almost just like the time when I had to carry a wounded Pokemon on my back all across the mountain to get to a Pokemon center"

But this only caused Dawn to sulk her face down in shame. To have her mother reminisce about the old times of her journey in front of everyone was quite embarrassing to say the least. She had to hide her face from the gang as they chuckled behind her back, heck even Zoey was sniffling a giggle.

**(Behind the bushes)**

Team Rocket, the most annoying pest this world has ever known was hiding behind the bushes with binoculars and a pair of walkie talkies. From the looks of their uniform, they appear to be having one of those stealthy camouflage moments. "Look there" said James, "It's that twerp and the other twerps"

"And it looks like there are some non-twerps in the pack" said Meowth as he referred to Cynthia and Johanna.

"If you stick with the twerps long enough, you might actually get a chance to see a celebrity or two along the way" Jessie added with a slight smirk, "But who cares about that!? Let's nab that Pikachu while they still have their hands tied!" the three quickly agreed and quickly entered their new mechanized robot, the TR Wobunator! And with the gang still carrying their weights, they were bound to be caught off guard that's for sure.

"Hey Jessie" James perked up, "I have a question. Since that twerp has been destroying our robots over and over again, what makes you think that this robot will make any difference?"

"Oh don't worry James, this robot will work just fine… hehehehehehe. With my designs, this baby will teach those twerps not to mess with Team Rocket ever again… ahohohohoho"

**(Jessie's imagination run)**

Team Rocket was standing on top of a jagged rock in the middle of a battlefield with their machine standing right behind them. As they looked down, Ash and the rest of his companions bowed their heads in defeat. They had been battling for so long that they knew that defeat was soon to come.

"Oh great Jessie" Ah began, "I should've known that not even every trainer in the world can match against you and your robots. For this, we surrender. Please accept my Pikachu… because I am not worthy…"

In an instant, the trios began laughing in a very villain like manner, cheering for their victory.

**(Back to reality)**

Also in real life the trios were still laughing like they were in Jessie's dream.

**(Back with the gang)**

As half the gang finally caught up to Ash, they slowed down their pace slightly as they now climbed up the steep slopes of the hill. Ash was still up front along with his Pikachu and his other Pokemons (Sceptile, Lucario [Rosa, Corphis, Staravia and Houndoom) but as they went up higher and higher, their speed seemed to have gone down hill.

"Man… I wonder how much further, till we get there" Ash questioned to which they all agreed. After traveling for almost an hour, the whole troupe felt like they could collapse at any minute. Heck, even some of weaker trainers seemed to have dropped to the ground half way there. "Come on guys, let's keep moving!" he encouraged his friends to push forward even though all hope of getting there seemed rather bleak. "If Brandon can do it then so can I! (Pikachu!)" with his awe inspiring determination to be the best of the best, Cynthia let out a smile as she pushed herself beyond her limits to get up to the top.

"Come on everyone!" the blonde champ passed down her encouragement, "We don't want to get left behind now would we?" with a move that would surprise even the gods themselves, Cynthia quickly removed her long jacket and tied the long sleeves around her waist, giving her that bad-boy-adventurous look. And for one last touch, she even tied her hair with a blue ribbon to make a ponytail that goes a few inches below her neck. If she was still back in college, I wouldn't be surprised if someone confessed to her once a week. She would probably look like the most popular girl you would find in school. With her new appearance, her slim like curves were more visible and her eyes sparkled like they were just rekindled by a torch light.

When some of the boys in the training group saw her, their faces started to blush up like they were on fire. But when Johanna saw her old childhood best friend dress up like that she knew right away that something was up. The only time Cynthia was ever that excited was when she was on one of her proud adventures and the last time she had one of those was probably three years ago. But not wanting to pressure her, Johanna simply took a mental note to ask her about it later. To see the blonde battle champion so invigorated was like feeling that she was back during her early days of adventuring.

Once the training group finally arrived at the hill, they immediately drop their weights onto the ground and land their rears onto the floor like pack of cattles that had been hoarded into this place for some reason. True to Brandon's words, one of his assistants was there with a stop watch on his hand. "Alright… that seems like everybody" he stated as he stared at the weakened group that approached him, "You may all take a break here. Whoever is ready to take the next exercise can come to me at any time" as usual, Ash was the first one to get up. He wanted to get to the next challenge that Brandon had to offer him.

"I'm ready!" he stated with a proud smile.

The assistant nodded, "Very well..." he then handed Ash a set of grappling hooks and a belted vest that was attached to a long stretch of rope. "Your next challenge will be to cross this ravine…" the moment Ash looked at the other side of the hill, a wide chasm seemed to have opened up to him giving that chilly feeling down the hair on his skin. He took a large gulp of his breath down his throat as the tasked seemed to be more dangerous than your usual normal everyday exercise. "You may take with you your Pokemons. But please be very careful" the assistant warned.

"Alright…" the boy tightened the grip on the crystal shard on his chest as he prepared for the challenge. "We came this far now, there's no way I'm turning back (Pika pika pikachu) Your with me Pikachu. Everyone return" with all of his regular Pokemons back in their Pokeballs, he turned to his Guardian, "Rosa, do you mind waiting for me on the other side? I promise I'll be there before dinner" Rosa nodded back quietly and with her great agility, she was able to cross the chasm with relative ease.

But just before Ash suited up, another figure came up from behind taking another vest as well. To his surprise, it was none other than Cynthia, his roommate (or cave-mate or whatever) "I'm ready too…" she said with a great deal of determination coming out of her voice. The assistant nodded and handed her one set of grappling hooks.

As the two of them got into positions above the chasm, they turned to the gang who looked like they still needed some time to rest. "I'll see you guys on the other side then!" Ash gave out a thumbs up to them as a morale booster. "You ready Cynthia?" the girl nodded back with a wide smile, "Alright then… here we go!" with one good leap, the two of them jumped down and slid their way down the ravine leaving behind a tired and exhausted group.

But Johanna seems to suspect something. Oh yes… you can't hide anything from a mother's eye that is for sure. "Something… is… up…"

**(Back in the chasm)**

As Ash slid down the chasm with Cynthia, the boy decided that it was too dangerous for Pikachu to go with him the normal way so he tucked the little mouse into his jacket where it could snuggle perfectly through the warmth of the boy's body. Hopefully he will stay that way and not electrocute him when he's jumping.

After taking the first few leaps, Ash suddenly began to feel a bit more… assured, "Hey… this isn't as scary as it looks" he let out a small smile which reassured Pikachu greatly, "This is actually kind of fun"

Cynthia agreed, "Yeah… this isn't exactly my first mountain climbing experience either" she began, "Back when I first began my journey, I had to climb over so many mountains and hills that I grew a habit of climbing high places. How about you Ash? Is this your first time climbing up and down a chasm?"

The boy shook his head, "Not really. I climbed a lot of places back in the Orange Islands. I guess I haven't really done this in awhile so it's still kinda new for me"

The blonde champ then grew out a grin, "Well then…… wanna have a race?" before the boy could even let out a reply, the woman had already gone down way ahead of him, "Last one there is a Slowbro hahahaha!"

"Hey no fair, you started off first!" Ash laughed back, quickly fastening his pace to follow the girl to the bottom of the chasm.

When the two of them finally arrived at the bottom, they let out a hearty laugh all together while unfastening their ropes. The place below the chasm was amazing! A small shallow river was flowing through the ravine, creating some sort of like a snake pattern or something. At first, Ash and Cynthia thought the place to be empty, but heck this place was more than they could expect. Not only was it beautiful, but it was also very warm. The snow that were able to drift into this area seemed to have evaporated before they could even touch the ground of this magnificent place.

As the two of them looked around some more, Cynthia turned to her partner and smiled, "There's still plenty of time before the others get here. Wanna have lunch before we climb back up the other side?" the boy obviously agreed as he was not one to reject an offer of food. Thanks to Johanna, he was able to save a plate full of that delicious curry she made and stuffed into the lunchbox Brock gave to him before they left for this training regime.

As they unload their supplies the two of them began chowing down on their food, "Let's eat! (ittedakimasu!)" they said together.

**(Che-val'yere hotel)**

Professor Oak was having a cup of afternoon tea alone at the hotel lobby after cross examining some documents from professor Birch's research. The man was clearly obsessed with the P-wave signatures that appeared about a few months ago. But after weeks of listening and waiting, there had been so signs of that psychic energy anywhere.

"Here's your order sir" said the waiter as he placed a small sandwich on the table. "If you need anything else, just give any of us a call"

But just before the professor could take a bite off that delicious treat, a voice crept up behind him, nearly catching him off balance, "It's good to see you again Samuel" Jerking his head back, his eyes came into sight of an equally old man wearing the same lab coat he was wearing. "Professor Rowan?"

"The one and the same" Rowan smirked back along with his assistants. Professor Oak quickly stood up and was more than glad to shake his hand, "I knew that you always like to have your afternoon tea in cool places so I thought of looking for you here first"

"Hehehehhe…… I guess old habits are hard to go away huh"

Rowan nodded, "It sure it Samuel. Oh and before I forget… here…" he handed professor Oak a Pokeball with an odd mark on the top.

"What's this?"

"That's the Entei you sent me a few days ago" Rowan explained, "I thought I'd give it back before Ash returns. I heard he and Dawn and the others went with a training group some time ago"

"That's correct" Samuel reconfirmed it, "He's trying to become stronger than he is now. Though it's hard to believe how much stronger he can actually become. Why don't you have a seat? I'm sure you must be really tired after your trip to Valmarian city"

"I'd love to" Rowan then quickly turned to his assistants, "The rest of you take the day off. We'll meet at the Pokemon HQ tomorrow morning"

"Yes professor" the three assistants said in unison before walking towards the registration desk.

As the two renowned scientists sat together on the couch, the waiter returned to take on a few more orders. "So I hear that this year's tournament is going to be a big one" Rowan began, "I heard that Kanto is sending their best and brightest trainers to win the cup for their region"

Samuel nodded back, "Emm hmm… with everything that's been happening, I'm not surprised that there are a lot more trainers than last time. I even hear Hoenn and Johto and bringing out their most powerful trainers. Even the Elite Fours are competing"

"Well that goes without saying now doesn't it?" the two of them let out another laugh. "Anyway Samuel, I've been meaning to ask you something" professor Oak quickly put down his tea cup and focused his attention back onto the white haired man, (Rowan has white hair while Samuel has gray hair) "Have you seen Ash's Lucario lately?"

"You mean the one he calls Rosa?"

The old Shinou scientist nodded back, "Yes, I've been keeping a little eye on that one and it seems to be very powerful indeed. I was wondering if Ash could spare her for me to do some analysis, but I guess Entei will have to do. I have never before seen a Lucario with such magnificent colors. I hear, even professor Ivy have even taken a small interest in that little one. But enough about Ash. What about you Samuel? What have you been doing lately?"

"Oh just the usual" professor Oak began, "Birch keeps nagging about that P-wave detector of his and is currently trying to keep things in order in his lab. But now he's currently taking a slight vacation here in Valmarian city. I just hope he gets some rest"

**(Back at the chasm)**

Right after Ash and Cynthia were done eating, they quickly packed up and prepared to climb up the other side. "Alright, I'm ready!" said the boy from a well earned rest. "Come on, the last one up there makes dinner!"

"Ha you're on!" the blonde champ agreed. But just when they were about to clip onto the top, a sudden rumble occurred at the mouth of the ravine causing the two of them to stop and look. "Hmm?" Ash tilted his head as he focused his eyes on the far off distance. From the looks of it, a large figure was approaching them at an incredible speed and it looked like a…… Wobbuffet?

"Is that a Wobbuffet?" Cynthia asked pointing at the Pokemon that was coming their way. As it came closer and closer and closer towards them, the two trainers could identify that the Pokemon was actually a giant tank shaped like a Wobbuffet.

"It's a… robot?" Ash said confused. But after a moment, a thought hit him. Who else would actually build a robot Pokemon? "Oh… no… not them again…"

"Prepare for trouble you poor little child…"

"And make it double cuz we're gonna get wild…"

"To protect the world from devastation…"

"To unite all people within our nation…

"To denounce the evil from truth and love…"

"To extend our reach to the stars above…"

"Jessie"

"Jamaahh!!!?" just when they were about to finish, the tank seemed to have gotten into a pothole, creating a slight bump, ruining their whole motto. "Meowth! Watch where you're driving, we were almost finished with our motto!"

"You try piloting a machine with three controllers!" the cat shot back.

"Team Rocket!" Ash shouted, "Not you guys again! Why can't you ever leave me alone!?"

"It's called 'persistence' twerp" Jessie replied with a proud smirk, "Something that you should know very clearly. With your attitude, I'm not surprised that you haven't given up yet. But anyway… back to business. Give us that Pikachu and the rest of your Pokemons and no one gets hurt!"

"Dream on! Pikachu, give them a taste of your thunder bolt attack! (Pikachu!!!!)" the little mouse quickly unleashed an array of electricity but upon impact, it seemed to made very little effect. "What the?"

"Ahohohohohoho. Nice try twerp" James countered, "But this machine is made of pure titanium steel. There's not a force on earth that can take this baby down"

But then Cynthia came in, "We'll just see about that! Garchomp, to my side!" the dragon like Pokemon appeared out of its Pokeball, prepared to fight to the finish. "Now Garchomp use Brick Break!" the wings of the Dragon quickly shone out as it slammed against the machine, sending it a few meters back but with not much damage. "Ash, it looks like if we can concentrate on hitting it at one spot, we can break through its armor!" the boy nodded and quickly called out Burno to aid him. "Aim for that same spot it struck and we can take it down!"

"Right! Burno, use fireblast on that crack!" the Houndoom quickly released a blazing inferno out of its mouth. Upon impact, the cracked part of the machine began to heat up, creating some sort of steam.

"We have to do something!" Jessie shouted to her companions, "Mewoth, doesn't this thing have any weapons!?"

"Already on it!" with a press of a button, the Wobbunator suddenly opened out its hatches, revealing many missiles and rockets. "Have a taste of this one twerp! It's time you guys blast off for a change!" with a press of another button, all the missiles were immediately fired off, destroying everything upon impact. But sadly, the targeting mechanism of the Wobbunator needed readjustment because they can't even shoot properly. As several missiles headed directly to Ash and Cynthia, they suddenly turned away and missed… but destroyed everything else around the ravine.

"We got to get out of here!" Ash recommended to which Cynthia most certainly agreed. The blonde champ quickly returned Garchomp back into its Pokeball and quickly turned to Ash for a fast getaway "Staravia, I choose you! (Star! Staravia!) Staravia, I need you to get these grappling hooks to that rock on top there! Go as fast as you can! Hurry!" the bird Pokemon quickly grab both Ash and Cynthia's grappling hooks and flew up top. Once Staravia was able to hook the grappling on the rock Ash mentioned, it quickly flew back down to give them the all clear signal. And not a moment too soon too, for as they got up, the rocks around them began to crumble.

"Alright, let's go!" and with that, the two of them began climbing the chasm, hoping to get to the top on time.

And just when the last missile hit, a giant chuck of rock suddenly crumbled down from the chasm, smashing the top part of the robot. "Uh… Meowth…" Jessie began, "Why can't we move?"

"It looks like one of them rocks smashed up the roller blades" the cat replied calmly, "In a matter of seconds, the whole thing will explode…"

"Oh… ok…" the red head said also calmly.

After a few moments of silence, they all cried out together, "NOT AGAIN!!!!!" BOOOOMMMM!! A massive explosion occurred in the cockpit, sending the trio back into the sky.

"You know… we should really find a way to capture that Pikachu when that twerp is not with him" James suggested even though they were still in mid air. "Yeah… but the only time he ever leaves his side would be when they go to the Pokemon center" Mewoth replied after having his four whiskers burned. With one last sigh, they shouted out their closing remark, "Looks like Team Rocket is… falling down again…"

"Well that's that I guess" Ash added with a slight bit of sarcasm in his voice. "I hope we didn't hurt then\m too bad"

"Don't worry" Cynthia assured, "I'm sure this isn't the first time they got blown off like that. Besides, I have a feeling those guys have more than a hundred cats with nine lives" but then suddenly, another rubble could be heard coming from up top. When the two of them turned their heads, they noticed that Cynthia's rope was severely damaged by the explosion. "Oh no… Cynthia, take off your vest hurry!" with a snap sound coming from the rope, the blonde haired trainer quickly remove her belted vest but was too late, she fell.

The girl believed that this was over. No way, could anyone survive a fall like that, not even Brandon. As she closed her eyes, she could see her whole life flashing before her. The day when she got her first Pokemon, the day when she became champion of the Shinou region… and when… she lost… it all came to her in a flash of a second.

But as the seconds turned to minutes, she now believed that she was in heaven. She could no longer feel the earth under her feet, she could not hear the sounds of the wind, just the rhythm of her own breathing. As she finally opened up her eyes, she could see that she was floating over the ravine she was supposed to fall in. She knew right at that moment that she was dead. Why else would she be floating over objects?

But then her death thoughts were interrupted, when a familiar voice cut in, "You ok Cynthia!?" when she looked up, her eyes widened when her sight came into contact with Ash. Apparently, the boy was able to slide back down just moments before she hit the ground. His hand was tightly gripping upon her amazingly small wrist and with enough strength, he was able to pull her up, "I'll take that look of yours as a yes" he joked as he answered his own question. "Hold on, I'll try to pull you in" with the boy's amazing strength, he was able to pull her up with relative ease, "Now hold onto my back and I'll have us out of here in no time" she simply nodded back dumbly, unable to reply with words. When the girl locked her arms around Ash's neck, the boy quickly let Pikachu out of its jacket to make some room. "Alright Staravia, pull in"

The bird on top quickly began aiding Ash by pulling his rope so that it won't break like Cynthia's.

As they pulled themselves closer to the top of the chasm, our blonde champ began to feel rather… odd. Her cheeks began to heat up as if there were heat tabs placed on them. Her body felt so warm that winter felt the hottest time of summer. Her heart suddenly began to race against the clock and her blood value began to go faster and faster with each passing second. But she didn't despise this feeling one bit. In fact, she loved it. With her arms wrapped around the boy, she could feel like she was protected by a castle with hundred of soldiers. With Ash around, she felt… safe… secure… and most importantly… calm…

When they finally reached the top, one of the assistants came by with a medical kit on his hand, "Are you two alright? I heard an explosion down there and so I thought something must've happened!" but Ash just waved it off, "It was nothing big… just a little quake… ahehehehehehe"

**(Uno café)**

Havic, Emma and Steve were at their usual hangout for another one of their less important meetings. From the look on their faces, they seemed to be having a normal day. "So what's new Havic?" the Dark Queen asked with her usual scowl. "You didn't call us here just because you wanted someone to eat with right?"

The Spiked Armor (Havic) gave out a 'hmph' sound, "Steve… what have you got on that Ketchum kid?" the nerd-hippy quickly unfolded his laptop and typed something on the screen, "Well ever since Gary defeated Ash's Pikachu, our numbers have been rising considerably. We even have some boys from the Bail Outs joining us too"

Havic nodded and gave out that look where it was almost impossible to tell what he was thinking. After a few seconds of silence, Emma finally got irritated, "Hey what's with all that skulking? Come on Havic, Gary beat Ash, shouldn't we be happy about that? If he can do that again in the Valmarian league, that money is as good as ours!"

"Yeah…" the ex-boss said finally, "But I don't wanna take any chances"

"So what do you have in mind?" Steve asked also a little irritated by the look on Emma's face. "Want me to try and get him to quit?"

"No… I doubt any attempts to persuade him will only be a waste of time" he explained to them, "The only way we can get him to quit… is to… get him to quit himself…"

"How do we do that?" Emma tilted her head slightly.

"Teehehehehehe… I think it's time we spread a little rumor…"

**(Back with the gang) (06:00 PM)**

As the rest of the training group finally made it to the other side of the chasm, Brandon arrived a few minutes later, to congratulate them. "Congratulations everyone. It seems like you all managed to make it through the chasm after all. I must say I had my doubts. This training exercise was meant to test every aspect of your ability. When you ran with water buckets, that was test your endurance. When you swam across the river, that tested your perseverance and when you ran to that hill and cross the ravine, it was meant to test your cooperation with your Pokemons. I'm glad that all of you managed to make it without too much injury… so to congratulate you all… I set up a little something for you!"

With a flick of his finger, the truck on the back suddenly plopped open revealing a buffet set up just about everyone. With the sight of food in front of them, the gang quickly rushed in and grab themselves a plate full of their own favorite dish.

"Alright food!" Richie and Ash said together as they rushed in towards the table. The moment they managed to put everything into one single plate, they began chewing and gulping down like crazy. In a matter of minutes they were already on their fifth plate.

When the others saw this they immediately let out a tiny sweat drop, "How many stomachs do those two have?" Kenny asked with a tiny fake laugh. "As much as those two could possibly eat" Duplica replied also wondering how much they could eat. Heck even Brandon believed that not even their buffets could fill their appetite.

"By the way Cynthia" Johanna called in the blonde girl, "What happened in the ravine? We all heard an explosion there and we all got worried" but the battle champion simply waved it off, "Oh it was nothing" she replied with a bright sunny side up smile, "There was just a little earthquake but we were ok. I did lose my vest though ahehehehe"

"Oh really?" Johanna replied not believing a single word she said. _"Something's not right with her… she seems too happy to be the Cynthia I know. Something's going on and I'm gonna find out what, even if it's the last thing I do!"_ she nearly thought out loud with that pulsating aura of hers.

It wasn't long then till Drew came out from the sidelines, "Hey guys. Ash and Richie are gonna battle it out who can eat the most! Come on and see!" Kenny immediately lifted himself up and headed towards the growing crowd.

"Not again…" Dawn sighed to which Zoey looked back at her questioningly, "What's wrong Dawn?"

"Nothing really" she replied, "It's just that whenever Ash eats too much, he usually gets stomach lumps. I should know. He ate a lot back when we were traveling back in Shinou"

May chuckled in agreement, "I guess that's Ash for you. Never a time where he'll back out from a fight" after that, the two of them dashed off to see the food competition. Ash was there along with Richie… and from the looks of it, two more competitors were in the field also ready to be crowned king of foods.

Strangely enough, Paul seemed to be one who's refereeing the whole competition. "Alright you four listen up. The main dish will count as five points whenever it's finish. The side dish and soup all counts as one point. The one with the most points wins (nods) Alright then…… begin…" even though he said the magic word so calmly, the crowd around seemed to be enticed. With a press of his stopwatch the whole crowd roared out a series of cheers and laughs. The only thing the gang could find similar was the word 'eat eat eat eat eat eat'

Richie was ahead first with twenty points, finishing his side dish first then go for the main dish. He was followed by Ash and the other two came in third and fourth place. Pikachu and Sparky were dressed in their Kimonos waving their fans to cheer their masters (you can see Pikachu in his Kimono in various episodes)

Trying to get over the edge, Ash hastened his eating speed and began chowing things faster and faster, earning him several stares from the audience. Heck, just watching the four of them eat was making every feel like they wanna barf.

But during the process of eating, Ash seemed to have swallowed something to fast. He choked on the piece of meat like he had a sore throat. "Oh oh! Ash swallowed a bad meat!" said one of the spectators. When Rosa caught a scent of trouble she immediately got to her king and punch him at the back, forcing him to spit the bad meat.

"Ash spit out a meat" Paul stated with his hands pointing at him, "Therefore he is disqualified" with that statement done, Richie held out his stomach proudly and drank a whole glass of water to drown the whole thing down.

With tonight's fun over the group turned to Brandon for his kind words, "Alright everyone… the Valmarian league starts tomorrow afternoon and everyone is expected to be there early. So I want you all to have a goodnight's rest back at the quarry and I wish you all good fortunes. We will come and pick you up in the morning and from there we will bring you all to the Arena District at first light. No one gets left behind alright" with a couple of nods from the group, the entire gang packed up and quickly headed back towards the quarry via truck that was kindly provided by the Pokemon League society.

**(1 hour later) (Back at the quarry) (18 Hours till Valmarian League begins)**

After saying their goodnights and cleaning themselves off, the gang quickly head back to their respective caves so that they could sleep early and wake up early as well. With the Valmarian league being so close they could already feel the tension growing with each passing moment.

"Ahh… bed… it never felt so good…" Ash moaned with great pleasure as his body made contact with his sleeping bag. The softness of the cotton made him forget about the pain happening on his back and the wounds he suffered during the times in Fort Gregro. It was amazing that the boy was still intact after receiving so many hits, but I guess years of training must've solidified his weak muscles till they were as nearly as hard as iron.

But just as Ash was about to go to sleep, he noticed that his room mate was packing up her things. "Cynthia?"

She jerked her head around and smiled back, "Oh sorry Ash. I didn't mean to wake you up. I'm just packing up my things so that we can leave early tomorrow without any troubles. You should pack up too if you don't want to pack up in the morning" Ash quickly found that her statement had a point and knew that he wouldn't want to work so early in the morning. So taking her word for it, the boy agreed and began packing his things. He didn't really bring much to begin with.

Just as he packed up his last essentials, Ash suddenly felt something deep within his backpack. "Heh? What's this?" as he ruffled deeper into his sack, he pulled out another one of those rare medallions that he had been giving to all of his friends lately. But this was different from the others. It was a Riolu this time. It was made of silver just like the others, but the figure it mimicked was very detailed. As he dangled it in front of his face, the light from the candlestick seemed to reflect upon it perfectly like it was made out of crystals.

"Another medallion?" Cynthia smirked, "I used to have a lot of those when Johanna and I were back in high school. When we were kids, we couldn't get enough of those things. I wanted to collect the whole set, so I spent all of my allowance into buying them"

"Wow… so you have the whole set Cynthia?" Ash asked a little amazed by the fact.

But she only shook her head in response, "No… after a few years, I suddenly lost them during a typhoon storm back in my home town. I tried collecting them again after awhile, but when I heard that the company stopped making them, I kinda forgot about it. I was particularily interested in the legendary Pokemons like Lugia and Moltres, but they never showed up"

"Is that how you became interested with Dialga and Palkia?" Ash asked with a curious brow raised. The blonde girl thought for a moment before replying, "Hmmm… now that you mentioned it. Yeah… I think it is. Every time I was able to get a rare medallion like those, I would always believe that someday I would see one of them for sure. I guess that was the only thing that kept me going during that time. It's pretty silly isn't it?"

But then to her surprise, Ash flashed out one of his widest grin, "I don't think it's silly at all" he replied frantically with his smile, "I think it's great that you have something to remind you of your goals. My goal is to become a Pokemon Master… but I don't really have anything to remind me of it. Sometimes… I even forget why I'm even doing this (Pikapika) Hahahaha…"

"Thanks Ash" Cynthia smiled even brighter than before.

"Hey… we all have our own dreams right? Then here…" with a fast move, Ash grabbed the woman's wrist and place the medallion on her hand. "I think you should keep this. This is what inspired you to continue on with your dream. As long as you know what your dreams are, then I know you'll never lose your way of finding it" as the two of them locked gaze upon each other, Cynthia just seemed to have lost herself in those golden eyes of his. His eyes were as black as the black hole in space. They were so deep that the vast ocean would pale in comparison. "So don't forget it…… ok?"

**(The next morning) (6 hours till the Valmarian league begins)**

Morning… the time when you can only say that a new day has finally arrived. The only time when you can look up to the sky and shout till your heart's content. The only time when you can wake up from a long nap... Ah… yes… morning.

But today was not like any morning. No… today was not gonna be like the morning you would see like yesterday or tomorrow. No…… because this morning… is the beginning… of the Valmarian league.

Noises filled the air like chaos ensuing the world, trainers from all over the city left their sanctuaries and kissed their love ones goodbye like they were going to war, shops in the area opened two hours earlier than usual to prepare for the coming battle, and both men and women come today… for a journey that will undoubtedly make them…… heroes.

But right now… let's focus on our 'heroes'

**(Back at the quarry)**

Johanna was irritated… no wait scratch that… she was annoyed… no wait not that… she was ticked off beyond reason! 'Why' you ask? Well apparently, it has to do with something about her best friend smiling and singing as she packed up her things on the truck And it looks like the other members of the gang seemed to notice it as well. Cynthia was happy, disturbingly happy. Everything she did she was doing it with a smile. She was not only helping the gang, but everyone else in the training group. She was so happy, that not even pain could turn that smile upside down.

When the truck was fully loaded, they all decided to have a little breakfast meal to pass up the time. The city was only a two hour drive away and the league wasn't about to start in another six hours or so… but still… the tension that was brewing up was more than enough to get Ash all hyped up. The boy was so intense by the match that he went off to get a little warm up with his team. He promised to come back after doing fifty laps around the quarry.

Once the rest of the younger generation were off goofing or training, Johanna decided that this was the time to get the scoop on what was Cynthia so darn happy about. If one didn't know better, some would already think that she was going crazy. "You seemed oddly happy this morning Cynthia" the mother smiled as the blonde champ sat down to take her share of the morning breakfast.

Cynthia simply looked back with her usual smile and replied, "Oh nothing. I'm just glad that the Valmarian league is starting that's all" Johanna seemed to buy it, but somehow she didn't seem convince, "Oh Johanna, do you mind if I use your makeup kit?" the mother nearly choked on her own saliva when she said that. Not only did she want to use her makeup kit, but she was more surprised that she called her by her real name rather than her usual, J.J.

"Uh… sure…" she replied. But as the blonde champ unconsciously applied makeup on her face, Johanna was now certain that something was up. Cynthia was not the kind of girl who would worry too much on her appearance. Heck even without the makeup she was definitely a total hottie. With just one stroll around the park in her new getup, she can attract more eyes than a monkey going through town with a sledgehammer. "What's wrong Cynthia? You never worried about how you look before" she said.

"Oh I just thought that it was time I changed a little. You always did say that you must look good when you're on stage" Johanna simply cracked a knuckle. Since when did she ever take any of her advice?

"Oh really?" the mother was now getting really annoyed by the blonde's continuing smile. It was like her lips were locked onto happy mode or something. "Are you sure you're not doing it to impress a certain someone?" she snickered out which hopefully, she would be able to get a reaction.

But Cynthia was a talented actress and was able to hide her emotions with her plain act, "Don't be silly Johanna. You know I'm not in to those"

ACCESS DENIED!!!

Johanna was close but she wasn't able to penetrate her invisible defense. She was running out of cards to play so if she wanted for Cynthia to open up she was gonna have to fight fire with fire…… or at least in this case… acting with acting.

Quickly putting on her mask, Johanna slowly turned her head to the side and waved, "Oh hey there Ash" in an instant, Cynthia's face turned to crimson red and the make up she just applied seemed to have gone to waste. Steam began generating from her ears as she turned around, "Wha?! Where!? Where?!" but as she looked at the direction her best friend was looking, there was no one.

"AHA! I knew it!"

It was then the blonde battle trainer knew that she had fallen right into Johanna's acting trap. It was so obvious since they went to drama club together when they were in highs school.

"I knew something was going on between you two! I should have suspected it when you were holding hands in the beach! Oh Cynthia, I'm disappointed in you!"

But then Cynthia began waving her hands in her defense, "No wait Johanna, you got the wrong idea! It's nothing like that with Ash!"

Hook… Line… and sinker

"Who said anything about Ash?"

For the first time in her life, Cynthia was caught between a web and a spider with no way out.

Faced against a mother who was prepared defend her daughter's lover to the very end, she was now faced with a serious problem……… a very serious problem.

A moment of silence flew by before any of them would talk again.

"So… what's this about Ash…… _Cynthia_…?" the cave they were in suddenly turned from a nice cozy home into an interrogation room. Johanna circled around her, pretending to be some sort of investigative officer trying to get a crack on a criminal. "You stay together in the same cave for three days straight. You traveled together and had one heck of an adventure down at that ravine. Now you've changed your style and applying makeup. And now… your face seems to turn red whenever I mention his name…" to her truth Cynthia's face did turn a bit red when she even gestured to the boy, "What are you hiding _Cynthia_…? Come on… you can tell me… we're best friend… right" the slyness of her voice was so snakelike that it would make Giovani's skin crawl.

"I uh… I… I don't know what you're talking about!"

But then Johanna had more than one way to get someone to talk. "Not talking huh? Well… there's more than one way to skin a Raticate" with one swift move, Johanna pulled out her wallet and slit out a picture from the credit card holder. "Tell me Cynthia… what do you feel when you see… THIS picture" it was a picture of Dawn wrapping her arms around Ash's shoulder. With one look, the blonde champ turned away, "Come on Cynthia… tell me how you feel when you look at this picture. Is it jealousy? Envy? Or maybe even… anger? Ahehehehehe!"

"Ahh! What are you doing J.J?!"

"Oh nothing… just doing a little experiment" she replied sarcastically. "Because I think there's something going on between you two"

"What?! That's absurd!"

"Is it?" with a surprise move, Johanna quickly took the Riolu medallion from Cynthia's right pocket and dangled it in front of her face. "Then what's this? A medallion?"

"AH! Hey give that back!"

"Ummm let's see………… umm…… no…" Johanna replied mockingly, "Not until you tell me what's going on between you and Ash!"

"Nothing!" Cynthia replied in a begging tone, "Now give that back"

"Well you're gonna have to come and get it" again she mocked, but this time, Cynthia was through playing games. In a move that surprised even Johanna herself, the blonde trainer leaped from the ground and tackled her down to the ground. The sound of fighting was so intense that everyone outside could hear it.

"Just what is going on in there?" Drew said worryingly, a little frightened of what might happen when he goes in. But then suddenly, Ash arrived just in the nick of time to see what was happening. "Hey Drew… what's going on?" the green haired boy shrugged, "Who knows? Looks like Johanna and Cynthia are fighting over something" then suddenly a table was thrown out of the cave, landing several feet close to the truck. "But right now… I think it's safer for us to wait out here"

"But the Valmarian league is starting soon!" Ash whined, "I'll go check them out" the others made no attempt to stop him. If that kid wanted to knock on death's door so bad then let him.

Just as Ash got closer and closer to the cave, the fighting sound seemed to intensify. But after a moment, everything seemed to have died down. He wondered if the two of them beat each other to a pulp already. "Um… Cynthia, Johanna… it's time to go…?" it was a half statement half question kind of offer. But then suddenly, the two adults appeared and from the looks of it, they seemed to be cleaned up. "Oh hello there Ash" Johanna said cheerfully, "We were just having a… a… a little exercise before we left ahehehehe. You know we have to stretch those old bones before anything else happens. Come on come on. Let's go before the Valmarian league starts!"

"Uh… ok…"

**(Valmarian city) (Arena District) (3 hours till the Valmarian league)**

Fireworks shot into the air, people paraded through the streets, restaurants put up a sign saying 'open 24/7' there was no doubt that this was only beginning. With people coming through the gates of the Arena District in hordes, only a fool would want to create chaos in this kind of mess.

"Hmm… they're not here either" said Brock as he searched through the crowd looking for his friends. Max was beside him and he too wanted to see his sister and 'brother' as fast as he could. "Where are they?" the little boy asked with a worried face, "If they don't get here soon they'll miss the opening ceremony"

A few moments later, Todd and Tracey appeared, "Hey Brock, there you are" said the photographer.

"Oh hey Todd. Did you guys find them?"

"No…" he replied disappointingly, "I was hoping they'd be the first people here. I hope they make it time. The opening ceremony is about to start in three hours"

"Why don't we wait at the food court?" Brock suggested, "If my suspicions are right, that will the first place Ash would go. He wouldn't start the day without a little food in his stomach" they all hastily agreed. They knew of Ash's famous stomach and his unending appetite and to tell the truth they all had the same idea. But just they could take a step forward, the spectators of the battle arena began to scream like a bunch of fan girls. It reminded Brock of the time when Gary had his own personal cheering squad.

"Oh my goodness! Look over there girls! It's Kevin!"

"Oh my! Kevin, over here! Please look over here!

"(scream!) He's sooo dreamy…"

Bu then the other trainers seemed to have a different opinion about him.

"Hey look, it's Kevin and the Elite Fives…"

"Oh great… I hope I don't paired up with him during the first preliminaries"

"He'll take one of us out with a flick of his finger"

And the list went on…

"Looks like that Kevin guy is pretty famous around here" Brock said with a little hint of jealousy in his voice. _"How come girls don't fall for me like that?!"_ he thought to himself.

But after a few minutes later, another group walked through the gates of the district, which quickly silenced every word and whispers that passed out. Brock and the others looked very confused. A few minutes ago, this place was as lively as the Downtown District, but now it seemed like everyone's attention seemed to be focusing at the gates.

As Tracey moved up to higher grounds along with the rest, their eyes widened at what they saw.

Gary and his crew… were in the zone…

All talks became whispers and whispers became squeaks. Fear ran through the minds of every trainer in the district and by the looks of it, they all seemed to be afraid of Gary.

"Hey… isn't that Gary?" Max questioned which Tracey replied with a nod, "Yeah it is… but who are those guys he's traveling with?"

Havic, also known as the Spiked Armor was at his left hand smirking at the facial expression given out by the others. The trainers that were with his gang were alright, but to those belonging to the others were the ones he needed to watch out for.

Jaques, Gary's personal bodyguard was at the boy's right hand, making sure no harm comes to their boss. His very presence was like that of an impenetrable shield that could not be overcome without a strong enough force.

Emma, the Dark Queen, was at the left most edge. Her snakelike smile was so sinister that some of the men would step back the moment she approach them.

Steve, or as some known as the Bad Mix, was next to Jaques, listening to his earphones rather than to listen to the crowd.

Surprisingly for some, Brendan and Red seemed to be there as well. But from the looks of it, they did not seem to be part of the main group for some reason. Brendan kept eying Red, trying to see if that guy would make any wrong moves so they could catch him red handed.

"Looks like competition is going to be tough this year" Brock noticed with a little frown, "I hope Ash and the others are ready for this" But then Max noticed several familiar figures walking through the southern entrance of the district, "Hey look! There they are over there!" and to the boy's truth, there they were… all in one line formation.

"Whoa! Look at all of them!" Ash said in awe, "Are everyone of them, trainers?!"

"It looks like it" said Anabel from behind, "I've never attended something this big since Scott held out an opening ceremony about the new battle facility"

Duplica looked out from top and it looks like the whole district seemed to be fully loaded. There was barely any space anywhere at all to move around. "Wow… there must be more than a million trainers out there! Maybe even more"

But then Ash rolled his fist with excitement, "It doesn't matter how many there are!" he began, "I'll take them all down and when I do, the Valmarian cup will be all mine! Bring'em on by the dozens if you have to!"

With his spiritual energy flaring up like a million suns glowing in one spot, Cynthia couldn't help but smile back at him with a slight blush on her cheek.

"You seem oddly happy again Cynthia…" Johanna said slyly behind the woman's back, which woke the blonde champ from her daze.

But then to their surprise, Brock and the others came by, "Hey guys!" the slanted boy shouted, "You guys are late. How did the training routine go?" the others let out a small smile, "Well… it was… interesting…" May began, "You could say that we did a lot of things together"

But before any of them could continue, a loud ringing sound flowed out of the stage which caught everyone's attention. "Attention trainers and coordinators all! Listen to me and listen up close and shut your yap hole!!!!!!" the others quickly fell into a deep silence as the man continued, "I am Major Adam Vile! You may address me as Mr. Vile or Major Vile! I will be the one in charge of the first and second round of the preliminaries for Battle Trainers! Listen well because I won't explain this again!"

The gang perked up and listened closely to every word the man said.

"The rules of the first preliminary round are simple! There will only be one Pokemon from both sides so I expect you to bring out your best! If anyone here is caught cheating in anyway, they will be immediately disqualified! The Valmarian badges you hold are proof that you are in still in the league so if you lose them in anyway… then we have a problem! And lastly…… all decisions I make is final! When I say 'you're out' that means YOU ARE OUT!! Are there any questions!?" no one said a word, "Good! Take of from here Jewel"

"Gladly Major Vile" said the woman who looked like the man's sister, "Welcome everyone, my name is Sabrina Vile and I will be the one handling the contest preliminaries. The first round of the contest will of course be an appeal round. So please kindly sort yourselves out. The trainers please follow my brother Adam to the battleground, while the coordinators please follow me. You must all however register here before you may participate. I hope you all brought your Pokedex with you"

A few minutes later, the whole million trainers and coordinators lines up in front of the registration area just to get things done. The process was rather quick, thanks to the super computer that was linked to the Central District.

"So you're name's Richie from Goldenrod city in Johto?" the clerk asked as he checked the boy's Pokedex. Richie nodded back, "Yeah… I am" after a few moments, the clerk returned his Pokedex, "Alright, you're a trainer. Please report to the east side with Major Vile"

Dawn was next, "Ah, Ms. Dawn, it's pleasure to meet you" said the other clerk, "My daughter is one of your biggest fans back in the Shinou region"

"Really?" she said with a surprised look, "Why thank you"

"No problem (ting) Ok you're good to go young coordinator. Please report to Sabrina" and with that the girl left.

With everyone going through their different areas, Ash came next, "Mr. Ketchum. Welcome to Valmarian all out league" the clerk began. "Please insert your Pokedex into the computer please" the boy simply complied and inserted his newly acquired Pokedex into the slot. After a few minutes later, the clerk seemed to have raised a curious brow, "Eh… now this is odd…"

"What is?" Ash asked.

"Well you seem to have acquired the necessary badges to compete… but it says here that you also have contest passes from every region"

"Oh yeah… I did a number of contest back in the days" Ash explained, "But Pokemon battle is definitely for me" the clerk nodded to his explaination, "Well, it says here: you can register as a Pokemon trainer and a coordinator. I'll just put you in the trainer slot" and with that, the Pokedex flipped back to the boy.

After everyone was finished registering, the gang was quickly separated from each other to compete in the area they excel. With the afternoon coming fast, the audience closed their mouths and watch intently as each match began.

**(Trainer's corner)**

Major Adam Vile moved at the center of one of the battlefields as he held a cordless microphone in his hand. "Ladies and gentlemen! Trainers all!!! The match will begin in one hour! Choose well which Pokemon you will use, because there will be no rematch after this! But before we begin…… please put your hands together… for our glorious governor! Mr. Winston Valmarian!!!" a round of applause could be heard throughout the district as an old middle-aged man entered the center stage.

With fireworks filling the clear blue sky, the man known as Winston couldn't help but smile at all the young faces he saw today, "Welcome… welcome all of you" he began, "As you may all know… I am Winston Valmarian… governor of this wonderful city" the crowd went silent, "Every time I walk up these steps I would always be glad to see so many young faces. You youngsters are always filled with hopes and dreams that even I can't imagine. Never before have I seen so many trainers gathered in one place. But we're not here to listen to me speak now, are we? You're all here to see a match and a match you shall have! Ladies and gentlemen! People of Valmarian city! With this flag, I hereby declare the Valmarian All Out League… to begin!!!!"

And just as they expected, the whole district went into a roar! Cheers were coming from all around, even from the trainers themselves!

But not all seemed to be cheering.

Gary… had other plans. "Hey Steve…" the hippy boy quickly turned his attention back to his boss. "Yeah boss?"

"I want you to (cheer) and… (more cheers) got it?"

"GOT IT!"

With the crowd still cheering like New Years Eve, Major vile believed that it was now time start up. "Ok, you heard the governor! The battle is now beginning! And his words are law! Let's the first match up begin!" in an instant, the main computer began randomly selecting trainers via picture frame. "This little gizmo here is the Randomizer! It will choose two trainers and match them up with whoever, randomly!"

But when the match up stopped… everyone seemed to have let out a gasp of great shock!!!!

"Ok… let's see who's going to be leaving the arena fir……st………?" when Adam turned around to look back at the machine, his heart would've leaped out of his throat still throbbing like crazy. The first match up was…

Ash Ketchum VS Gary Oak!

And so the first round preliminary was well on its way, but what an unsettling turn of events? Two strongest trainers of the world were coming up at the very beginning. Will Ash be able to score a victory and make it to the next preliminary round? Only time… and I… can tell…


	55. Just Another Day

**Chapter 55: Just Another Day…**

**(First Prelim Round Match #1) (Ash Ketchum VS Gary Oak)**

The whole district was silent… no words were exchanged… no sounds made… and not even the winds dared to blow. All eyes were burning with such intensity that blinking almost looked like a crime. Spectators from all around were glued to their seats and no one dared to move a muscle.

As Ash locked eyes with Gary, he knew right then that he had to fight him… but he never expected to fight him this early! As Major Adam looked back at the Randomizer, he recuperated from the shock and placed the microphone on his mouth "Ah… ahem… Alright then… Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak, please report to battlefield one. Randomizer number two… commence!"

With their names called out, Ash immediately head off towards his respected battleground. All of his friends gave out worried looks but he just waved them off. He knew this battle was inevitable, but now… he was going to put all of his training to good use.

When the two competitors arrived at battlefield one, the Randomizer began to select several other trainers to put on the other fields so that they would be able to get this preliminary round done with quickly. "Alright trainers!" said the referee, "The first match of the first preliminary round is about to begin! This is a battle between Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town Kanto and 'ace' trainer Gary Oak, also from Pallet town. This will be a one on one battle with no substitute and no time limit! Trainers, choose your Pokemons!"

"Blastoise, I choose you…" said Gary in his usual cold voice.

"Blastoise again huh…?" Ash thought, "I won't take any chances this time" he then turned to Pikachu, "you up for it Pikachu? (Pika!) Alright then… GO!" the little mouse took the field, ready to plow through its opponents.

"Both trainers have chosen their Pokemons!" the ref announced, "Trainers are you ready? (nods) Then… BEGIN!"

"Pikachu, let's strike first with a thunderbolt attack!" the little mouse quickly unleashed a powerful electrical attack which was so fast that not even the gods could even see it.

"Whoa that thunderbolt looks more powerful than last time" Brock analyzed. And to his truth, he was right. The thunderbolt attack that Pikachu used a couple of days ago looked like a spark compared to the one he was using now. It was more accurate, fast, and most importantly, powerful.

The attack hit Blastoise dead on, but just as before, it doesn't seem to be having any effect. "How can that be!?" Richie questioned loudly, "There's no way a water Pokemon can still stand after taking a blow that hard, especially an electric attack!"

"That Blastoise must be really strong…" Paul stated, showing no emotion through his face. "Ash must rely on strategy rather than pure power on this battle"

Once the attack finished, Gary only gave out a 'hnn' sound, "Blastoise, hydro pump" with one single order, the giant turtle Pokemon unleashed a pulse of water from its cannons, hitting Pikachu dead right on the spot. But Ash wasn't going to give up… not just yet. "Pikachu, use iron tail on the water!" thanks to Zoey's combination skills he mimicked back in Shinou, the iron tail attack cut through the water attack with relative ease.

Gary wasn't really expecting Ash to use some brains in battle, but after being defeated several times back in Johto and Kanto, he wasn't going to take any chances. "Blastoise, use hydro beam cannon!" the turtle Pokemon quickly began charging up a hyper beam attack, but this time, it was going to fire through the cannons on its back.

"There's that move again!" Brock notified the gang, "Last time that attack took out Pikachu with one direct hit! Who knows what's going to happen next!?"

As Ash saw this, he immediately began gritting his teeth. That attack move was not listed down on the Pokedex list so Gary must've developed it himself. Taking a moment to analyze the attack, Ash had to think and look fast before it hits. _"Hmm… it looks like Blastoise will be firing its hyper beam from its main cannons, which makes it ten times more powerful than your average hyper beam attack."_ He thought to himself, _"But it takes at least ten seconds to charge up… that barely gives Pikachu enough time to use absorb or get close enough"_ after he was finished with his analysis, Blastoise aimed its cannons, ready to blast Pikachu sky high. "Pikachu, don't worry, we still have some tricks left in our sleeves!"

The crowd immediately grew curious. They've all seen Gary's most powerful move destroy Pokemon after Pokemon that comes into the ring, but if Ash can stop it, then it would probably be a miracle.

"What's Ash gonna do Brock?" Max questioned slightly worried about the results.

But to his surprise, the slanted boy didn't have an answer, "I don't know… not even thunder storm was able to damage it. So I'm not really sure what trick Ash has left" this wasn't exactly helping the little guy, but hey… a man has to be honest.

As Max looked around, he could see several stares coming from the crowd. The rest of the gang seemed to be eyeing Ash with some sort of hope, but others were just pure random. "Come on bro…" Max whispered to himself, "You can do it! GO for it Ash!"

Gary's face suddenly turned from cold to just plain annoyed, "Now Blastoise, FIRE!!" with that single order, the turtle Pokemon fired its attack. The beam that came from its cannons were so powerful that it shook the very foundation of the battlefield. The audience shielded their eyes from the blast, protecting their faces from the dust particles that were shot forth. A great big mushroom cloud was made from the explosion and everything within a five meter radius would've been reduced to ash…

Seeing that Pikachu didn't even have time to dodge, the spectators believed that it was over. Ash Ketchum was out before he was in.

Gary grinned under his lips. All who faced that attack were usually utterly defeated to no end, not even the mighty Pikachu can even withstand that.

"A direct hit!" said one of the trainers

"Gary's hydro beam cannon did it again!"

"Is Pikachu down for the count already?!"

"Hey ref, you can start counting now!"

Gary's crew were also grinning from ear to ear down below. With Ash Ketchum out of the way, victory was there's for sure and the money was there's for the taking. But then soon… when the smoke cleared up… everyone seemed to have turned their expressions upside down.

Back at where the explosion occurred… was Pikachu… and it was still standing!

Gary's grin suddenly dropped down towards the ground along with the rest of his gang. "W… what…!? No way… impossible…" for the first time in a very long while, the boy was shocked. His eyes widened and his throat dried.

Pikachu was there… and it was still standing tall and firm as if it nothing happened. Its electrical cheeks were glowing brighter than usual and the impact that the attack gave only seemed to have damaged half of the field. It was as if there an invisible force field protecting that little yellow Pokemon. With this in mind and Gary caught off guard, Ash smirked.

"W… what happened?" Richie asked to anyone who could answer. But after a moment of silence, Paul seemed to notice something happening to the air. "Huh?" as he looked closer at Pikachu, his eyes widened. "No… that's impossible!" he nearly shouted out, "Look at Pikachu closely everyone…" he said calmly, trying not to alert the others. "It looks like Ash has developed something new to his arsenal"

But then Gary could care less of what happened. He just wanted to get that kid out of his life, "Don't get cocky with me! Blastoise, hydro beam cannon again!" again the giant turtle began charging up its most deadly attack, but it looks like Ash still going to remain standing.

"No way! Gary's gonna use that attack move again!?"

"There's no way that little mouse can survive that!"

"Come on Ash, do something!" Richie to get the boy's attention, but this only earned him a slap on the head by Paul. "Hey! What was that for!?"

"Be quiet……" the Shinou trainer stated. It was more of an order rather than a request, "Can't you see that Ash is waiting" Richie gave him a puzzling look. "He's taking his time with this fight. He knows what Gary can do and he's not about to fall for the same trick twice. Look there…" he pointed at Pikachu as he explained. "You see that spark on Pikachu's cheeks?"

"Yeah?"

"Then just sit back and watch…"

It was then Gary fired again, "FIRE!" Blastoise hastily unleashed another devastating beam from its cannons and as usual another explosion occurred, causing the field to shake once more. As the smoke cleared up, the result was still the same. "W… why…? Why isn't my attacks working…?!" this event clearly sent a shockwave of emotions crashing down on the other trainers in the area. Was Gary, the fiercest trainer finally meeting his match.

With the second attack done, it seemed like Blastoise has used up ¼ of its energy. Ash smirked again and rubbed his nose with his thumb, "Alright Pikachu, you can drop it now" suddenly, an electrical field became visible to the naked eye causing everyone to see the move clearly. There was a barrier surrounding Pikachu and from the looks of it, it seemed way powerful.

"What the?" Richie perked up again with his eyes jolting out of their sockets, but Paul only sighed, "It looks like he made a new move during our little training"

"What do you mean Paul?" Brock questioned to which the boy was more than happy to answer. Though Paul was not much to show emotions, he let out a small smile crept through his lips as he explained. "Do any of you remember that ability Ash developed on his Pikachu?"

"You mean… Absorb?" Tracey clarified which Paul nodded back. "Exactly. He's using that same move only this time, he isn't absorbing the electricity in the air. He's absorbing the energy from the attacks"

"Absorbing energy attacks?" Brock mimicked.

"Yes… you see… Pikachu is like a battery. Its cheeks are conductors and its body is the expenditor. When Pikachu uses that move, it creates an electric shield around it"

Richie thought for a moment before he remembered that time back in Slateport city, "That's right! When he was fighting Drake back at Slateport city, I remember Brock saying something about that. But I thought it only protects Pikachu from physical attacks?" Brock nodded back, "That's what I've learned so far from what I've seen" he replied.

"But from what I see now" Paul continued, "It seems like that Absorb move, has more than one use. It completely stopped Gary's attack and turned the energy from that beam to his use. And now… this is where the real battle begins" with a reassuring smirk from the Shinou trainer himself, the whole crowd turned their attention back to the fight and noticed that both trainers were still in their positions. Gary seemed to have dropped down and turned into a real battle stance.

It was amazing. Ash developed a new way to counter attacks in just a few seconds by just getting hit by it once. I guess this would be a perfect time to say that 'Never hit a porcupine on the same spot'

With his aura of awesomeness flashing all over again, Cynthia, the blonde champ trainer couldn't help but smile back with a feint blush on her cheek. "You seem awefully happy again Cynthia" Johanna crept behind her, shocking the woman's soul out of her body. "J… Johanna! What are you doing here?!" the blonde trainer yelled out to which she snuffled back in reply. "Oh nothing… just making sure you weren't thinking of stealing something precious to my… daughter…" her eyes flashed brightly, creating that chilly feeling again.

"Uh… Johanna" Brock called out softly, "But shouldn't you be on the coordinator's corner? I mean you could be up next you know"

"Oh don't worry Brock. I'm not next till I'm called" she replied with a smile. But when she turned back to Cynthia, her face became like that of a snake, "I think I'm better off watching this snake, before she does anything I would regret"

"You're the snake…" Cynthia countered, turning her face away from her best friend.

**(Back on the battlefield)**

Ash once again flashed out his trademark grin only to annoy Gary even more. With his trump card reduced to dust, he was now faced with a difficult problem. "Alright Pikachu…" Ash stated out along with his pal, "Let's do this! Go for a thunderbolt attack!"

"Blastoise, rapid spin!" the giant turtle quickly leaped into the air and spin around repeatedly, creating a defensive shielding. The attack move almost resembled Ash's boomerang tail move, but with more power. "Now Blastoise, use hydro pump while you're at it!"

"We're not giving up yet!" Ash added taking this battle even more seriously than before, "Pikachu, iron tail on the water!" again, the water attack proved useless against Pikachu's tail. "Now followed by a volt tackle!" the attack made contact, and for once, Blastoise showed signs of pain through its face. "No way!" Gary gritted his teeth as he recovered from the outburst, "Blastoise, use water gun and hydro pump all together!" the turtle Pokemon quickly unleashed powerful streams of water through its mouth and cannon, creating a volley of attacks"

But Ash wasn't going to let him take this win easily, "Pikachu, use iron tail again and follow it up with a tackle attack!" again, iron tail proved effective against the water. And with his attack move failed, Gary was now in some serious trouble. "I ain't giving up from the likes of you!" he shouted, "Blastoise, you tackle in as well!"

The two Pokemons met head on (literally) and recoiled back to their respective fields all together. The more attack they dish out, the less effective it seems to become. With the growing intensity coming up, everyone was now practically glued to field one. The battle in that area ensued more dangerously than other areas that some people even had to take a step back when Gary shifted his stance. Never had Havic or the gang saw their boss take any match seriously.

"Man, the crowd is really getting wild up" Dawn noticed the sudden increase of yells and gasps coming from the audience.

"I'm not surprise" Kenny replied, "With this kind of intensity, there's no doubt that it would attract attention. But……"

"But what?" Dawn asked.

"The two of them…" Tracey added, "…are holding back for some reason" all of the gang noticed it too. Ash was indeed powerful, but from their perspective, they could see that the boy wasn't using Pikachu's full abilities. It was like they didn't want to show their true potential until the last possible moment.

"Pikachu, iron tail!"

"Blastoise, rapid spin!" the two attacks met head on with equal power.

"A full hit!" Brock yelled in surprise, "Even when the two of them are holding back, their powers are still equal! At this rate, the winner of this match will only depend on the Pokemon and not the trainer!"

"Pikachu, volt tackle!"

Gary suddenly saw an opportunity so he took it, "Blastoise, grab Pikachu now!" in a move that would surprise everyone, the giant turtle suddenly grabbed Pikachu with its arms just before it could lay an impact on it. "Got you now Ashy boy!"

"Oh no! Pikachu's in trouble!" May panicked along with Max.

But Ash still had one more surprise up his mind, "Pikachu, use thunder!" the little mouse quickly send out a powerful electrical surge through its body, causing paralysis on Blastoise. "Now iron tail assault!" now free from its grasp, Pikachu sent out several tail attacks on Blastoise causing it to fly a few centimeters off the ground. "Now volt tackle!" with repeated orders, Pikachu sent the iron turtle flying towards the end of the field badly wounded.

"Alright!" Todd cheered, "There's no way Blastoise can stand after that kind of combination! It's got to go down!" but then to his surprise, Blastoise was still standing, but just barely.

"Alright Pikachu, let's finish this! Thunderbolt full power!"

But Gary was not going down like this! If he was going down, then he's gonna go down fighting, "Blastoise, hydro beam cannon! Fire now!!" Blastoise quickly recovered and lowered its cannons. When the thunderbolt hit its body, it released a powerful blast which caught Pikachu at the face, creating another puff of smoke.

When the explosion occurred, the whole district itself shook to the very core, sending shivers to everyone within range. "What happened? Who won?" Brock asked between coughs.

As the smoke slowly cleared up, two figures stood amidst the clouds, catching the trainer's attention. All eyes glued to the Pokemons status which would undoubtedly give the result of the match. When the smoke finally cleared, everyone let out a gasp of shock at the scene. Even Ash and Gary were surprised with the results.

The referee looked on both sides and quickly raise his flags to declare the conclusion, "Both Pikachu and Blastoise are unable to battle! Both trainers will now advance to the second preliminary round!!!" in an instant, the crowd went into a complete uproar. No one could believe their eyes. Ash and Gary… tied!?

Screams, shouts and yells were being tossed around endlessly through the district as if it was like the plague or something. The world itself was about to be shattered by an endless cycle of chaos.

"Pikachu, are you alright?" Ash hastily rushed to his little buddy's side and carried him in his arms. The little mouse let out a small tired smile and hugged its master with glee.

"Ahem… excuse me for the interruptions" Adam Vile said suddenly, "I forgot to mention one tiny bit of info. When the match results in a draw, both trainers are considered the victor of the battle and both trainers will get to advance to the next round. This also goes for the coordinators as well"

As Ash returned to his friends on the ground, they immediately flocked to him like bees to a hive, "Ash, you were great!" Brock complimented, "But… why did you hold back?"

Ash looked at him for a moment with a surprised expression, "I guess you saw through me huh?"  
the others gave out an unsatisfied smirk, "Well… when I was fighting against Gary back there… I noticed that he wasn't giving it his all. And you know I can't fight like that… so I decided to hold back as well. If he doesn't want to fight me seriously, then I shouldn't either" Brock nodded back contently along with the others.

As Gary returned to his group, he didn't say a single word. The boy was as hard to read as a stone tablet which very much resembles a rock.

Jaques really wanted to follow him, but the match ups forced him to stay his feet onto the area. He made a mental note to himself to quickly find Gary the moment he finishes his match.

**(A few moments later)**

With Ash done for the day, the boy decided to take Pikachu to the Pokemon center for a quick check up treatment. The wounds weren't as bad as the boy thought they would be and the little yellow mouse was release in less than an hour. With his match done for the first prelims, it would be another week before second prelim round begins, so the boy decided to take a little stroll while the rest of his friends finished up their matches.

Surprisingly, there were actually more coordinators who joined in rather than trainers.

As Ash entered the coordinator's corner, he noticed that May was next to go on stage. On the sideline, he could see Caroline cheering for her daughter. Norman was probably in the trainer's corner, waiting for his next match up. The boy could see that May had her eyes closed and a Pokeball in her hand. She did this a lot of times before going onto to her appealing show.

"_Ok May" _the girl thought to herself, _"Just relax… calm down and stay cool. This is just an appealing round like any other. There's no need to get yourself nervous"_

But then suddenly, amidst the crowd, she could hear one voice amongst the others. It was… Ash's voice. She jerked her head around slightly and noticed that the boy in question was truly there and from the looks of it, he was cheering. "Ash?"

"Go May! (Pikachu!!) I know you can do it! This round is all yours!" he cheered along with his slightly tired Pikachu. When May saw him cheering and smiling, it was as if her mind went into a complete overdrive. New tactics and combinations began pouring into her head like a hidden fountain deep within her mind. The sweat on her hand seemed to have dried up and her clothes seemed to have tightened considerably, making her blush but also making her body move with speed and grace.

With the start signal coming on, May threw up her Pokeball and smiled, "Alright Squirtle, take the stage!" the little water turtle Pokemon came out and showed its cuteness to the whole world. But it's gonna take more than looks to impress this crowd. "Alright Squirtle, bubble attack!" Squirtle quickly unleashed a large volley of bubbles out of its mouth which look great together. "Good now follow it up with an ice beam!" the bubbles were now frozen solid as ice which earned some gasps from the crowd. Everyone knows that ice don't float, but May was already planning ahead.

"Ok Squirtle, use double team!" the little water Pokemon quickly spread itself into pairs and assembled just below the ice bubbles. "Now water gun!" with synchronization, all sixteen Squirtles began shooting water off their mouths and balancing all the ice bubbles together!

With her poise given out, the crowd let out a jubilant cry of cheers and excitement, and it also looks like the judges were impressed with the results as well and that was a score for May indeed. "Alright May!" Ash cheered on with a smile. May was happy that everyone else was happy and quickly exited the stage along with Squirtle after a slight bow.

"You were great May!" Dawn complimented, "I've never seen such a combination before!" the young Maple blushed back slightly in embarrassment, "Oh why thanks Dawn. I wish you luck on your round as well" a few seconds later, Drew, Kenny and Zoey appeared from the sidelines to greet their friend. Ash was there too but he thought that it would be better if the coordinators had their fun.

But just as the gang were busy talking amongst themselves, a familiar voice came to light which caught all of their attention. "Well well well… if it isn't little ol'e May, trying to earn herself in her friend's side" the gang turned their heads to the side and was suddenly greeted by a purple haired man wearing a Cacturne costume. "Harley…" May spat out the boy's name venomously. "What are you doing here?"

"Tsk tsk tsk… is that truly a way to greet your rival?" the boy known as Harley replied sarcastically, "Some people might take your anger the wrong way you know" but this only earned him several angry glares from Drew, and Ash. The four of them had a history together and to tell you guys honestly… it isn't exactly pretty. Harley was a true example for an enemy to the gang. He was rarely seen at times, but can be a pest worst than Team Rocket any day. He was fairly good in coordinating, but when it comes to plotting and sabotage… his ideas are second it none.

"Don't tell me someone actually nominated for the Valmarian league?" May sheathed through her breath to which Harley on laughed in reply, "It really isn't that surprising May dearest. A talented coordinator such as myself is actually a 'must need' in an event such as this. No city in the world would dare refuse a beauty such as I"

Seeing that Ash was glaring at him angrily, Dawn and the others knew right away that this was a guy not worthy of trust. It was hard to get on Ash's bad side and that alone was enough to know that this Harley, or whatever his name was, is definitely not someone you should get close too unless you're really that desperate.

"Well… seeing that I'm not wanted here… I think I should leave" Harley quickly pardoned himself, leaving behind an irritated group. His mocking and taunting voice was so irritating that smacking him was immediately placed on Ash's 'Must Do' list.

"Who was that?" asked Kenny.

"A rat that doesn't know when to quit" May replied with a huff. But just when they could continue, Johanna stepped up on stage to begin her performance.

"Hey, it looks like my mom's up!" Dawn's eyes quickly perked up, "GO MOM! Show us what you can do!" instantly the others followed with the cheer, soon becoming louder and louder by the second.

Johanna waved back at her daughter and her friends before returning to her meditating stance. She was now wearing a light blue loose tuxedo which she wore back during her old days as a coordinator champion. It looked slightly similar to Zoey's tux except for the design and the colors. _"Hmm… it's been a long time since I did my last appealing round. I'm really nervous… but I shouldn't be. Dawn is watching and Ash as well. Can't disappoint them…… come on old friend… let's give it one more shot before retirement" _she looked at her Pokeball with a slight affectionate smile. She never thought she would step on stage again… and this was a chance for her to make a come back.

As the start signal turned on, Johanna opened her eyes to the light and smiled brightly at her audience. "Alright Glameow… its show time!" a cat like Pokemon appeared out of the Pokeball and landed on the ground gracefully like it always has been.

"Wow… I can't believe I'm actually going to see mom in an appealing round" Dawn said slightly amazed by the show. She had never seen her mother performed live before and this was truly a treat for her eyes.

"She was champion of the Shinou grand festival before so I'm sure she has some neat tricks up her sleeves" Kenny added with a slight smirk.

"Glameow, let's start off with ice beam!" the cat began its appeal with an ice beam striking high up in the sky. "Focus Galmeow! Now draw a V shape!" in a move that surprised even Zoey herself, Glameow's ice beam began to morph in a small V shape which covered nearly half the district. "Now double team followed by shadow ball, then iron tail and combine it with a shadow claw!" everyone was confused! How can Glameow do all those moves at once?

But to their surprise, Johanna's Glameow wasn't confused at all. It remembered its orders and quickly moved out. It first split itself into hundreds then all of them shot a shadow ball into the air, creating some sort of pattern. After that, the Glameows split themselves into three groups aligning perfectly with the ice beam that was surprisingly still being held by the original Glameow. They all began to attacking each other with iron tail and shadow claw, giving out that mysterious look. Before everyone knew it, the whole stage turned into a one Pokemon carnival performance. A single Glameow pulling out all he stunts and acts with its double team ability.

"WHOA!!" the audiences were just simply ecstatic. Their jaws hit the floor so hard that it would've shaken the dead off their graves. The performance was so amazing that everyone even forgot to clap.

As everything balanced out perfectly, Johanna stood at the center of the Galmeow army, "I Johanna of Twinleaf town, proudly present to you…… the one stand carnival!" and with that, the whole corner erupted into a series of cheers like never before. Never had Johanna failed to please the crowd and this was no exception either.

Ash and the others were simply awestruck by the sight. To have a professional show her stuff like that was just simply… unbelievable.

"That was…… awesome" Zoey had to admit that her performance was way better than anything that she could conjure up at the moment. Usually it would take two or perhaps even three Pokemons to create something that big and boy… Johanna's works today must've made some of the coordinators wet their pants.

When the mother returned to the ground, she was immediately given back her Valmarian badge as proof that she was still in the competition. "Phew… that was a close one" she sighed to herself.

But then a shout caught her ears attention, "Mom! That was beautiful! I've never seen anything like it before! You were awesome!"

"Why thank you sweetie" her mother replied with a smile, "But I have to admit that I was quite nervous. It's been a long time since I've let out my last performance so maybe I went a little too far there"

"Not at all" Ash replied with a smirk, "That appealing was so great that it made my appeals look like a normal battle" they all let out a laugh which lightened up the mood greatly.

As the day finally went on and on and on… all of Ash's gang finished up with a smile. Everyone got to battle and performed and none of them failed in the attempts…

**(Che'val-yere hotel Pokemon garden) (08:45 PM)**

When the match ups finally ended, Major Vile told the other trainers who haven't fought to return tomorrow for their next match ups. With million of trainers and coordinators fighting to no end, the first round was definitely gonna take a lot longer to finish.

The gang returned to the hotel where everyone was staying with wide smiles on their faces. Today was a good day, a great day in fact! Everyone was happy and not only that… they were also very tired.

"Hey there everyone" professor Oak was the first to greet the gang as they entered through the door. "From the looks on your faces, it seems like everything went smoothly" they all nodded with positive answers. "Of course!" Ash shouted, "We all fought and won right!?"

"Yeah!"

Delia was also there and seeing everyone smile made her smile even more. "Well then…" she began, "The professor and I thought you might all be hungry after such an intense battle, so we decided to order something up for you" when they scooted over, a giant feast laid before them. Foods from the four corners of the globe were all set in one table and damn, did they look good. Drooling over their tired bodies, the gang dug into their plates and nabbed as many as they could get.

Before they knew it, ¼ of the table was already gone before the wind even had the chance to blow.

"Oh dear, are we too late?" came a new voice from behind. When Delia turned around, she was greeted by the sight of two Jennies, "Oh hey there you two" Delia replied, "You're not late. You're just in time for the party" the two Jennies smiled back, "Thanks for inviting us Delia, that was kind of you" they said in almost unison.

And suddenly, as if on cue, Brock by to give out his undying love for the Jennies, "Oh my… now it's not one, but two Jennies I'm seeing! The gods must've sent you to me as a test of will and choice! I will ackkk!!" again he was cut short thanks to Croagunk.

With the boy being dragged off by his Pokemons, Ash go up an idea, "Hey everyone, let's have our Pokemons join the fun too!" the gang all agreed and quickly released their Pokemons to join in with the others.

The professor smiled and quickly told the waiter to bring in a large bucket of Pokechows for the Pokemons. The waiter nodded and headed back into the kitchen to produce the ordered meal. But just as the old man watch all the Pokemons join in on the fun, a thought came to mind. "Oh that reminds me…… Ash!" he called out to the boy, "I just remembered that professor Rowan came by this morning to return this" he handed Ash a Pokeball which was already inflated.

"What's this professor?"

"It's the Entei that you caught back in Hoenn" this quickly perked Cynthia's ears slightly. "I sent it to him for a little analysis and planed to give it to you before you left Shinou. Why don't you call it out to join the others?"

Ash was slightly hesitant to call out the legendary Pokemon. Never before he had thought that he would ever catch one so it was kinda awkward. But after taking a short gulp of his saliva, Ash threw out the Pokeball and summoned the creature to his side.

As expected… the Pokemon looked as graceful as the first time Ash laid eyes on it. The legendary Pokemon looked like that of a lion and its claws was even more dangerous than it actually looks. The gang and their Pokemons paused slightly as they glared at their new comrade (nakama) To see a legendary Pokemon like this up close was almost like a blessing of some sort.

Once Entei was out of the Pokeball, it glared around as everybody else starred back at it. It first thought that they were enemies, but when it laid eyes on Ash and his Guardian… he quickly dropped down its guard with a slight purr sound.

"Uh… hi there Entei" Ash greeted the Pokemon, "I'm Ash and uh…" but then suddenly, to everyone's surprise, the legendary Pokemon approached the young boy and began rubbing its soft fur on his arm. "Ahehehehe… hey Entei, cut that out ahahaha" a few minutes later, the legendary Pokemon suddenly began to act like Burno. A spirited Pokemon that was ready to do anything for its master. Once everyone knew that it was safe to approach the creature, they all surround Entei with a warm caring hug. It felt awkward at first, hugging a Pokemon from legends, but then they got used to it. The Pokemon acted like any Pokemon would. It ate and played along with everyone else. But Cynthia seemed to have taken a particular interest in the little one. Starring at a legendary Pokemon dead in the eye was probably something she would want and right now… she had her chance.

"Hey Cynthia" Ash called out, "Come on and try touching Entei's fur. It's really smooth and soft" taking his word for it, the blonde champ bent on one knee and touched the Pokemon with her hands. To Ash's truth, it was amazingly soft… almost like touching cotton.

"You're right… it is soft" she smiled back at Ash.

"Isn't it… it's great to have you on the team Entei" the beast only let out a soft roar, trying not to scare them.

But while the two of them continued to rub Entei's fur, Ash accidentally got extremely close to Cynthia, which made her blush slightly. "Hey look at this" Ash said out, not looking at Cynthia's red face. "Entei's fur are softer around here ahehehe" a few seconds later, he turned to the blonde champ and smiled.

Before the gods knew it, the two champs were once again having a friendly conversation. The others were finally off goofing around or still eating, but it seemed like the fun never ceased to end. Laughters and joy were spread all around that night with no sighs or sadness to take away the mood. They just kept talking and laughing and smiling and laughing over and over and over and over again.

But as time passed faster than it normally does, Richie decided to have a little surprise, "Hey everyone!" he called out to the gang, "Let's have a toast for everyone making it through the first preliminary round!" he held out a bottle of soda to gesture to what he meant. The gang quickly agreed and everyone took out a bottle or glass somewhere in the area. Some of the glasses were only half full thanks to their excessive habit of eating and drinking non-stop. "Alright, is everyone here?" Richie looked around and noticed everyone was there. "Alright then… here's to everyone!"

"Cheers! (Kam-pai!) (gluck gluck gluck gluck gluck!) Ahahahahahaha!" soon later, the whole gang erupted into a small series of laughs and chuckles.

Johanna was also cracking up her gut along with everyone else, but just as she laid eyes on Cynthia, her smile faded. The blonde champion was smiling… and we're not talking about her usual everyday smile that she gives out to everyone, we're talking about a real smile………… one that had not been seen for many years.

But Cynthia was only giving that smile to one particular person.

Ash……

The blonde girl was a lot calmer than usual, and never before had she let her guard down like that. She would always put them up and notice everyone's move intently like she expected someone to attack her or something. Even when she was with the Elite four she would always have her guard up. It was like… she trusted people but at the same time… she didn't trust them.

As Johanna turned to the boy Cynthia was talking to… she was now completely convinced that her theory was true. The blonde trainer has fallen for the boy. She never once thought that it was actually possible. During their time back in the Shinou region, Cynthia would often be seen as a strong person with unmatched vigil. But now… after spending a short time with Ash and the gang, she turned into a completely new person. She was more of her… true self if one would want to call it that.

She no longer hid behind her false mask. Instead, she was becoming more and more like a young teen again. She changed her appearance to match her face and her fashion sense to match up with today's generation. Wherever she walked, all eyes would glare at her with awe. Whoever she looks, will probably melt by the smile on her face.

After seeing all this, Johanna couldn't help but sigh. This only made her mission even harder than before. Not only did she have to protect Ash from Norman and Scott's hands, but now from her best friend too.

This journey has just taken an interesting turn… and who knows what lies at the end of the road? Will it be fame and fortune? Happiness and delight? Or fear and sadness? Only time can tell…

**(Gary's personal training ground) (Arena District)**

Gary was slamming his fists onto a training dummy as he trained his Pokemons for battle. All of them were sweating in buckets for hours and it didn't look like he was going to stop any time soon. To keep him from harm and exhaustion, Jaques was there along with several bottles of water and some snacks from the vending machine. Ever since Gary battled with Ash, the boy has been doubling if not tripling his efforts on getting even stronger.

The flying Pokemon trainer had to admit that he was quite surprised to see Gary's attack falter like that. For Ash to create a counter move in such a short time was probably something that would surprise everyone.

But then suddenly, the main entrance door of the gym opened up, causing Jaques to switch into a battle stance, but then he immediately dropped it when he realized who was on the other side. "Hey there Jaques" it was Emma, the Dark Queen, "Got a message from Havic. He says to meet up with Brendan on the bridge to the Industrial District. Don't ask why, he didn't say"

The blonde trainer looked at her for a moment before darting his eyes back to Gary who was still training and didn't seem to care if he stayed or left. After a few seconds, he then turned Emma, "Sorry… but I can't go. Tell Havic to send someone else in my stead. I have a duty to follow"

Emma sighed back, "Somehow he also knew you'd say something like that" she then turned around and waved, "Well, it looks like I'll have to cover for you. Later fly boy" and with her gone, the blonde trainer returned to his seat and opened up a bottle of water for himself. Just watching Gary train was more than enough to make him hungry.

**(The next morning) (Che'val-yere hotel lobby) (09:00 AM)**

Today was another day here Valmarian city. With the sun rising high into the sky and not a speck of cloud in the air, everyone had a feeling that something good was going to happen today. The Valmarian league was probably continuing by now so Ash and his friends had the whole week off to train or do whatever they want to do. However… it seems like Ash was the first person to wake up from the late night hangover.

The signs of fatigue was as clear as sand in the Sahara dessert. His eye lids were half open as he starred at the morning breakfast menu. The frequent yawns he gives out every minute and of course, his wobbling body.

"Ummm excuse me (ano……)" said the waitress who was standing next to the tired boy, "Have you chosen what you're going to eat yet?"

Ash seemed to have awakened slightly, "Huh? Oh yeah… I'll just have a #5 set please" the waitress nodded back after writing down what she had ordered, "Ok then. I'll be back in five minutes"

With the waiter gone, Ash slouched back onto the couch and rested his aching arms and legs. He completely forgot what happened after he passed out last night. The only thing he could remember was talking about something with Paul and then… blank. It's as if the whole incident was jumbled around his head.

"Man… even after last night… I'm still tired (Pika…chu)" his little companion agreed whole heatedly. "I wonder how the league is doing right now?"

"Well if you're wondering, why don't you find out" came a new voice from behind. When Ash turned his tired head around, he was greeted by the sight of another elderly looking man in a scientist's lab coat. The man was probably just a little older than professor Oak and his hair was definitely longer too. He had a white long mustache that extends just out of his face and a short beard that was recently trimmed down to size. He carried with him a cane stick and hat a gentleman's hat wrapped around his arm "Hello there young fella! Sorry I didn't mean to disturb your nap time"

"Uh… no… not at all" Ash replied dumbly.

"Anyway, judging from the tone of your voice, you must be a Pokemon trainer competing in the Valmarian league correct?" he let out a wide smile to which Ash nodded back. The old man then sat on the opposite couch and placed his cane on the sides. "If you wish, I could show you. Do you happen to have a Pokedex with you by any chance?" Ash quickly searched through his back pocket and handed him his Pokedex. To say the least, the old man seemed quite surprised, "Oh my… this is the Pokedex 3000. The latest model made in Valmarian city. I've only seen a handful of these with several trainers"

"Well actually" ash began, "A friend of my mom bought me that for me when I lost mine"

The old man laughed, "Hahahaha… you must lose things very often then hehehehe" Ash simply pouted sheepishly at him. "Ahahaha… sorry about that. Anyway… this Pokedex seemed to have been updated recently too. Now if I put this here and this here…" he began tampering with the Pokedex's control log, putting one wire over the other and placing some sort of microchip at the bottom. After a few seconds, he was done. "There you go. Good as new" he handed it back to Ash. "Now if you press the red button at the bottom, you can view the on going battles happening and how many competitors are left in the match ups" he explained, "I've also added in the list of names of competitors as well, so whenever you see a trainer, it will tell you who they are and what types they specialize in"

"Wow!" Ash said in amazement. "Let's see here… how about… me?"

The Pokedex quickly popped up and answered in its robotic voice.

Name: Ash Ketchum

Class: Trainer

Hometown: Pallet Town, Kanto

Specialization: Various types

Contestant #: 4097

"Hey, this is pretty handy" Ash chuckled, "Thanks a lot mister……" by the time Ash was able to look back up to where the man was sitting, the old coot was gone… as if he never existed. "Hey… where'd he go? (Pikachu?)" not even Pikachu nor Rosa was able to notice the old man's disappearance.

Just as the boy looked around to thank the old man, another loud voice entered the hotel which nearly rocked the very foundation of the building. "HELOOOOOO everybody! We're here!" Ash covered his ear from the vibration of the high pitched voice and gritted his teeth to get rid of the sound. He only knew one person that could ever turn to a pitch that high and no, we're not talking about those people who sing in the opera house. "We're the Cerulean Sensational Sisters!" it was none other than Daisy, Violet and Lily, the three so called gym leaders of Cerulean city.

"Daisy? Violet? Lily?" Ash said their names in synch. When the three sisters noticed the boy, they became ecstatic, "ASH!!!" they all shouted in unison and they hugged the boy tightly in their arms, "How are you doing?" asked Daisy, "We haven't like… heard from you" said Violet, "Did you compete in the first prelim round yet?" asked Lily

"Uh… yeah… but what are you guys doing here?" Ash asked after finally breaking free from their grasp, "Are you three performing something around here?"

"Oh… right" Daisy smiled, "We were invited by the Pokemon league to set up the Christmas Party. Ever since the world saw our party in Cerulean gym, they wanted us to be the MCs for the New Year's batch"

"Hey that's great!" Ash replied excitingly.

"Isn't it?" Daisy added with another one of her wide smiles, "We can't wait to get started. My sisters and I are planning to head off to the Central District the moment we get our rooms. Are you staying here as well?"

Ash nodded back in reply, "Yeah and so is everybody else. Professor Oak was kind enough to get us our own rooms too"

"Oh that's wonderful!" said the eldest sister. "You and all of your friends under one roof! It's like a dream come true! Oh then that must mean Misty is here as well! What room is she in?"

Click…

Ash's mind suddenly reverted back to the past. A slight sting of pain lodged into his heart causing several parts of his body to ache badly. He once thought that he could forget about the fight and move on… but it seemed like terrible memories like these would always come back no matter if you want it to or not.

Note: Daisy is the oldest followed by Violet, Lily and Misty

Daisy suddenly noticed the boy's pained look and was now worried if something might've happened, "Is everything alright Ash?" she asked quickly which brought the boy out of his thoughts, "You were dozing off there for a moment. Is something wrong?"

But then the boy quickly forced out a small smile, "No… it's nothing" he said finally, "Misty is probably still in her room sleeping, so you might just want to register first. Why don't when you come back after you meet up with the officials" the three sisters seemed to buy his explaination for now, but they could tell that something was definitely wrong. Ash wouldn't be able to lie himself out of a snakes den even if he wanted to. But instead of putting pressure on the tired boy, they decided to leave it for now because they had more pressing issues to take care of.

With the three sisters gone, Ash got back to his couch and noticed that the breakfast he ordered was already there. He picked up the sandwich that was meant to be an appetizer for the meal, but as he dangled it in front of his face, he didn't feel that hungry anymore. In fact… he felt kind of disgusted and his stomach churned at every moment.

Taking his heavy heart, he put down the sandwich and placed it back down onto the table. He looked up to the nearest window and watched as the winds blew through the nearby trees. The first day of the Valmarian league has finally passed and all of them seemed to have won their battles with flying colors… but little that he knew… that this was only a calm… before a coming storm…


	56. Safer Than Sorry Part 1

**Chapter 56: Safer Than Sorry (Part 1)**

**(Narrator's POV)**

Our story begins a few days after the gang had finished through the first round of the Valmarian prelimanry. With a whole week to spend and a city to explore, what better way to kill time then to relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the city of Valmarian? The place was big and a city this big would always have something to attract tourists.

**(Back to normal POV) (Half Way Home Inn) (Hot spring) (Old Town District)**

Ash and his friends were taking a nice relaxing bath at the old hot spring deep in the northern part of the city. The place was an active volcano, but never in a million years has it once erupted. The boys and girls were separated of course and with nothing but the sound of the flowing water to cool their ears off, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves nicely.

"Ahh… now this is the relaxing" Ash moaned with great pleasure as he found himself a comfortable spot on the side. His Pikachu was also there too and they both had the same facial expression which earned some giggle from the boys. However… what disturbed them the most was probably Rosa. She was also by Ash's side, taking a dip into the spring with a slight smile on her face. She didn't seem to care about the stares she was getting from the other patrons, but if they should make one wrong move, they can expect one heck of a beating from her.

A few moments later, Soledad's voice came up from the door. She wanted to speak with them without looking at them. She knew that some men had their own pride. "Hey boys, I'm leaving your towels here on the hangers. Come and get them when you're done"

"Thanks a lot Soledad" Ash shouted in reply.

"No problem" she added, "My grandfather owns this hot spring so stay in as long as you want"

"We will" Brock answered.

After the girl left to join in the female's side of the spring, Ash and the other boys slouched back to their original position and relaxed their muscles. After experiencing non-stop winter for months, a trip to the hot spring was probably a great turn around for their bodies.

"It's great to finally get a chance to relax like this" Tracey commented with a smile plastered on his face, "Back in Hoenn, it was always snowing ever since we left Petalburg city. A hot spot light this can really take the stress away"

"I know what you mean" Kenny added as he too, fell into a comfortable position. As he took a look around, he could see everyone had their own unique way of relaxing. Paul was reading a book not once gazing out of its pages. Drew, Ash, Richie, Brock and Tracey were lying with their backs on the side, nearly going to sleep. Todd was adjusting the lens on his camera without any worries since his new camera was completely waterproof. And with all of them having a peaceful time, it was high time he got himself some shut eye as well.

But before he could take his nap, several feint yet familiar voices echoed through the wooden wall behind him. He took a look and thought at first that it was just the wind and water playing tricks on his ears, but after listening closer to the wall, he could hear the voices of the girls chatting on the other side. "Hmm?" having his curiosity take over, the boy crept closer to the wall and placed his ears on the wood. The voices were feint but they were loud enough to hear. "Hey guys, get over here"

Drew was the first to react and approach the wall, "What's up Kenny?" but then the Shinou coordinator simply gave him the 'shh' sound to keep him quiet, "Shhh… listen" the green haired boy complied to his wishes and placed his ears on the wall. To his surprise, he could hear some laughter and minor chitchatting happening on the other side.

**(Girl's hot spring)**

Every female member of the gang were having a lovely relaxing hot spring bath on the other side of the entry house. The only thing that separated them from the gaze from the boys was a thin wooden wall reinforced with some cement. But with the time flowing back so quickly, the wall itself seemed to be deteriorating fast. The wall was still in great shape so they were certain that there was no peeping tom in the area, but they couldn't be too sure, so the girls wrapped their bodies with white cotton towels.

Cynthia and Johanna were on one corner relaxing their old (AHEM!) er… I mean, beautiful skin as they gazed upon the morning sky. May, Dawn and Duplica were on another corner giggling and chatting like young normal teens would. Zoey, Soledad and Anabel on the other hand, simply relaxed on one side of the steamy areas and cooed themselves to sleep.

"Hey May" Johanna called out, "Do you mind having Blaziken use flamethrower? The water is getting a bit chilly"

"Sure" the girl replied as she picked out a Pokeball from the sidelines, "Come on out Blaziken" the humanoid bird appeared, roaring its fire through its wrists. "Now Blaziken, flamethrower!" in an instant, the water began to steam up even more, causing the girls to melt like jellies (not literally) the heat of the water was just perfect.

"Ahh… much better" the mother moaned as the heat and steam caught up with her toes.

"Geeze mom, do you really need to heat things up?" Dawn whined from her group

But her mother just placed a finger up and waved it, "Now now Dawn… as a coordinator, you must always keep your body well tended and cared for. You never know when our next performance will be. Besides… don't you want to look beautiful for a certain someone?" she cooed the last sentence earning a blush from her daughter.

"Mom!"

"Tee hee hee. Oh don't take it too personal dear, I'm only speaking the truth tee hee hee" Dawn's face was so hot that when she put her head down the water, hot bubbles began popping out. "Oh come on now Dawn, don't be shy. I bet your friends also have a certain interest in someone too" May, Duplica and Anabel suddenly began to turn reddish pink the moment she finished her last sentence. With everyone bubbling under water level, Johanna couldn't help but smile, "Hey I know. Why don't we go to the amusement park this afternoon in the Merchant's District? I heard that they have a lot of great attractions there too. We can ride the roller coaster, the merry-go-round or maybe even the Ferris wheel"

"That sounds like a great idea" Soledad agreed to her idea, "I know a great place where they sell the best pies. I can set up a bus to bring us all to the Merchant's District" she quickly turned around and picked up her cell phone which was lying a few meters on the square shaped rock.

"An amusement park?" Dawn asked with a confused brow raised. She knew that her mother was plotting something and treating them to the amusement park wasn't something she would do very often. "What's the catch…?" she said suspiciously with a lot of distrust in her voice.

"Why Dawn, whatever do you mean?"

"You're planning something… aren't you?" Dawn replied to her untrustworthy innocent act.

"Of course not silly. But just so you all know: Romance has a way of surprising you when you're in the amusement park" she cooed in a professional tone which was added with her unique acting skills.

As Johanna slouched back onto her comfortable position, she could already see the different expressions coming out from the girls. Dawn had that slightly pinkish blush coming from her cheeks with her face halfway below the water. Duplica was twitching her fingers on a nearby rock trying to scratch her name onto the surface along with a cupid arrow. May had her face completely buried under the water, just leaving her nose up to breath the air. And surprisingly for Johanna, Anabel was also twitching her thumbs together with a slightly crimsoned face.

But just as Johanna gestured towards Ash, Cynthia began to have her own thoughts as well. She imagined herself in a romantic secluded spot in the park having a little ice cream break. On the background they have the sunset and Palkia and Dialga were there too. With these thoughts in mind, a feint blush came across her cheeks but not as obvious as the other girls.

"You look awfully happy again… Cynthia…" Johanna hissed behind her back with a snake tone. Cynthia almost jolted out from the pool, but she just kept a leveled head under the water. "WHO SAID YOU COULD THINK HAPPY THOUGHTS?!!!!!?" the afro headed woman suddenly began pulling the blonde champ's cheeks and plucking her nose like she was made out of rubber. "STOP THINKING ABOUT HIM IN SUCH A HAPPY MANNER!!!"

**(Back at the boy's corner)**

"It looks like they're arguing about something" Kenny stated as he tried to listen closer along with Drew.

"I wonder who they're talking about" said Brock suddenly which shocked the two of them. "AH! Brock! Shhh!!" they said together.

Once Paul caught scent of their strange activity, he let out a sigh and warned them, "You know… eaves dropping at other people's conversation can get you into big trouble" but they simply ignored him and went on to put their ears on the wall. Ash on the other hand slept like a log along with his Pikachu. Once the temperature of the water was high enough, the boy felt like doing nothing but to relax his muscles.

**(Back at the girl's corner)**

After calling the bus station of their next departure, Soledad closed her cell phone and turned back to the gang, "Alright, there's a bus leaving at the station in about two hours. If we leave in thirty minutes, we can make it there without much delay" she explained, which was then earned with several nods from the gang. Johanna however was still busy plucking Cynthia's face with her bare hands.

But just before the others could get a chance to react, a knock came through the door. "Mistress Soledad, mistress, are you in there" in was a girl, probably in her mid teens who came in, "I'm sorry to disturb you mistress, but the others have some disturbing reports to give" this quickly perked up the Kanto coordinator champ to flinch slightly.

"Where are they now?" she asked professionally

The young teen hastily pulled out a cordless phone from her back and handed it to her boss. Soledad gladly took it as she stood from the pool. "Excuse me" she said politely to the gang, "I really need to take this. I'll meet you guys when you're done"

"Ok…" Dawn and May said in unison.

Once the 'ace' coordinator was gone, the other girls couldn't help but wonder what could be so important that made Soledad lose her usual coolness. "That was strange" May added with a slight hint of worry.

**(Valmarian city streets) (Downtown District)**

Team Rocket, the unbelievably annoying group of the entire cosmos was on the streets of Valmarian once again disguising themselves as salesman. But instead of selling hotdogs they were now going to the ice cold ice cream for a change. Their stand was called the Frozen Cat's Paw which earned some strange remarks from the customers.

"Get your ice creams, get your ice creams here! Get them while they're still ice!" James sponsored with his own voice. Meowth on the other hand was waving their temporary flag on top left and right to catch some attention. Jessie was the one pulling the stand along with them. I guess these guys know teamwork after all. After a few minutes of traveling, they decided to stop to make their sales here, "This looks like a good spot to set up shop" James declared as he put down several buckets of ice cream on the ground.

"Easy for you to say" the red head replied with a tired sigh, "We were only able to sell five of those cones in six hours and if we can't meet our ends we'll have to eat ice cream for dinner again"

"You're right it is odd" James stated with an acknowledging face, "Even if this is only basic ice cream, I was sure that we'd sell a couple of buckets already" but then Meowth only gave a 'are you seriously asking that question?' look. Unable to tolerate the two's stupidity, he decided to explain, "Maybe it's because people don't eat ice cream during the winter season!!!!!!" he yelled out so loud that even their ears were about to go numb.

After they calmed down their senses, a customer approached them, "Excuse me, but I'd like one vanilla cone with the works" she ordered with a slight smirk.

The trio were about to go in and get the order done, but when they caught sight of the woman who ordered it, their eyes were shocked. "WENDY!!!" oh yeah… it was Wendy. The Team Rocket weapons specialist.

The new yet old face only gave them a smirk, "Well… it took you guys long enough to recognize me" Wendy began with a chuckle, "I see that you three must be really desperate to be seen in those uniforms"

"What are you doing here!?" Jessie hissed offensively with her hand grabbing a bucket of ice cream. "You're not here to steal our scheme again are you!?"

"Oh of course not" Wendy replied with another laugh, "Selling ice cream isn't exactly my thing. I'm more into those BIG opportunities that pops up every now and then. Who knew that Valmarian city could actually be a real goldmine when you know the right people" with a flick of her finger, a genuine Ferrari appeared near the sidewalk with a handsome looking driver added as a bonus. "Besides, you three look good in those getups"

"What are you talking about?!" Jessie yelled back while thinking of a good excuse, "This is… this is our disguise! We pass through the city like this and steal Pokemons while we're at it!"

"And we're doing quite well thank you very much!!" James added in their defense.

But Wendy simply laughed at them. "Yeah… I believe you" she said sarcastically, "Well… I'd better go… don't want to interrupt you on your… _sales_. Later… losers" the moment she got on the car, she put on her sun glasses and notified the driver to go right away.

With Wendy speeding out in the distance, Jessie gritted her teeth so loudly that some of the other pedestrians began to turn away from the stands. "That… lousy… no good…" she said between her grinding, "When I get my hands on her, she's gonna (grumble grumble!)"

"But Jessie!" James pleaded, "Don't you know what this means!?" the other two members of the trio quickly stopped their gritting and focused on the blue haired boy, "If Wendy is here, that means the rest of the group must be here with her! Who knows? Maybe even Butch and Cassidy could be here right now!" this immediately got Jessie's attention well enough to make her think.

"Then it looks like the competition is just beginning!" the red stated with fiery eyes, "If we're gonna beat them to the big loot then we're gonna have to do things the fast way! Meowth, we need parts and we need them fast! We need a machine that can topple them all!"

"Way ahead of you Jessie!" Meowth replied holding a blueprint, "This is going to be my latest creation yet! But we're gonna need more parts than normal. Probably a hundred times more"

"Then we'll just have to steal them!" she then placed her fist in the air, giving out her serious intentions, "From here on out Team Rocket will now take the battle seriously! And there's nothing on this pathetic world that can stop us!!!!"

"Yeah!!"

Growl……

Unfortunately, the only thing that could stop them… was their own stomach, "Oh… I just remembered, we didn't have lunch yet" James groaned as he held his hungry stomach. "Talk about an interruption" Jessie added with an equal groan to James. "Alright then! Team Rocket will take this battle seriously AFTER we have lunch! So……… to the restaurant!"

"HO!!"

**(Time skip) (12:03 PM) (Merchant's District)**

After getting themselves out from the hot spring and into the buses, the gang finally arrived at the Merchant's District to witness the amusement park perform on its debut. The street vendors were really selling out their stocks and almost every ride had a long line in front of them. With so many attractions catching their eyes, Ash decided for all of them to split up and meet back at the center of the park by evening.

Once everyone was separated, Ash decided to do a little scooting on his own. Rosa stayed by his side, giving the area a good look as well. After spending so much time with Ash, the young Guardian sure learned a lot about humans.

The shops on the sides offered a lot of unique trinkets from different regions and surprisingly, every towns or cities the clerks mention seemed to ring a bell on the boy's head. I guess after traveling for four years, he's practically been everywhere in and out of the country. The boy has been through almost every part of the world that it almost seemed like the planet itself was just too darn small.

But just as he browsed through the selections of knickknacks on the sidewalk, he spotted a certain blue haired coordinator trying out some new threads. "Dawn?" he called out to which the girl quickly turned around. "Oh hey Ash" she replied casually, "Hey… tell me honestly. Do I look better with a Piplup costume or a Buneary costume?" she held out the two costumes and placed them in front of the mirror to get a good reflection on herself.

Ash looked at her for a moment and thought carefully. He didn't know what the girl liked and his fashion sense was probably worse than Harley's. He didn't really care on how he looked on the battlefield. As long as he can still fight, he wouldn't mind going into the field on his PJs.

"Hmm… dunno" he said honestly, "I don't really care much on what I wear"

Dawn simply gave out a small sweat drop, "Well you could at least tell me which one I would look better on" she pouted slightly, giving that unfavorable look. But Ash only chuckled back in reply, "Oh come on Dawn. You know I'm not good with this stuff. Besides, I actually wore this jacket back all the way in the Hoenn region"

"No wonder you don't look unique" she replied with a huff, "Don't you know that people judge you by the clothes that you wear!"

"They do?"

"Of course!" she yelled, "That's why I'm gonna help you get some new clothes! Come on! I don't normally say this to guys, but I'll make you an exception. Its dress up time!" she immediately pushed Ash into the changing room and began tossing him shirts, pants, shorts and other accessories like crazy. "Try them all on!" she ordered from the other side of the curtains, "Those are some of my favorites"

"Dawn, are you sure this is necessary?" Ash asked holding up several pieces of tunic on his side.

"Of course they are! I got them all from this magazine here" she held out the 'Fashion Today' mag and threw it in along with the other clothes, "Look in that magazine and try out the clothes you want. You want to look like a star when you're out on the battlefield!"

In the end, Ash sighed in defeat. He knew that Dawn wouldn't let him out of there unless he changed into something else. Usually he would go with the normal hero like costume, but now it looks like Dawn's magazine only had the strangest looking clothes one would ever see. This magazine was definitely for girls who are attracted to male celebrities and stuff, but who knows?

Seeing that he have nothing to do for the next few hours, Ash opened up the pages and scanned the contents of the book for some good looking and perhaps normal looking clothes to wear. "Well… it looks like we're stuck in here Pikachu" he said to his little yellow companion. "Hmm… let's see. I wonder what they wear nowadays"

On the outside of the changing room, Dawn, Rosa, Buneary and Piplup were waiting anxiously for the boy to pick. Disturbingly for some people, the two Pokemons she called out were waving flags like Ash was in some sort of battle.

(Note: This part here was compiled by my sister! In no way I am ever gonna read girl's magazines! I have only seen the cover but never before read any of its contents so don't go jumping on conclusions ya hear!? GOOD!)

**First choice: Casual echo**

A long black sleeve inner shirt that goes right just below his elbows covered by a blue short sleeve T-shirt, and added with a Pokemon symbol at the center. Ash's hair was a bit more rugged and he no longer wore his usual trademark cap. His lower part was long blue pants with white stripes and his shoes were pure red.

Pikachu was also wearing the same thing but with a more linear look.

**Second choice: Modern day 'hottie' (my little sister's favorite)**

Ash wore a white T-shirt covered by a long sleeve unbuttoned jacket and with the Pokemon logo stipend on his back. A pair of sun glasses dangled just outside his upper pocket giving him that cool look and his pants and shoes were completely black as well. His hair was just as rugged as before, but one small bundle was dyed completely blue to give him that attractive taste.

Pikachu also wore the same thing but his sun glasses were already on his eyes.

This earned him a feint blush from Dawn, Buneary and some of the passing customers in the area as well. With Ash changing in and out like that, the manager was more than happy to have him reserve that changing room for awhile.

**Third choice: Post modern d****elinquent**

This time, Ash was going for the bad boy look. He threw away all of his goody two shoes look and changed into a gray hoodie that over lapped his hair. His inner T-shirt was plastered with all sorts of messy colors giving him that 'I'm not a clean guy' look. He also had with him several gold 'bling blings' as you may call it dangling on his neck and to finish it off, he got himself some piercings on his nose and ears. His pants were also completely black making him look like a Goth or something.

Pikachu was also again the same with his master. His ears were pierced more than six times and a giant gold Pokeball was dangling on his chest.

This earned them a major negative from Dawn and her Pokemons, but when the girl looked to her left, she noticed several Goths groups were giving Ash the thumbs up. From where they came from? No one will probably ever know.

**Fourth choice: Modern day gentleman**

This time, Ash went into the deep side of the nobles. He put himself in an almost completely black attire and found himself a nice looking tie. He had in him a white long sleeve T-shirt that had buttons at the end of the sleeves. A black tie hung around his collar and to cover it all, he put himself a nice black looking vest. His pants were a bit tight but good enough to maneuver in freely without ripping them apart. To top it off, the boy combed his hair slightly downwards and added to his side, a short cane stick. No modern gentleman should be seen without one.

His Pikachu also wore the same thing but he added with him a gentleman's hat and a shorter cane stick.

Again, Dawn blushed madly along with Buneary with heart shaped eyes. But then suddenly, several business women came out of nowhere and began asking Ash if he wanted a secretary or something. Who would've thought that clothes can change you into what you are?

**Fifth choice: Early European paperboy (winter version) (my sister's top 20 list)**

Ash was no longer in the land of modern or post modern times. He traveled back to the good old days where technology was barely an issue. Almost everything he wore was brown. A brown barrette that replaced his cap, a brown jacket that covered his white short sleeve T-shirt, large brown cargo pants and to top it all, he covered his neck with a red scarf. When the world should see Ash now… some of the girls would say that this winter had just gotten hot. (not my line)

Pikachu was also wearing the same thing and added himself a small bag that overlapped his body and allowed him to carry several newspaper rolls.

**Sixth choice: The wandering guitarist (my sister's top 5)**

This time, Ash was going to one of his own favorites. Instead of being a people's person, he decided to change into a lonely wanderer and his Pokemon. His cap was replaced with a cowboy's hat that dangled behind his head. A coat that covers his upper body and old western cowboy pants. And of course, no cowboy can be perfect without his own cowboy boots. And to top it all off… the boy placed a guitar on his back and posed like one of those mysterious strangers that just happened to walk into town. With his deep stare and cool like poise, the boy can make any girl faint just by looking at her. (well… at least that's what my sister said)

This time Pikachu decided to be different from his master. Instead of wearing the same outfit, he decided on a more, wild life. The little yellow mouse quickly put on an Indian headband that was nicely decorated with a Pigeot's feather and a tiny leather vest that fit through his arms (paws)

**(End of fashion)**

After trying on a couple of other outfits from the magazines, Ash decided to stay with his old one. Fashion wasn't exactly something he was conscious about and that's probably the only reason why he didn't score top during contest matches. Once he was suited up, he turned to Dawn who was already paying for some of the stuff she was buying. Apparently her mother was a collector of cute and funny dresses and loves to buy more whenever the opportunity arises.

"Thank you, and please come again" said the clerk with a slight bow. Dawn bowed back and quickly turned to Ash who seemed to be ready to leave. "You done Dawn?" he asked with Pikachu and Rosa by his side. The blue haired coordinator nodded back, "Yup, I'm just buying a few things for me and mom" and when she meant a 'few' she meant like two basket full of clothes. "Where are you going Ash?" she asked the boy.

"Not sure…" he replied as he thought of what to do, "Hey! Wanna go and check out the roller coaster? I heard that it's a lot of fun!" with nothing to do, the two of them exited the store to check out the amusement park rides.

**(At the amusement park center)**

After a three minute dash from the store, Ash and Dawn arrived together at the roller coaster entryway gasping for some air. The ride was everything a roller coaster should be. The carriage would carry the riders through a series of twists and turns for about six minutes and again for another round. The place was fairly big and the ride looked extremely exciting. But the only problem was that there was a long line at the entryway. Apparently the ride was so famous that it attracted a lot of tourists and thrill seekers alike.

When the two of them saw how long the line was, they immediately let out a small sweatdrop, "Looks like the roller coaster's out of the picture" Dawn stated with a little smile. Ash agreed, but he wasn't gonna let one ride spoil his day. Quickly recovering from the shock, the boy sighed, "Well… why don't we look for some other things to do huh Dawn?"

Dawn agreed whole heartedly and before anyone knew it, the two of them began to explore the rest of the Merchant's District together. The amusement park was huge that much goes without saying. There were still plenty of attractions on the street and luckily, there was a puppet show happening at the district square which was interesting for the children.

By the time the two of them finished through the park, Ash immediately spotted a small restaurant by the entrance which seemed to have caught his stomach's attention. "Hey, why don't we eat there for awhile?" he recommended to which Dawn agreed to immediately. They remembered that they haven't had any lunch yet.

"Welcome to Dodrio Dinner" said the waitress, "Can I take your order?" Ash quickly ordered his usual meal: Cheese burger, fries, soda, and fried potato. Dawn just picked out a random salad on the menu and shooed the woman away. When the two of them were finally alone, Pikachu, Rosa and Piplup began to chow down on their own food to pass up the time while the humans chatted on topics that would idly pop up from time to time.

"Haa…" Dawn sighed to herself, "I can't believe that it's already been a week since we've arrived here" she gazed outside the window and starred upon the empty space between her and the fountain that laid just a few feet from the restaurant. "Yeah…" Ash agreed, "With everything that we've been through, it all feels like that it just a dream huh…" Dawn nodded back in reply.

As the two of them continued to wait for their order to come up, Ash decided to slouch back on his seat and move his body onto a more comfortable position. "I can't wait for the second round to begin" the boy began, "I wonder who I'm gonna battle on the next round. If that person's a rock trainer than maybe I should get all of my water Pokemons and…" Upon hearing this, Dawn let out a chuckle. The boy continued to amuse her to no end, "That's you alright… always thinking about battles" she humored, "I can see why they call you champion"

But just as their food finally arrived, Ash's Pokedex-phone began to ring, halting the boy from eating his lunch. "Hello?" he answered.

"Hey Ash, it's me Todd" came the photographer's voice, "I got your number from professor Oak"

"Hey there Todd" Ash replied, "What can do for ya?"

"Actually…" Todd blushed slightly embarrassed to say his reasons, "I just joined up with the 'V-city News' today and I was hoping… that you'd care for a little interview?"

"An interview?" Ash cocked up a brow of curiosity. To tell the truth, there had barely been any interviews with the boy at all. Due to his constant travels around the world, a reporter would have to use a military satellite along with the best personal tracking crew in the entire world just to even find him. Todd nodded back, "Yeah, I wanted you to be my first topic for my printout. So please? Pretty please please with cherry on top?"

"Uh… sure" Ash dumbly replied, "But why me?"

The young photographer only rubbed the back of his head and smiled falsely, "Ahehehe… well… actually… the truth is… the company's offering a big reward to the first person to get an interview with you" Ash only let out a sweat drop to express his odd feelings. "I knew there was a catch somewhere"

"So why we meet somewhere around later this afternoon?" Todd suggested

"Yeah… I guess" Ash replied before suddenly remembering something, "Oh… wait I can't… I promised Richie and Kenny that I'd train with them back in the hotel"

"That's ok" Todd waved it off, "How about later this evening when…" but just before the boy could finish that sentence a sudden rumble could be heard coming from his side of the phone, "Eh? What's that noise?" before the photographer could even know what hit him, a swarm of news reporters and freelance journalists attacked him for control over the booth phone, "AHHHH!!!"

"Mr. Ketchum!!" said one of the reporters, "I'm from V-city News! Can we have an interview with you please!?"

"Back off punk! This is my story!" said another who held a battle axe. After a whole series of fights and harmful sounds came through, Todd's face suddenly splattered on the video screen having his cheeks squashed like a splattered egg, "Ash!" he shouted through the phone, "I'll call you again later! Don't forget that interview!!!" and with that last scream, the screen died out leaving Ash and Dawn to wonder if they should go and help him or stay where they are.

**(Time skip 30 minutes)**

After finishing their meal and paying the bill, Ash and Dawn decided to head out and meet up with the others at the center of the park. But just on their way, the two of them came across a fairly strange store that sells…………… rocks………

"Hey what's this?" Ash's curiosity perked in as he read the store's title, "Pewter city souvenirs? Hmm…" a sense of de-ja-vu began to creep up the boy's skin as he tried to recall where he had seen this name before. "Pewter city?" Dawn's ear perked in as well, "Hey isn't that the city in Kanto?"

"Yeah…" Ash nodded, "But something's familiar about this store… but I just can't tell what… hmmmm…"

"Why don't we check it out?" Dawn recommended, "Come on, I want to see what kind of souvenirs they have" the girl quickly pulled Ash by the arm and quickly entered the worn down looking building. When they entered, they were greeted by a tall tanned man wearing a cap similar to Dawn's except that it was red. "Umm… hello?" she waved nervously at the salesman.

Once the man noticed their presence he let out a soft cough before implying, "Hello… wanna buy some souvenirs from Pewter city?" his voice was a little cold and dry, but it didn't scare Ash. He had faced greater challenge before so this man was no threat to him.

"Umm… what exactly do you sell here?" Dawn asked, not hoping to provoke the man in anyway. The clerk slowly raised his hand and pointed at the selection of oddly shaped rocks (which all looked like plain rocks from a distance) "I sell rocks. Every size has its price. Take your pick" the two trainers looked around and slowly began to wonder if they had made the right choice in coming here. All the rocks that were put on display practically looked the same to them.

But just when Dawn was about to reach for one, a sudden rumble began to occur just outside the store which caught their attention. When Ash moved out of the way, the door to the store burst open revealing a familiar squinty eyed man. "DAAAAAADDDDDD!!!!!!!"

"Brock?" Ash and Dawn said in unison. But the salesman on the other side simply sweat drop in fear. "Oh… uh… hi there…uh… son"

WHAM! POW! PLOP!!

Before the guy had a chance to react, Brock leaped to him with the speed of light and put the salesman in a stranglehold headlock. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING SELLING ROCKS AGAIN!!!!" he shouted loudly. When the man's cap came off, Ash instantly remembered who the guy was, "Hey! I remember you now! You're Flint, the Pewter city gym leader!"

**(5 minutes later)**

After getting Brock off and helping Flint back up on his feet, the four of them sat on one of the tables to find out what's happening. "Ahe… sorry about that" the gym leader apologized, "I didn't know that you'd recognize my store ahehehehe"

"That's ok Flint" Ash understood him, "But why are you doing here? I thought you were taking care of the gym now"

"That's what I want to know too" Brock added crossing his arms. The old man noticed his son's displeasure, but understood that he needed an explanation. After a moment of silence, Flint pulled up a pink letter from his pocket and placed it on the table just enough for them to see, "Well… a couple of weeks ago, when I finished battling one of the trainers, the mayor of Pewter city came to us. He gave me this letter" the three of them quickly huddled in and read the contents of the letter. After another moment of silence and an awkward cough, Ash, Dawn and Brock yelled out to the top of their lunges which strangely lifted the store two feets off the ground.

"WHATTT!!!!!!!"

"Dad! This is… this is… a letter of invitation to the Valmarian league!" said Brock who was the first to recover from the shock, "Did the mayor really give this to you?!"

"Not just me" the father corrected, "Gym leaders from every region are also here to compete along with the Elite Fours and their previous champions"

"Hmm… now that you mentioned it, I did saw a few familiar faces in the Arena District a few days ago" Dawn added as she placed her hand on her chin. "But I didn't see you compete in the first round dad" Brock motioned to his father to which he replied with a small smile, "Ahehe… in truth I haven't even battled yet. I'm still waiting for my name to be called on the speakers so that's why I'm just killing time selling some old junk here"

"ROCKS!" Brock shouted

Dawn nodded, "Well if every gym leaders are battling, then Ash could take them" she motioned to the boy who was simply listening to their conversation, "If Ash beat them once, then he can beat them again. Right Ash?"

"You bet! (Pikapika!)" came his instant reply along with his Pikachu. "But we still don't know who I'm gonna battle in the second round"

"Well the first preliminary round isn't quite over yet so don't worry about it" Flint waved if off, "If I were you, I'd go and train while I still can" this quickly reminded Ash of his promised training session with his companions. "Ah! I almost forgot! I need to meet up with Richie and the others! Come on Dawn!" the boy quickly pulled the girl by the arm and dragged her out before she could take a sip off her tea cup.

**(Outside the Pewter souvenir shop)**

Our not so favorite Team Rocket were snooping around once more to get a lead on Ash and his companions. After filling their stomachs with grubs they now continue their quest on finally getting that Pikachu. "Alright team!" Jessie yelled out, "Let's go out there and nab that Pikachu!"

"Yeah!" the other two cheered.

"But we don't even know where to start looking" Meowth added which dropped the mood down.

"You really know how to bring down the mood don't you?" James inquired sarcastically with a small sob.

"But he has a point though" Jessie agreed, "Since we spent most of the day eating and getting fat, the trail for the twerp seemed to have died out.

"Why don't we just wait then?" Meowth suggested which earned a confused glare from both his partners. "Oh come on, don't tell me you forgot that the twerp usually runs into trouble. Every time we go looking for him, we never find him. So I suggest that we let him find us"

"Hmm… you do make a good point Meowth" James agreed, "Usually the twerp is the one that finds us, not the other way around"

"Then we'll have to set up an ambush!" Jessie recommended immediately, "The kid's gotta come out from one of those tents and when he does, we'll nab that Pikachu!" again, that was probably the roughly sketched theory of the whole plan. "We can start right here!" she quickly pulled out three shovels from her back and gave all of them one each. "Now start digging!"

**(Back with Ash and the gang)**

After Ash had left the amusement park, he immediately made his way to the Pokemon center to meet up with his friends. With the Arena District being used to house the preliminaries the gang had to find some other fields to hone their skills for the next battle that is to come. The Pokemon center was one such places…

"Hey guys!" Ash called out as he entered the Pokemon center with Dawn, "Sorry I'm late, I got hold up at the park with Brock"

"That's ok" Richie waved it off, "The most of us only got here too" with half the gang assembled (Richie, Drew, Ash, Duplica, May, Max, Kenny, Paul, Zoey, Anabel, and Dawn) they immediately head off towards the counter to meet the Oh so familiar Nurse Joy.

"Hey there kids" she greeted them along with her Chancy, "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Hey Nurse Joy" Ash replied with his usual smile, "Do you mind if we use the battlefield at the back of the Pokemon center? My friends and I would like to train for the up coming match"

The nurse's smile turned upside down almost instantly, "Oh I'm sorry, but I don't think you'll be able to use the field for some time" the gang quickly gave out a 'what' and 'why' question. "With the Valmarian league starting already, those who competing are using every fields they could find to train. I even have reservations to use my field tomorrow" she pointed out through the window behind the Pokemon center as gesture to what she meant.

When the gang looked outside, they were amazed by the sight of a packed battlefield!

On every corner of the field was a Pokemon trainer and from the looks of it, the line seemed pretty long. With the pace of the battle now, it looked like it would take hours before the next batch could take their turn.

"What do we do now?" Drew asked the gang, "Do we make a reservation?"

Ash quickly turn to Nurse Joy once more for some assistance, "Nurse Joy, do you know anyplace where we can still train without waiting?" the pink haired woman thought for a moment with his light head before replying, "I'm afraid not. The other Pokemon centers and gym areas are all booked full till next week. I'm even filling some of my aunt's cousin's little sister's daughter right now and even my family is having their hands full with wounded Pokemons"

"Well that's a mess" Max remarked.

"Well what do we do now?" May asked, "Without a field, there's no way we can practice"

"And fighting outside the city limits is out of the question" Paul added with his usual cold tone, "I guess we'll just have to find some other ways to battle"

"Then perhaps I can be of assistance" came a new voice which they all recognized easily. When the gang turned to the new visitor, they instantly knew her name.

"Soledad?"

The Kanto coordinator smiled and waved at them with her bright cheery face, "Hi there. Sorry I didn't mean to eavesdrop on you, but I couldn't help but hear your plea. If you're looking for a training ground, I'd be honored to help you out"

"Really?!" Ash said in amazement. Soledad nodded back and placed one of her hands on her hips, "My grandfather's inn isn't only used as a hot spring. There's a training ground at the backyard and I'm sure he wouldn't mind it either"

"That's great!" Dawn exclaimed, "Shall we go?" she said to Ash which he nodded back immediately. Knowing that the best of every region was coming down on their heels, the gang had to improve their skills fast if they wish to make it through the preliminaries.

**(Valmarian city slums) (Industrial District)**

Binor, the rock Pokemon trainer of the Elite Fives from the Bail Outs was taking a shortcut to the Residential area through the slums. After defeating three of Havic's goons in a battle he only wanted to get back to his lair and sleep. "Man… this bites" he said to himself as he made his way through the pipelines and old sewer areas. But just as he made it passed through the rusted car, a strange voice began to creep down his ear catching his attention. "Huh?"

At first he simply wanted to ignore it and go on home, but when he saw the people talking, his eyes nearly opened as wide as saucer plates. The group of trainers standing near the main sewer tunnel was none other than Red… and it looked like he wasn't alone either. There were two… no… three other people with him but he couldn't see due to the poor visibility around the area. However, he was very certain that the boy clad in red was definitely Red, there was no other fool who would dare mimic his clothing unless they had a death wish.

Seeing that they haven't spotted him yet, Binor quickly hid himself behind one of the large trash bins to eavesdrop on a little conversation.

"Why did you call us… Red?" said the tall looking man with a mustache. "Getting away from the police is fine, but if the members of our gangs find out… then we're going to have a lot of trouble on our side"

"That's understandable" Red replied holding an evil grin up his face.

"Then tell us why you called us already!" shouted the girl who was hiding in the shadows, "Really… if you called us just to blabber at us, then be done with it. I have to run to the store in Downtown District to get some things"

"Patience milady…" said the last of the three who seemed to have a proper gentleman's voice. "I'm certain that our employer has a perfectly good reason for bringing three steps closer to lifetime imprisonment… right?"

Red simply turned around and looked up to the sky, "I called you here, is because we have trouble" the world 'trouble' was enough to silence the three and make them pay close attention to his words, "Brendan and his lackeys are getting bolder…… and it won't be long till he discovers _my_ plans. That is why I need all of you to go into hiding… at least for awhile"

"Brendan?" said the tall man, "Oh… the Pokemon league lackey……"

"Perhaps staying too close to him at all times seemed to have taken its toll" said the woman, "Maybe it would be best if we all keep a low profile for now. You can all stay at my place later"

"Yes… that would be best for now……. Oh and…" but before Red could finish, Binor accidentally tipped a small pebble down which caught their attention. Red was the first to notice so he quickly adjourned the meeting, "That's all for today… I'll contact you when I have more instructions"

The two men quickly disappeared from sight like the shadows themselves, but the girl remained, "What will you do now… Red? If the Pokemon society finds out about our plan, we'll all be ruined"

"Don't worry yourself" he replied coolly, "Its times like this that I always have a backup plan. Just make sure nobody sees you" and with that, the woman vanished as if the wind took her like the sands in the desert. With everyone but Red gone, the lights in the area seemed to have faded as if they never even existed.

**(Half Way Home Inn) (Old Town District) (03:00 PM)**

After a short drive from the Downtown District, the gang made all the way back to the Half Way Home Inn where Soledad's grandfather runs. The place had seen better days that much anyone can tell. The entire inn was supposedly an old compound for one of the rich families during the early days, but that was probably more than a decade ago.

The place was huge beyond the point of reckoning and it contained a lot of eastern culture style, but it was in a state of disrepair. The place had a wall that was tall enough to block the bad view from the outside… a rough guess is that this place would be about two times bigger than the national park you would see in greeting cards. There were seven buildings, each with their own unique functions. The second biggest one that was located around the entrance. From the looks of it, the place was used as a greeting house, but now it seemed to have been turned into a restaurant.

The building connected to that was the kitchen. The old tools left there were barely used except for the old stove and the not-so-modern microwave. The place was so worn down that you could still hear several creeks coming from the wooden floor. And if that's not enough to make you crush the place, then the swarms of Raticate would make you turn tails and run for your life.

The main building at the center of the compound was probably the master's housing. There was everything you need ranging from large futons and a modernized bathroom which…… hasn't been used for almost a year. There were several Ariados nests lying around and cobwebs could be seen practically everywhere.

The building connected to that with through a hallway was the servant's quarters which have been transformed into an inn. There were three floors each with their own rest rooms. The place was good enough to stay in, but a little cleaning here can clearly go a very long way.

At the end of the compound was the bathhouse, which was also provided with the hot springs.

The one next to that was none other than the training field or as the inhabitants call it, the 'dojo'. It was the biggest building in the entire compound with all kinds of necessities. There were six battlefields and each of them had their own element to support the trainers.

And finally the last one connected to the kitchen was none other than the storehouse. It had an underground basement which could be accessed from the outside and to add to that, a little attic to store all those junks that nobody would ever need.

"Alright everyone… we're here" Soledad announced as she opened the slide door for them, "Come on in. Grandpa, I'm home" she shouted, but no one seemed to reply. "Eh? That's odd………… he's usually here this time of day. (to the gang) Why don't you guys head on to the gym first, I'll be with you in a moment" she quickly put away her shoes and dashed off towards the living room. "Grandpa! Grandpa I'm back… where are you?"

BOOM!!!

But just suddenly! An explosion occurred right on cue which caught the attention of practically everyone. The gang quickly rushed to where the explosion originated from in hopes that they can help in someway.

"What was that!?" said Ash who was the first to arrive at the kitchen. "Did something explode!?"

By the time the gang arrived at the entrance of the kitchen, a man probably in his mid 40s walked out with burnt marks all over him. He had a thin gray beard that was attached with his mustache which made him look a lot younger that he actually was and a somewhat chubby body. There was barely any hair only his head and his face size seemed to have diminished through the years.

After that old man took the first few steps out of the kitchen, he suddenly tripped over the stairs and fell to the ground hitting his head on the wooden floor in the process. "Hey mister, are you ok!?" Richie quickly dove in along with the others to help the poor guy up. Drew on the other hand quickly pulled out a fire extinguisher which was conveniently placed at the side of the building. "Hold on!" the green haired coordinator quickly sprayed the man with the extinguisher and hastily went towards the kitchen to douse the slowly growing fire. And not a minute too soon either! If the guy was late by just another minute, the fire would've caught up with the kitchen's gas tank and blow the whole place up to tiny bits of pieces.

"Hey Ash!" Drew called out, "Help me out here!" our young hero quickly left the old man to Paul and Kenny's care and pulled out another fire extinguisher from the rack. May on the other hand called out her Squirtle to help out.

After two minutes of fighting fire with water and extinguisher, the last remaining spark was doused off, making the whole inn safe once more.

"Phew… that was close" said Drew as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. Once Ash made sure that the area was safe, he turned to the old man to find out what happened, "Hey mister, are you alright?" the man let out a few coughs of smoke out of his lunges before turning back to the boy. "I… I think I'm ok…" he said wearily. But then suddenly the man's eyes widened as if he was suffering from a heart attack or something. "Oh NO!!! The stew!!!" he quickly shoved Kenny and Paul away from him and dashed back into the once blazing kitchen.

"Hey wait a minute!" Ash tried to get his attention but failed. Worried that something bad might happen to him, he and Rosa immediately gave chase to help the old man out. But by the time they got to where he was, Ash let out a sweat drop.

The old man was more worried about the stew he was cooking rather than his life. The stove that he used for cooking was burnt down to a crisp and the area around him was scorched. The place almost looked like it could almost fall any minute. This worried the gang… a lot!"

"Hmm… almost perfect" said the old man as he sipped his stew. Ash and the others could only watch as he amused himself with his cooking.

"Ummm… (ano…) excuse me sir aheheheh" Ash said through soft chuckles, "But uh… are you ok?" but the man didn't even turn to them. His focus was completely centered on the plate he was dining. "Umm… excuse me" Kenny interrupted, "Who are you?" again, the old man didn't reply.

But after a few more minutes, Soledad entered the scene with a cell phone in hand. "Grandpa, are you alright!" the man quickly turned his head the moment the woman came in, "Oh! Soledad, you're back! I didn't expect you to come back this early" but before the girl could take a breather, he quickly showed her the stew he made, "Look at this Soledad! I finally got the recipe right! This has to be the right ingredient!"

"What about the kitchen!!" Soledad screamed back at him with foams nearly watering out of her mouth, "Don't escape reality just because you made something out of it! Who's gonna pay for all the damage!?"

"Now now now pumpkin" grandpa replied innocently laughing with his short beard. "With this stew, we'll be able to buy more than a hundred kitchens! Ahohohohohohoho. Let's see what your friends think about it" he quickly turned to the gang in hopes to let them taste the stew that cost him almost half the kitchen, "Here my boy, have some Half Way Inn stew. On the house" Ash was reluctant to take the stew from him, but then decided not to insult him. With a spoonful of stew in his hand, Ash took it all down with one gulp. The others quickly followed and in one minute time, they all suddenly began to turn…… green.

And so for the next five minutes, everyone couldn't help but do a sick face all together. Even Pikachu had to admit that it tasted awful. From the gang's tongues point of view, it was like a mixture of super sour followed by bitter sweet and then finished off with absolute salt.

"Ohh…… I think my stomach just turned inside out" Ash groaned wearily.

"I think my liver just went down the drain… ohhh…" followed Duplica as she rubbed her aching stomach.

After everyone gave out their negative comments about the stew, Soledad turned to her grandfather, "Grandpa, are you making that stew again?" she nagged, "What did you put in them this time?"

"Why a little bit of garlic and onions" he replied innocently like nothing happened, "Maybe I should've added more salt on the first one" seeing that the old man was as ignorant as a Slowbro, Soledad turned her attention back to the gang with an apologetic look, "I'm sorry about that everyone" she began, "It's just that my grandpa likes to cook things without thinking ahehehehehe. Anyway, everyone, I liked you all to meet my Lewis, my grandfather. Grandpa, these are the friends I brought in earlier in the hot springs"

The man smiled back apologetically as well, "I see, it's nice to meet you all. Sorry for the trouble I caused hehehehe, it's just that when I'm cooking, I kinda lose myself"

**(Five minutes later)**

After the gang introduced themselves to him, Soledad and her grandfather immediately brought them to the dojo so the gang can begin their training. Obviously the dojo itself was big, and it had more than enough space to accommodate the gang's needs. There were resting areas near the battlegrounds and luckily the place looked like it hasn't been used by anyone else.

Once Lewis turned on the lights he turned to the gang, "Well here you are" he said with a small smile, "Sorry if the place is a little messy. I didn't really expect anyone other than Soledad to use this room. The battlefields here are not in the best shapes, but they're good enough to train on. You children just help yourselves ok?" the gang immediately nodded back and quickly dashed off to find their own spot to practice on.

With the second preliminary round closing in fast, every bit of practice helps.

"Alright everyone, come on out!" when Ash found his spot on the rock field, he quickly called out all of his Pokemons. "Alright everyone, it's time to prepare for the second preliminary round so I want everyone to give it your best!"

Richie followed, "Alright Sparky, let's see what new techniques we can come up with. Give out a thunderbolt attack!"

Kenny soon entered the field showing off his talents, "Alright then! Alakazam, come out and take the stage! (Alakazam appears) Now use psychic on that rock!"

With the boys dishing out attacks like a crazed group, Dawn and May could only sit back and watch in amazement, "Wow… they looked pretty energetic" said the blue haired coordinator. May agreed but then realized that they had to train too, "Come on Dawn. We wouldn't to get left behind while they get all the glory"

And before Lewis knew it, the whole building was now in full use. Every field was taken and every spot had a trainer or coordinator practicing in it. "Well they're a spirited bunch of kids" Lewis commented on the gang's morale, "If they keep this up, the Valmarian league might actually be worth watching after all"

After a few minutes of training, Kenny decided that it was time to put his Pokemons to the ultimate test, "Hey Ash" he called out to the boy, "Mind if we have a little practice match? One on one, no time limit" Ash was never one to refuse a challenge and this one was of no exception either, "You're on Kenny! If it's a match you want, it's a match you'll get!"

As the two of them got into positions on the grass field, Paul decided to referee the battle for them. However, on the other side of the field, the other members of the gang stopped their training and decided to entertain themselves with this little fight.

"Looks like Kenny is taking on more than he can chew" Dawn commented on the battle, "There's no way he can defeat Ash"

"But don't forget Dawn" Zoey motioned to her, "Kenny's earned his reputation as coordinator too. I'm sure he has a couple of tricks up his sleeves. Let's wait and watch"

"But still…" May added, "I wonder which Pokemon they will use for a grass field"

With Kenny and Ash both ready and in position to do battle, Paul raised one of his hands up to signal the match, "This battle is between Kenny and Ash" he declared, "This will be a one on one battle with no time limit. The first one with a Pokemon standing will be declared the winner" as the purple haired trainer looked at both sides, he knew right away that they were ready, "And… begin!"

Kenny went first "Breloom I choose you!" a strange dinosaur with a mushroom head appeared squawking with confidence. Ash instantly remembered the little grass Pokemon, "Hey, I haven't seen your Breloom in awhile now Kenny. It looks a lot stronger than the last time I saw it" the Shinou coordinator laughed back, "Well my Pokemons and I have been battling for quite awhile now so it's not surprised to see it stronger. But don't think I'll be holding back on you Ash"

"Hey same goes for me" Ash replied picking out a Pokeball from his belt, "I guess it's my turn…… I choose you… Sceptile!" the fully evolved grass Pokemon appeared out in the open folding its arms after putting a straw wheat in its mouth. "Alright Kenny, you can take the first move"

"With pleasure! Breloom, let's start off with an energy ball!" the grass Pokemon quickly unleashed a powerful ball off its mouth but Ash saw it coming and he was prepared, "Sceptile, dodge it and use bullet seed!" the fully evolved Pokemon hastily leaped into the air and fired off a volley of bullets towards Kenny's Breloom. The attack made contact and with just enough hits, the mushroom Pokemon was sent from one corner of the field to the other.

"Arghh! Breloom don't give up!"

Even with the Pokemon down on the ground Ash wasn't get an opportunity like this slip away. "Now Sceptile, use razor leaf!"

"Breloom, use mach punch!" the two grass type got into position and soon found themselves in a deadlock hold. But as expected, Ash's stronger Sceptile proved to be the stronger one. Thanks to its years of training with the boy and working out in professor Oak's lab, Sceptile had grown stronger in both physically and resourcefully.

"Man… that's one tough Sceptile" Dawn noted which was followed by a nod from Max, "Yeah, it's even way stronger than the last time I saw it back in Kanto. It's only been two minutes and Breloom's already tired"

Quickly realizing that taking a power-horse Pokemon like Sceptile head on wasn't going to cut it, Kenny decided to rely on tactic rather than brute force, "Breloom, use stun spore!" the mushroom Pokemon quickly sneezed out a large amount of spores through its body and letting the wind carry it to its target. With the spores surrounding Sceptile's body, Kenny let out a smile… but it short lived when he noticed Ash smirking at the same time.

"Now Sceptile, use pound on the ground!" with its massively large tail, Sceptile followed its master's wishes and slammed the ground creating a fierce shockwave that sent the stun spores away! This caught Kenny off his guard, "Good now let's finish this! Use bullet seed! (bam!) Now leaf blade! (slash!) Now take it out with another pound! (WHAM!!)" with three attacks chained together like a combo, Breloom bounced back again only to get itself down to the ground. But it was still far from finish.

"Whoa what a combination!" May said in amazement. Even Drew seemed to be quite surprised on how truly powerful Sceptile was.

With his plan B on the verge of failure, Kenny had to think of another way to at least make a stand on Ash's Sceptile. "Looks like I'll have to use my best combinations Breloom. You ready!? (Bre!) Alright… get ready Ash, I'm gonna give it all I've got!"

"Hey, I love a good challenge! So bring it on!" the young trainer replied holding his smile.

"Alright Breloom, use energy ball!" the mushroom Pokemon once again charged up the attack and fired it towards Sceptile.

"Sceptile, deflect it!" with one move of the hand, the humanoid grass type Pokemon blocked the energy ball and sent it towards a rock on the other side of the field.

"Whoa! He deflected it with just one hand" Max's eyes would've dropped to the ground if it weren't for his glasses. The longer the gang watches this battle, the more amazed they become of Ash.

"Now Breloom, use double team!" the mushroom Pokemon suddenly began splitting itself into multiple pairs, creating a diversion for the real one. "Ok, now charge in and use mach punch!" unable to tell which is the real one in such a short time, Ash quickly thought up of another way to counter such combination. "Sceptile, use pound 360!" locking its leg on the ground, Sceptile spin itself around in a 360 degree about three times, knocking all the clones out and eventually hitting the real one. But the impact was so hard that it sent Breloom to the air.

"Now Breloom, use energy ball while it's still off guard!" But before the fighting mushroom Pokemon could take a shot, Sceptile was already behind it, "What the! Too fast!"

"Now Sceptile, finish it off with leaf blade!" with one last hit, Breloom slammed its face back onto the ground and fell into deep slumber.

With that blow done, Paul held his hand up in the air and declared the winner, "Breloom is no longer able to battle! The winner goes to Sceptile and Ash!"

"Alright! Good going Sceptile!" Ash congratulated his Pokemon with a wide smile. Sceptile on the other hand simply placed the straw wheat back on its mouth and fold its arms like a true pro.

As the battle finally wraps up, the gang could only sit back and watch in amazement, "Wow… that was amazing" Duplica said a little shook up with the whole battle. Dawn nodded in agreement, "Yeah… Kenny barely even made a scratch on Sceptile"

As Kenny returned his Breloom back into its Pokeball, Paul lowered his hands and sighed boringly.

"That was a great battle Ash" Kenny stated as the two of them met at the center of the field. "Hey you did pretty well too" Ash replied while they shook hands, "Your Breloom certainly improved a lot since I last saw it"

"Yeah… but just you wait Ash. When we finally meet in the Valmarian league I'm gonna be a lot stronger! Just you wait!"

"That's the spirit!" Ash replied proudly at his friend, "Bring it on any time anywhere Kenny, I'll always be ready for you!" the other members of the gang only sweat drop as they watch the two boys play it out to the finish.

**(Time skip) (05:50 PM)**

After training for hours and hours, the gang soon found themselves completely exhausted from practice. Everyone was sweating in buckets and the fields in the dojo were used to their fullest potentials. It would take hours if not days to get this place up and running again.

"Man… I'm pooped" groaned May as she sat on one of the chairs. "I haven't felt this tired since mom and I went on a shopping spree with mom back in Mauville city the other day"

"You think that's bad?" Duplica cut in, "I ran so much, even my toe nails ache" she carefully took off her shoes and massaged the aching parts with her hands. "I don't even think I'm gonna walk for a long time"

But just as they groaned and moaned like the tired trainers that they are, Soledad and Lewis entered the room with two mugs of orange juice and three trays of glasses. "Hey there everyone" the Kanto coordinator called out to get the gang's attention, "Why don't you guys have a little break? I brought some refreshments" no one could reject her offer at all. With speed faster than a living bullet being fired from a pistol, the two mugs were instantly finished and gulped down to the bellies of the trainers.

"Ah… now that was refreshing" Dawn was the first to gulp the whole thing down, "I think I'm ready for another round. How about you Piplup? (Piplup pi)" the little penguin Pokemon chirped back with glee.

But just before the girl could take a step back, Lewis remembered something that he was supposed to do, "Oh that reminds me. Soledad, there was a girl who came by earlier and told me to give you this" Soledad quickly took the letter from the old man's hands and read its contents. The moment she got through the first few sentences, her eyes widened slightly, "Hey everyone!" she waved to the gang which halted their training regime for a little while. "Everyone, I have the report on the second preliminary round!" this quickly got Ash's attention.

In a matter of seconds, the whole group surrounded Soledad and listened to her like she was some kind of prophet or something. "What!? What's happening on the second round?" Ash demanded.

After the gang calmed down a bit, Soledad coughed a few times before saying the contents of the letter out loud, "Well first… the results of the first preliminary round had just ended today. So the second round will probably be starting around the day after tomorrow"

"Two days from now?" Paul clarified with a stern look.

"But what about the second round?!" Richie asked getting impatient with all the intensity.

"I'm getting to that" Soledad calmed him, "The second round preliminary will once again be a one on one trainer. Coordinators will have to do a double performance battle"

"Double performance?" Zoey mimicked with a questionable face, "You mean perform with two Pokemons… right?" Soledad nodded back in acknowledgement. "That's right. And from what my sources tell me… it seems like more than ¾ of the coordinators made it through. So anyone could be paired up with anybody"

"What about the trainers?" Anabel asked also a little impatient.

Soledad quickly looked back at the letter and scanned its contents again, "Hmm… now where was I… ah… here it is. The trainers on the other hand will be doing a………… 3-3 battle?"

"3-3 battle?" Duplica cocked her head slightly to the side in question, "You mean a three on three battle?"

"No… it literally means 3-3" Soledad corrected, "It mean a trainer will have to battle… with three Pokemons at the same time" this earned several gasps from the battle trainers. "Are you sure?" Ash asked hoping that this was some kind of mistake, but sadly Soledad only shook her head in response. "I'm afraid not" she claimed, "My sources around town are very accurate. (looks back at the letter) I've only seen a few 2-2 battles but never a 3-3 battle before. This is highly unusual"

"A 3-3 battle huh?" Paul lost himself in his own thoughts as he moved back to the field, "Hmm… looks like the Valmarian league is getting more and more interesting"

"I've never had to use three Pokemons before" Duplica stated, "How about you Ash? Have you ever had a 3-3 battle before?" the boy gave her an uncertain look, "I did… from time to time. But those were usually on special occasions. I've only had a few 2-2 battles myself and this kind of fight could is hard to manage"

"Well… what are we waiting for then?" Richie turned around and looked to the field, "It's time to train some more! Come on Sparky! (Pika pika!)"

"Well he's certainly in a good mood" Kenny inquired with a raised brow.

"With the second preliminary round coming in, who wouldn't be?" Ash smiled back at him. But just when they about to resume training, the door bell suddenly rang, which caught Lewis's attention. "Eh? Customers at this time?" he then turned to Soledad, "Soledad, can you go and see who that is?" the girl simply nodded back before walking off towards the main entrance.

With the girl off and the gang's stamina recharged, Ash and his friends continued on with their training. But right now… they had to make a decision on who to pick for the second prelim round. Richie had already chosen Zippo, Sparky and Cruz because of their mixture of elements. Paul decided to use Ursaring, Weavile and Elekid… a powerful offensive group. Anabel stick to her true self and chose Espeon, Alakazam and Metagross. With a whole group completely focused on psychic attack, she would prove to be a formidable opponent.

"So are you going with Sparky again Richie?" Ash asked his counterpart. Richie nodded back in reply, "Yup. I'm also going to use Zippo and Cruz too. I've never had a 3-3 battle before so it's best to be prepared"

Ash quickly turned to the boy's three chosen Pokemons and analyzed them, "Well with an electric, fire and ice type, I'm sure you'll do just fine" he cheered him up, "Wanna have a practice battle to get used to it?" if Ash had offered the boy that challenge a few minutes ago, Richie would've taken it up in a heart beat, but right now he had more training to do. "Sorry, but maybe next time Ash. I still need to train Sparky and the others to work together as a team first"

It was an understandable excuse, and Ash could wait a few more days before he offers up another challenge.

But just as the gang continued to train on with their Pokemons, several familiar voices echoed at the back of the room's entrance which caught their attention. "Hey there everyone" it was none other than Johanna and Cynthia the champions of Shinou which was then followed by Soledad.

"Mom? When did you get here?" Dawn was the first to notice her mother's presence.

"Brock told us where you were" Johanna replied with her usual casual smile, "Professor Oak wanted to give this to you but he had some errands to run back at the Central District" she gestured to the two plastic bags she was holding in her arms. "The professor and I went to the market to buy some food because we all know that you were going to be hungry" as she untied the bag, she immediately pulled out two boxes of take out along with some plastic spoon and forks.

**(Kevin's residence) (Residential Area 1) (06:30 PM)**

Kevin, the leader of the Bail Outs and the head of the Elite Fives was taking a break in his house on the first floor balcony overlooking the garden. He was there along with other companions, Eesal, Claire and Kyle. Eesal was out on the garden trying to catch a little Butterfree flying around her, Claire was playing solitaries with a deck of cards and Kyle was simply reading a book.

But this waiting game was probably just an act. Why in the wide-wide world would the four best trainers of the Bail Outs be wasting their time doing something so trivial?

"Young master…" came a new voice which caught Kevin's attention. As he jerked his head towards the entrance, he noticed that it was none other than his butler, "Sorry for disturbing you young master, but your friend Binor has just arrived"

"Oh has he?" the young blonde boy replied calmly, "Thank you Alfred, please show him in" with a bow from the butler, the rock Pokemon trainer entered the room with a scowl on his face. "I see you're here Binor. What took you so long?"

The man only shot him an apologetic look, "Sorry about that boss, I had to take a little detour in town today, but nothing biggy"

"What's the matter Binor?" Claire taunted, "Are the rookies giving you too much trouble?"

"Speak for yourself!" he barked back, "I don't see any of you guys helping out! If you haven't noticed, a lot of our trainers have been going to Gary's troupe! We even nearly lost the Merchant's District today!"

"What's your point?" Kyle said finally, "Even if we did lost control of the Merchant's District… will that make you win the second round of the preliminaries?" Binor could only turn to the blue haired boy with a confused face, "Use that thick skull of yours Binor. The gang war is no longer our primary concern. Even if we should lose all of our territories, our plans will not change. As long as one of us wins the Valmarian league, we split the cash prize equally and go our separate ways"

"But then… what have we been doing for the last month?" Binor looked at all of them as they turned to him with a strange glare.

"The gang was only a temporary position" Kevin explained, "It was only to help us gain favor around the city while we work out our true intentions. Soon all of us will have to fend for ourselves Binor. This is the Valmarian league my friend…… and only the strong are allowed to progress further"

"Further further oru hahahhahaha" Eesal shouted cheerfully at the background.

Binor was now getting very nervous and scared at his friends. For a whole month he had been battling trainers both in and out of his territory to keep them in power, but after this conversation, he was now getting a new point of view. They were right……… the gang war was no longer a concern to them. Even without the gang's help, as long as they win the Valmarian league, that would be all that matters. With preliminary rounds starting already, the rules of the gang wars and the cease fire negotiations was no longer in apply. This city was the jungle… and if you can't handle the pressure, then it would be better if you never come at all. This is was the true nature of Valmarian city…… the nature of that only the strong can enter.

With Binor understanding his companions, Kevin smiled back, "Well… now that we have that sorted out, I think it's time that we go" the rest of the Elite Fives quickly stood up and followed the boss out of the house. "Where are we going?" Binor asked.

It was probably six seconds before Claire replied, "Where else? The Arena District……"

And so… with that decision, the city will soon fall into the dark side of chaos. Without any leaders to guide the minions, the gang members will start to grow independent and will begin engulf the city in


	57. Safer Than Sorry Part 2

**Chapter 57: Safer Than Sorry (Part 2)**

**(Half Way Home Inn dojo) (07:45 PM)**

When we last left our heroes, they were looking for a place to train for the upcoming second preliminary round of the Valmarian All Out League, and with the next round being an uncommon 3-3 battle, the gang had to think of their battle strategies in a whole new way.

"Pikachu, use thunderbolt!" Ash ordered out which the little mouse quickly obeyed. With the lightning attack soaring at high speed the boy wasn't done, "Ok now make it go left!" with a quick bend of the ear, Pikachu instantly made the lightning attack turn to a different direction. "Good work Pikachu, now right (zap) Now left! (zap) Now left one more time (zap!)" with the coordinated attack given out, the lightning bolt struck against the target marker which was probably half a kilometer through the rocky field. "Good work Pikachu, nice thunderbolt control (Pikachu…)"

"Hey Ash!" Richie called out to the boy, "Drew and I and the others are heading back to the hotel. Wanna tag along"

"No thanks" came the boy's instant reply, "I want to do a little more workout before going back. You guys go on without me, oh and tell the professor thanks for the food" and with their goodbyes said, the gang left the inn leaving Ash alone with his Pokemons to continue with their training regime. "Ok Pikachu, how about one more round around the fields? (Pika pika!)" the little electric Pokemon agreed and hastily began following its master around the dojo.

**(Outside the Half Way Home Inn entrance)**

As most the gang members exited the guest room of the compound, some of them were surprised that it was already night fall. They had to admit that Valmarian city was so much more beautiful at night. With the neon lights brightening the streets of the Downtown District and other residential areas the place would probably be amply named as the city of lights rather than the city of heroes.

"Alright everyone, hop in" said Soledad to the gang. Luckily for them, the young teenage coordinator had a large pickup truck which was spacious enough for all of them to fit. Once the gang were all on board, she turned to Lewis, "I'll send them all back to the hotel first grandpa. But I'll come back and help you with the restaurant so no… cooking, understand?"

"Oh course pumpkin" the old man replied innocently, "I understand. No cooking ahehehehehehe"

Soledad didn't really buy her grandfather's innocent laugh but with time running short, she had to make her transportation delivery quick before he sends the whole district in flames.

As Dawn stepped into the truck she noticed that the leader of the gang was missing, "Uh hey, where's Ash? Isn't he coming too?"

"Oh he said he was going to do some extra training before he goes back" Soledad answered, "Don't worry, I'll make sure he gets home safely so relax. You guys just go back to your rooms and rest. You'll need that energy for the second preliminary round" as they all said their farewells to Lewis, the Kanto coordinator quickly fastened her seatbelt and drove off towards the Downtown District. Hopefully her grandfather won't do anything stupid while she's away.

"Hmm… maybe I should try onions, that always makes things smell better" well… so much for promises.

**(Arena District Pokemon center)**

Along the quiet and empty streets of the Pokemon center was Kevin and his companions. With the preparations of the second preliminary round underway, the district was turned into a perfect spot for those shady deals to go on without worries of any eavesdroppers.

As the five of them continued to march on for about six or so minutes around the back of the Pokemon center, Kevin placed one of his hands up to signal the others to stop. "What are we doing here Kevin?" Binor asked a little curious on what dark business the gang had here. The blonde leader only smirked back in reply, "We're here to meet a contact of mine" he explained, "There is no need to be so insecure. This location is quite safe I assure you"

"This place is quite scary oru" Eesal shivered behind Kevin's legs like a frightened cat.

"Don't be frightened Eesal" their boss smiled back at them, "Just let me talk to my friend and we can go and have a little midnight snack" but just as he finished his sentence, a sudden shift of the wind alerted the gang to another presence in the vicinity. With their natural reaction kicking in, Claire, Binor and Kyle hurried to a defensive stance as if they were about to go into combat, but Kevin stopped them, "No need to be alarmed, it's only my contact. Lower your arms everyone" he ordered which the three members complied.

With the tension of the area dying down a bit, a strange figure walked out of the shadows cloaked in black, "Boss, is that you?" he asked in a slightly frightened tone.

"That depends…… who's asking" the informant only smiled back in reply, "I'll take that as a yes" he said finally, "Anyway, back to business. You're to learn about the next round of the preliminaries right? Here's the report" he handed the boy a single sheet of paper through his cloak.

"Is this all you were able to get?" Kevin said with a slight hint of disappointment at the back of his voice, "I was expecting somewhat… more from you…"

"Sorry boss…" the informant apologized, "But getting info about the trainers you want was pretty hard. If I go any deeper my superiors might get suspicious on me. I managed to get the details on most of the trainers you asked me to look for, but the tougher fries like Gary and that Bicento boy are locked tight thanks to the 'ace' lockdown security check. If you gave me the order a few months earlier I might've been able to do it"

"What about Ash Ketchum?"

"The world's champ? Oh that one was easy" the informant said cheerfully, "Since he an't an ace, I was able to get his file easily. His name should be somewhere up top. I sorted them out alphabetically"

"How kind of you" Kevin stated sarcastically. After they were done chatting, Keving knew that it was time to leave. He wouldn't want to arouse suspicion amongst the janitors, "Anyway, thanks for the information. You may go. Your payment should be waiting for you at your apartment" and with that the informant nodded and vanished into the shadows. With him gone, the blonde boy turned to his companions with a slight smirk on his lips, "Alright everyone, let's go…"

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn)**

Ash, Pikachu and his other Pokemons except Rosa and Houndoom were all sweating in buckets like they've just been through a marathon or something. Ash however was probably tired the most. With him training with each of his Pokemon one by one, he had to think differently every time he switched training partners.

"Man… my bones hurt (Pika pikachu)" the boy groaned as he tried to get up from the grass field along with his other Pokemons. Even though Corphish tried to cool them down with its bubble beam, it just simply wasn't enough. "I don't think I'll be able to get up from here in awhile"

"That's because you exert too much energy your highness" said Rosa who was quietly sitting in the resting area. With no one but Ash and his Pokemons around, she could speak out freely without anyone knowing. Her voice was probably only meant for Ash anyway. "You have plenty of stamina Ash, but you do not use them efficiently" she continued, "If you just randomly throw away your excess energy, your efficiency will go down quite down the hill"

"What do you mean Rosa?" Ash tilted his head in confusion. Seeing that the boy doesn't quite understand, the pink Lucario decided to explain it in a simpler manner. "Have your Pikachu fire an electric attack on that boulder over there" she directed her nose on the large chunk of rocks on the other side of the field.

At first Pikachu was a bit hesitant, but with a nod from Ash, it charged up one of its most famous attacks and fired away. "Now observe carefully your majesty" the Guardian stated for the boy to focus. As the attack went on, Ash could finally see what Rosa actually meant. Pikachu's was indeed powerful that much was true, but the energy it gave out was not focused enough to strengthen the course. And without a proper course, Pikachu would end up wasting a small amount of power.

"Now I see…" Ash said a little amazed, "Pikachu uses a lot of power to shoot it but it's also out of control"

Rosa nodded in admiration, "Very observant your grace" she complimented, "And without control, Pikachu here ends up using only ¾ of the actual effectiveness of its abilities"

"So… can you teach me how to focus it?" Ash requested which Rosa only hinted him with a tiny smile, "Very well Ash" she replied in a rare friendly tone, "Here's how it is done" Rosa quickly charged up a small shadow ball on her paw and aimed it a rock twice as big as the one Pikachu decimated. With a swift motion of the hand, she threw the ball away and by the time it made contact, it caused an explosion so powerful that a gush of wind broke through the entire room.

"Whoa! That was the most powerful shadow ball I've ever seen!" Ash said eyes widened in amazement.

After the attack was done Rosa dusted some of the dirt off her body before turning back to her king, "The trick Ash is to focus" she explained, "When Pikachu uses an electrical attack, it must try to compress the energy into a smaller unit and once it's ready, it can fire away. It may look small to the naked eye, but in truth it packs a bigger punch"

Ash nodded in understanding her teachings, "Alright, I got it… you got that Pikachu? (Pikachu!) Ok let's try and give this a…" but just before the boy could finish his sentence, a sudden explosion had once again occurred causing the entire dojo to tremble. "W… whoa! What's happening!?" quickly sensing danger, Ash dashed off to the outside only to see the kitchen house go up in flames! "Oh no! Lewis!"

With speed that could match that to extreme speed, Ash and his Pokemons moved to the area to see if there was someway they could help. "Hey! Is anyone in there!?" the boy shouted hoping that there would be some sort of reply. But to his fortunes, there weren't any. At first he thought that there was no one left inside, but then Rosa changed that. With her super sonic ears and life vision eyes, she was able to spot a living being a mile away before it could do any real harm.

"Ash, there's someone in there" the Guardian dictated with her paws, "I believe it is the human you call… Lewis"

"Lewis? You mean he's still inside?!" Rosa nodded back in reply, "Then we shouldn't waste time. Corphish, bubble beam on the door now!! (Corphish! Corph!)" the little crab-shrimp like Pokmon quickly unleashed a volley of cold bubbles which extinguish the fires almost instantly. With the way clear, Ash went in. "Can you see him Rosa?" the Guardian quickly reactivated her senses again before replying, "Yes… he's over there behind this door" but to their luck, the door was sealed tight on the other side, probably due to the debris falling down.

"Lewis, are you in there!?" the boy shouted but all he got was a low toned moan. "Hang on Lewis we're coming to save ya! Sceptile, use leaf blade and cut down this door! (Scep…tile!!!)" with one move of the arms, the grass type Pokemon cut through the wooden planks of the door and smirked to himself. And to the boy's true thoughts, he was right. There were debris on the other side and just beyond that was Lewis trapped under a fridge. "Lewis, are you ok!?"

"Ash!" the old man shouted, "Don't worry about me! Just get out of here!" but Ash wasn't going to listen to the rescue-e… he was way far too deep to turn back and run like a coward. "Hang on :Lewis, we're coming it! Rosa, can you punch a hole through that wall?" the pink Lucario silently nodded and with one concentrated blow she was able to take down the whole wall without even forcefully destroying it. Ash would've complimented the pink Guardian in a heart beat right about now, but due to the situation, he needed to act fast.

"Don't worry Lewis, we're here!" Ash tried to give the old man some hope, but with what's happening now, hope seemed to be slightly slim at the moment. "Ash, you shouldn't have come to get me (cough cough!) Get out of here quick!"

But Ash simply ignored his rambling. "Sceptile, use pound! Corphish, crab hammer!" with one chain of command, the two Pokemons he ordered quickly swatted away the fridge, making the old man stand again. "Oh… oh my… my back…"

"No time Lewis, we have to get out quick!" Ash hastily grab his arms and slung it behind his neck. But just when they were about to make it to the entrance, the door way collapsed, causing it to cut Ash's escape. "Oh no we're trap!" he shrieked. "Rosa, can you make us an exit?" the Lucario nodded and with another swift move she destroyed an entire section of the wall without even breaking a nail…… that is if she had nails of course.

Once the two of them were outside, Ash immediately ordered Corphish to take down the fire as fast as he possibly can. "Corphish, use bubble beam! Sceptile, bullet seed! Pikachu, use quick attack and dig a trench around the building to stop the fire from spreading! Rosa, use hyper beam on the ground and use the sand to cover up the area!" with one chain of command, the Pokemons quickly followed their assigned task and began dousing out the fire little by little. Once the place fire finally came under control Ash took a short moment to put Lewis down on the ground. "You ok Lewis?"

The man let out a few small coughs again before replying, "Y… yeah… I'm alright…" but just as he finished his sentence, the fire was finally able to reach the gas tank that situated in the basement below the kitchen. And with that extra pump of gas… it could only mean another explosion.

BOOMMMMM!!

And then as if on cue the fire once again went berserk and began to scorch the whole area. Even with the trenches built, it was barely enough to hold the fire together.

But… just when they thought things couldn't get any worst than this, another smaller explosion occurred, sending piles of debris all over the place. But one of the bigger piles was heading right towards Ash!

Unable to escape and unable to dodge the falling pieces of lumber, Ash braced himself and protected Lewis with his own body so that at least his death would have some meaning. But then suddenly, to his surprise, a green shield suddenly formed around the boy, protecting both him and Lewis from certain doom. "What was that?!" he wondered. Though Ash maybe somewhat confused by the whole thing, he was still somewhat glad that he wasn't squashed like a mashed potato.

Seeing that the fire was really getting out of hand, Rosa quickly took out a Pokeball that she hid somewhere on her ear and threw it out. _"Articuno, to my side!"_ in an instant, the legendary ice bird appeared out in the sky and chirped gracefully, _"Now my chosen, use ice beam!"_ with one swift motion of her paws, Articuno released a powerful beam which froze the whole building in a matter of seconds! And thanks to the heat of the city, the ice would probably take about an hour or so to melt down.

"Whoa… what an ice beam" Ash muttered silently in amazement. It was a good thing Lewis was half unconscious, because he wouldn't believe a thing that had just happened in the past thirty minutes.

**(Time skip) (5 minutes later)**

After the fire had been completely doused to but a few sparks, Rosa quietly returned Articuno back into its Pokeball and tucked it back in her ear before anyone else notice its presence. The sight of a legendary bird wasn't exactly common to say the least.

"Well that's that…… I guess" said Ash as he rubbed the back of his head a little shock and confused on what to do next. Usually it would be the police or fire department that would handle the clean up job, but with no sirens coming in the distance, he'll have to get the place back up and running before Soledad returns.

"Grandpa!" and with the mere thought of the girl's name, Soledad suddenly appeared out in the back with a face that would scare even Mewtwo. "Oh… hey there pumpkin" Lewis probably tried to sweet talk his way out of the situation, but his youth was probably long gone from existence. "Don't you pumpkin me! You tried to cook again didn't you!? How many times do we have to rebuild the kitchen over and over again!?"

"Uh…… again?" Ash tried to get that word 'again' into his head while trying to decipher the rest of her babbling. But seeing on how angry Soledad look, he could tell that this wasn't the first time this sort of thing happened.

With Soledad giving her grandpa a long nagging lecture about safety and yada yada yada, she quickly bring the boy into the restaurant to have a nice little cup of warm tea.

**(Half Way Home Inn guest room) (Another 5 minutes later) (08:23 PM)**

"Sorry about that Ash" Soledad apologized as she served the tired boy some of the restaurant's famous tea. "My father tends to daze when he's cooking so he doesn't really know what's happening around him.

The boy let out a soft chuckle, "That's ok Soledad. It wasn't anything dangerous (yeah…… sure) I'm sure he was just trying to help out that's all. But what was he trying to cook anyway?" Soledad's face soon turned to a sad one rather than her usual sighing and depressing. She slowly took a seat and looked at her tea cup, "He's trying to redo grandmother's stew again"

Ash cocked up a curious look, "Grandmother's stew?" he echoed.

"Yeah……… when grandmother was still around, she used to make this stew that was very delicious" she began, "When she passed away, she didn't tell anyone what the secret ingredient was. Every time someone tasted it, they would always have a smile plastered on their face. Unfortunately… my grandfather doesn't exactly know how to make it himself… and I'm sure you've tasted the results" Ash instantly remembered the bad taste from this afternoon's sample. Just thinking about it now already makes his stomach churn.

But just as they were chatting happily around the corner, the main entrance suddenly opened with a loud bang which made the two trainers jerk their head to that direction. "Oh Soledad, we're here!" on the other side of the door were three senior couples who were probably just as old as Lewis himself. "And we're alive and still kickin ahehehe" said one of the senior guys.

With one look on their faces, Soeldad instantly remembered that she was supposed to help Lewis with the restaurant today. "Oh you're here. Sorry… I'll be with you in a minute"

"Uh… hey is there something I can help you with?" Ash volunteered but the girl only told him to sit back and relax while she heads off to the kitchen to cook something for the elders…… that is… if there's anything left to cook.

When the elders took their seats on their regular table, they immediately notice Ash sitting on the opposite table, "Oh, and who might you be young fella?" asked the old man with a the bald head (no offense to the bald people out there!) Ash instantly looked back at them and smiled, "Me? I'm Ash Ketchum, and I'm from Pallet town?"

To the boy's surprise, the elders didn't look a bit surprised to hear his name at all, "Ash Ketchum huh?" said the wife of the bald man, "I've heard that name being constantly chanted in the city. You must be pretty famous huh? Hehehehe" she chuckled like an old witch.

"Ahehehe… I'm not that famous" the boy embarrassingly.

"Oh come on now Ash, don't be so modest" said Lewis who just recently entered from the restaurant's second floor. "Soledad and I watched almost all your matches on TV. She said that you would make an even wouldn't have any problem winning the grand festival contest if you chose to become a coordinator hehehe"

"Well, maybe some other time" Ash replied still holding up a smile, "Right now I just want to focus on the Valmarian league!"

"Why go for that?" said another old man, "You're already champion of every region so what more can you prove by beating the Valmarian league" Ash stood his ground, smiled wider and pumped his fist into the air in response, "Because I don't just want every country to know I'm the best" he explained, "I want the whole world to know that I'm the best! I want to be………… A Pokemon Master!" with his radiant self showing off once more, the senior citizens couldn't help but show a little pride off that boy. Who knew that there would still be some good souls in the new generations?

"A Pokemon Master you say?" said the bald guy again, "That a pretty impressive goal you have there and not one so easily accomplished"

"The Valmarian league are surely attracting a lot of good trainers nowadays" said the old man's wife.

A few minutes later along the conversation, Soledad reappeared from the kitchen house with a tray of the restaurant's finest dish. "Alright everyone, sorry for the delay, I had to get some of the ingredients from the store house"

"Oh, did Lewis burn the whole place down again?" asked the bald man which was replied with a nod. Lewis could only standby and laugh along with them, "But you've got to give the man some credit" his wife added, "His dedication in finding the secret ingredient is something to be admired" Lewis only chuckled to himself while Soledad only shot him a sarcastic 'yeah right' look. While the elders were busy eating off their meal, our coordinator from Kanto turned to our young hero, "Sorry for the wait Ash. Here's your meal"

"Thank you" he smiled back. The dish that was given to him was a little strange though. From the looks of it, it seemed like nothing else but rice. "Uh… what is it?"

"You'll have to try it to find out" she giggled back at him. After analyzing the food at a closer perspective, Ash decided to dig in. With a spoonful of the strange rice, he chowed down the taste, hoping that her cooking wouldn't be like her grandfather's. Once the chuck of white rice was in his mouth, it felt like a whole burst of flavor just seemed to flow into his tongue.

"Whoa! This is awesome!" before Soledad knew it, the boy was already down to his second plate. "You like it?" she wondered which was replied with a positive sound, "It's actually salad mixed with rice. I cook them together so they'd taste better"

"Well this is the first time I've tried it. Hey Pikachu, you've got to try this out" the little mouse immediately took a chunk of the rice into his mouth. With one single chew, it began Pika-ing with happiness. "I think he likes it ahehehehe" Ash then turned to the other group, "You must really get a lot of customers Soledad"

"Ahehehe… actually" the girl replied with a small sweat drop. "They're the only customers here" she gestured to the seniors who were happily eating on the table. "Why's that?" Ash asked to which the coordinator only sighed in response, "Well…… the place wasn't always like this" she began, "When my grandma and grandpa run this place, it was only just a plain old restaurant. But ever since she passed away we really had to expand the place. Grandpa usually does the repairs, but right now… he's more busy than ever" and then suddenly, as if on cue, the little Hoothoot clock that was placed on the wall began hooting when both the short and long sticks pointed directly at the number 10.

"Oh my, is that the time already?" Soledad said slightly amazed on how time flies by when you're not careful. Who knows, maybe before you even know it, it would probably be ten years already.

"Looks like I'll need to head back to the hotel" Ash quickly stood up and head straight for the door, but just before he could take a step out of the building, Lewis stopped him. "I don't think you'll be going anywhere Ash" he stated.

"Why not?"

"The district gates are probably closed by now, and the city isn't exactly the safest place at night. Why don't you try staying in our inn? There are plenty of rooms and all of them should still be in good condition, right Soledad?" the girl simply nodded back in reply.

Seeing that there was no alternative options, Ash had to submit, "Well… if it's alright with you" he said shyly, "Then I'll take you up on that offer"

"Good!" Lewis replied cheerfully, "Soledad, please show the young boy his room. I'm sure he's very tired after all that training"

"I think it's also high time we left as well" said the bald old man, "Thanks again for the food Soledad, it was delicious as ever aheheheheeee" and with that the senior citizens of Valmarian city left the restaurant after paying up their meals.

With them gone and the restaurant closing, Soledad decided to take the boy to the inn where he can spend his nights peacefully. The servant's quarter was roomier than what Ash had expected. At first he though that the place would have double deck rooms or something like that, but instead, they all had each individual rooms but none of them had a CR (comfort room). If one should want to take a bath or use the toilet, then they will have to go to one of the connecting bathhouses for hygiene. Thankfully both male and female rooms were marked.

The building had three floors, each with its own lobby and 24 rooms to accommodate large packs of tourists. That makes a total of 72 rooms.

"Sorry about this Ash" Soledad apologized again as she guided the boy to room 01. "I was so busy cooking that I must've forgotten the time. (thump) This will be your room" amazingly for Ash, the place was quite spacious. There was a small desk on the side with a reading lamp, a shelf with a collection of old literatures, a walled cabinet big enough to stuff in some luggage, a dining table for indoor meals and several folds of futons (sleeping bags)

A/N: This style is composed of the old eastern Japanese style so there are no chairs. The residence will have to kneel or sit on the floor capiche? Good!

But just when Soledad walked into the room and opened up the window, a strong gush of wind flew through the area which alerted the dusts to their presence. "Oh man! This place is dusty!" Ash complained. Soledad only let out a small sweat drop, "Sorry about that" she said a little embarrassed by the whole situation, "It's just that this place hasn't had a guest for more than three years now so we kind of forget to clean the place up ahehehehehe"

Luckily for them, the janitor's room was nearby and with a quick sweep, dust, and wash, the place was turned from a dumpster to a three star hotel room. However… the room had more than just dusts. When they opened the cabinet, they found out that a swarm of tiny Ariadoses had made their nest there and it took them a long time to get those things out.

"Well… that's that" Soledad said proudly as she looked at the newly cleaned room. "This is probably the cleanest room in the entire compound. (to Ash) The futons are in the cabinet and the pillows are under that dining table. If you need anything, just give me a call" and with that she walked off, leaving the tired boy to finally go to sleep. After going to the Merchant's District to do some shopping and play at the amusement park, and train non-stop in the dojo, Ash truly has earned his rest.

"Oh man… I'm so tired, that's its even hard to go to sleep" he whined as he pulled out a futon out of the cabinet. He then also pulled another one for Rosa to sleep in, "Here Rosa, you can sleep in this" he gestured to his Guardian. "That won't be necessary Ash" she replied professionally, "I have slept in the wilderness longer than any bed. The floor will be fine with me" but Ash would hear none of it.

With the sleeping bag in place, Ash fell right onto the pillow and hastily went to dream land. Hopefully tomorrow would bring better tidings. "Wait a minute…" Ash's subconscious suddenly clicked, "I feel like I'm forgetting something…… (Pika?) Ah well…… whatever it is it's probably not important. Let go back to sleep Pikachu" and with a blink of the eye, the boy began to snore.

**(Che'val-yere hotel lobby)**

Todd, the ace photographer of the gang was sobbing silently at the hotel lobby sipping hot coco. Apparently the boy was expecting Ash to return to the hotel sometime between evening to midnight, but when Ash failed to appear he said to himself, "I feel like I'm forgotten (sob)"

**(Outside Uno café)**

Havic and his pals (Steve and Emma) had just finished their midnight snack and were now on their way back to their apartment building at the Residential Area 2. "Oh man… now that hit the spot" the hippy sighed happily as he patted his large stomach, "I don't think I can take another bite"

"Oh… I think you'll be able to squeeze a little more" Havic added with a sly grin. "Come on, it's getting late and we wouldn't wanna stick around when the gang war starts"

"Yeah… I had enough battling for one day" Emma agreed. But just the three of them were about to walk towards the next bus stop, a strange crinkie sound began to surface, making the Dark Queen turn around. "Huh?"

"What is it Emma?" Steve asked.

"Didn't you guys hear something?" she gestured to the trashcan near the entrance of the Uno café, "It's coming from there"

"It's probably a stray Pokemon or something" Havic guessed as he pressed on, "Come on, let's go. I don't want to be late for my shut eye. I haven't had a decent sleep since the first round began (yawn)" with the man's word, Emma decided to ignore the strange sound and follow the troupe to the bus stop. But little did Havic know that he was way off the mark.

Hidden in the trashcan, beneath a thin layer of junk was Frank, the hip hop trainer of Brendan's team. After the boy was sure that the three of them were gone, the boy took out a small cell phone and pushed a speed dial number. "Frank?" asked Rika, the genius trainer on the other line, "Yeah it's me" he replied with his usual cool tone, "It looks like your suspicions were correct. Havic and those other two have no connections with Red"

"Well that's a fact" she replied sarcastically. "Anyway, get back to the Merchant's District. Your sister's already there looking for any traces of Red"

"Man… this whumps. We take our eyes off this guy for one second and he disappears like a ghost"

"Don't complain" Rika nagged, "Just do what you can and contact me regularly. In the mean time, I'll try looking for some other leads"

"What's Brendan doing?"

"He's probably in the Industrial District. That's where Red is seen most of the time. (ring ring) Oh I got to go… later" and with that she hung up.

With nothing left to do, Frank decided to follow his orders and get to the Merchant's District before someone spots his hiding place. But just when he was about to get out of the trashcan, the manager of the Uno café suddenly exited his establishment with a large pile of stinky liquid trash. Unfortunately for Frank…… he was in the only trashcan in the vicinity.

Splat splat splat!

Before he knew it, the manager dumped the whole thing onto his head and closed the lid tightly before going back into the café.

"Ohhhhhh!!!! (pause) I just got this suit dry cleaned yesterday! Now what am I supposed to wear!?"

**(The next morning) (07:45 AM) (24 hours and 15 minutes till the second preliminary round)**

If the phrase 'sleeping like a log' had any concept at all, then Ash would probably the finest example. The boy was sleeping with his Pikachu, hugging his pillow instead of sleeping on it. Rosa was also by his side, eyes closed, but her senses were still as sharp as ever.

Just as the morning sun kissed the Half Way Home Inn with its beautiful rays, the pink Lucario's ears suddenly perked up upon hearing another presence. "Ash?" Soledad called through the other side of the door. "Ash, I brought you breakfast" but the boy didn't even flinch to her response. He was happily snoring and talking in his sleep like the kid that he is. "Ash, are you awake" not wanting to wait any longer, Soledad quickly opened up the slide door. Apparently Ash seemed to have forgotten to lock the door before going to bed.

Seeing that the boy was still asleep, the girl decided to put the tray of food on the dining table so that it will be the first thing he sees when he wakes up. The sight of a morning meal after a long night's rest was probably the best anyone could wakeup from. "I guess I'll leave it here for now" she mumbled to herself before leaving to tend to her other duties.

But just before she could take another step out, she noticed that Ash didn't pack his things correctly. His empty Pokeballs were littered on the ground and some of his souvenirs and gifts were poking it out of his backpack. She even noticed that the boy didn't even bother to change into his pajamas last night. This only proves that he truly was a boy.

But then Soledad's observation was cut short when Ash started muttering something in his sleeps, "Um… hmm… thank you…zzzzz… I'd love to have a salad Pikachu…" this only humored the girl even more. To think that the great Ash Ketchum, the champion of every region in the world actually talks in his sleeps is just unheard of. "Hmm?" with a pop of his breath, Ash's senses finally activated, "Haaa…" he yawned before noticing Soledad, "Oh… good morning Soledad"

"Good morning to you Ash" she greeted back, "I made you breakfast. And I think you should probably get yourself cleaned too" the boy quickly took a look at himself and soon realized that he was still in his old sweat moist clothes, "The bath house for the boys is on the other side of the here. You can't miss it"

"Thanks Soledad. Sorry to trouble you"

"Oh not at all, it's actually kind of nice to have someone use the inn once in awhile. You're the only customer anyway" she chuckled a little along with the boy. But just as their conversation was going good, Soledad noticed the time on her watch, "Oh well… it looks like I have to go now. Just leave the plate here when you're done. I'll come and pick it up later" and with that she got up from the ground and head off back to the restaurant.

When the door shut closed, Ash and Pikachu couldn't help but smile cheerfully amongst themselves. "Wow… at first I thought Soledad was tough and strong all the times, but in truth she's actually kinda carefree (Pikapika)" Pikachu agreed. With nothing left to stop them, Ash, Pikachu and Rosa quickly dug in the breakfast meal prepared for them… "Hm… delicious!"

**(Che'val-yere hotel)**

Richie, was the first to get out of bed today and order up his usual meal for breakfast. After such intense training last night, he and his Pokemons deserved a good day's rest. But right now, resting seemed like a hard thing to do since the second round was coming by any second. With his three Pokemons picked out for the 3-3 battle, stress was probably his major concern.

"Hey Richie, I see that you're up" came Kenny's voice who had just recently exited the elevator.

"Huh? Oh hey Kenny" the boy greeted back, "Yeah… I slept like a Snorlax last night. So are you ready for the second round?"

"To tell you honestly? I'm actually kind of nervous. I had a lot of experience with a double performance battle but you guys are going to have a 3-3 battle"

"Yeah…… I've never had a 3-3 battle before, but I'm sure Ash has" they both giggled in his metaphor.

"Oh right… speaking of Ash" Kenny remembered, "Did he come back to the hotel last night? We were up pretty late that time"

**(20 minutes later back at the Half Way Home Inn)**

After taking up his morning meal, getting a shower and getting changed into more comfortable clothes, Ash packed up his futon and prepared for another day of training. With the second round coming right off the corner, he had to keep up with his routine so that he and his Pokemons can be in tip top shape. "Alright everyone! One two, one two, one two, one two!" the boy was jogging around the fields outside the dojo along with his other Pokemons. However… Rosa on the other hand simply just wanted to watch from the sidelines.

But just as the boy was now on his 16th lap, an old voice came in from the hall way. "Well well well, you seemed to be in a good mood" said Lewis with his wide smile. Ash noticed his presence and immediately greeted back, "Good morning Lewis. My Pokemons and I were just getting ready for tomorrow's battle! We have to stay in top shape if we want to win!"

"No arguments there my boy" the old man replied cheerfully as he turned his sights to the clear blue sky, "It's a perfect weather for training. Thanks to the city's weather control device, we don't have to worry about rain ahehehehehe" but then suddenly, Ash noticed that the man was carrying a mop and a bucket of water. "Ah… hey, what are you doing with those things?"

"Hmm? Oh these? Oh I was just going to clean up the kitchen. Don't want Soledad to get all angry at me when she comes back"

"Can I help?" Ash volunteered to which the old man only gave out a 'why' face, "Well I kinda feel bad for staying here and using your gym, so I want to help in anyway I can" with that, Lewis agreed to let him help clean the kitchen.

**(Half Way Home Inn kitchen)**

When the two of them arrived at the kitchen, Ash noticed that the damage from last night's fire wasn't as bad as he thought it was. Even though the building was made completely out of wood and papyruses (thick paper) it was still able to last a lot longer than anyone could've predicted. There were some scorch marks on where the gas tanks were and the main floor had one big giant hole which was probably where the big explosion originated from. But other than that, everything looked A-OK……… well… except for the ceiling too if I might add.

"Well… here we are!" Lewis announced, "Soledad would want this place cleaned before lunch time so let's get a move on!" he quickly handed Ash a towel, a broom and a hairnet to keep his head together. It was true that the boy promised to help clean the mess up, but to clean an entire building in just three hours wasn't going to be something that easy. Surprisingly, the kitchen had three floors. The first floor was where all the cooking was done, the floor above was where they kept the spices and the basement is where the gas tanks and coal were stored up.

For the pass two hours, the only sound Ash and Lewis could hear were dust, sweep and mop. The first and second floors were easy enough as it is, but the basement was a whole new different story. Every inch of the wall in the basement was so rusted and dusty that it would take a cleaning crew of twenty just to make it _look_ clean. "I know I promised to help" Ash whinned, "But I didn't know that cleaning can be so exhausting"

Lewis chuckled, "Hehehe… I said the same thing when I was your age" he humored to himself, "Oh that reminds me… hey Ash, do you mind going to the Pokemart and buy some supplies? It looks like the fire burned everything" Ash was not one to refuse such requests so in a matter of seconds, he was already gone.

**(Pokemart)**

For once Ash felt comfortable on where he was. The small size of the Pokemart was something he was familiar with. Every time when he enters or leaves a town or city, this would be one of the first place he would visit other than a fast food joint or the Pokemon center. The place had everything a Pokemon trainer needed: From minor groceries to clothes, Pokeballs, Pokeblocks, energy snack food and drinks and of course the souvenir stand.

Although sometimes the boy visits the mall from time to time, he hated it when he realizes that the item he wanted was on the other side of the department store. So for Ash… he would very much prefer the small Pokemart.

"Ok… let's see. Apples, pepper, salt, sugar…" the boy was checking on the things that he needed to buy for Lewis. "Hmm… looks like the only thing we're missing is Miltank milk" as the boy huddled himself towards the dairy section, he turned to Rosa only to notice that she was acting rather strangely. "Uh Rosa…" he called out but the Lucario didn't seem to hear him. In fact… it looked like her eyes were completely focused on the chocolate section. Everything ranging from chocolate candy to milk chocolate bars was being displayed on every corner of the section. As Ash looked closer at his Guardian, he could already see that she was beginning to drool on her lips.

"Rosa, do you like chocolates?" the pink Pokemon's attention was quickly brought back. When she turned back to her king, the boy had a big goofy grin plastered on his face. There was no point in hiding it since her saliva was more than proof that she was a sucker for these tasty treats. _"Umm… well… to tell you the truth Ash… chocolates weren't really common in my time" _she explained, _"Usually only very few people were able to taste such treats"_

The boy chuckled back at her demise, "Well… if you really want, you can pick one if you like" Rosa's eyes perked up with a first time smile on her face, "Really!?" Ash nodded back in reply, "Yeah, but only one. I'll be waiting for you at cashier ok?" with a positive nod from the Guardian, Ash headed off to get that carton of milk before anything else comes up.

"Ok… now let's see… Miltank milk, Miltank milk…… hmm… AH! Here it is" but just as he picked up the carton, another hand appeared touching his. By the time he looked up, the boy instantly recognized who it belonged to. "Soledad?"

"Ash?"

**(After shopping)**

After explaining the whole reason why he was there, Soledad nodded, "I see…… so my grandfather sent you to buy the ingredients for him?" Ash gave out a positive sound in reply, "Sorry about that" Soledad apologized, "This was supposed to be his chore for the day, but it looks like his laziness caught up with him…… again!"

Ash let out a small sweat drop, "Ahehehe… it's ok Soledad. Besides, it's the least I could do since I'm staying at your place"

But the girl was too fumed to even listen, "That's always like grandpa. Whenever he has work to do he let's other people do it for him! Gah! Just you wait! Wait we get back home, I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind!" Ash could let out an even bigger sweat drop as he hoped that the girl won't do something to severe that would make the man go for an early retirement. "Ahehehe…"

But just as the two of them turned around the corner, they did not realize that there presence together alone was enough to make a big impact. "Eh? Was that Soledad and Ash Ketchum?" asked one of the trainers who was strolling around with his friend. "Nah… it couldn't have been…… could it?"

"But it did look like him" said the other trainer.

"Nah… no way…………… but just to be on the safe side, let's follow them!"

"Yeah!"

**(Half Way Home Inn restaurant)**

After Ash and Soledad returned to the compound, they were immediately greeted by the smiling face of old man Lewis, "Oh hey there Ash, I wasn't expecting you to be back in a acckkkk!" just before he could finish his sentence, Soledad pounded the guy's head down to the ground with an annoyed face. Ash could already tell that a nag was not too far behind. "Oh… hello to you too… Soledad" the old man added wearily, "How are you pumpkin?"

"Don't 'pumpkin' me grandpa!" the girl shouted, "You were supposed to go and buy the supplies I asked this morning! But instead of doing that, you had to ask poor Ash here to do all your work while you're messing around in the kitchen again!"

"No, of course not Soledad" the old man pleaded with an unsure smile, "I was… I was just uh…" but then as if the event was on cue, a small stream of smoke began to emanate from the kitchen. And so… in a move that even surprised Ash himself, Soledad pulled her grandfather by her shirt collar and dragged him back towards the kitchen with a sigh, "Come on grandpa, let's see what you burned up this time" but before she turned up on the corner she turned back to Ash, "Oh Ash, do you mind just leaving those things in the counter? I'll come and pick it up later"

"Ok…" and with that Soledad left the restaurant to check on the damage. Hopefully the damage that was inflicted wouldn't be as bad as last night's fire. But just as the boy dumped the cargo on the table, two married couple entered the scene both with tourist attires. "Excuse me" the woman called out, "But is this here the Half Way Home Inn?" Ash noticed them and nodded back dumbly in reply, "We're sorry to barge in so early in the morning, but we heard from our friends that you have a hot spring here. I hope you're open"

"Uh sure…" Ash replied a little confused on what he should do in a situation like this. "But uh…

"Oh well then, show us the way my good man" the man cut him off. "I'd like to take a nice long bath before the day is over ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"

Seeing that Soledad was still busy in the kitchen with "Oh ok… follow me" and without another word, the boy guided the two upstanding citizens to the hot spring at the back of the compound.

"Ok… here we are" Ash said in a slight professional tone, "Just put your clothes on the shelves and the towels are in the basket next to the door" he knew where all the places were since he had already been there once. "Enjoy your stay" he added at the end with a wide smile. With the two off relaxing, Ash decided to head back to the dojo for a little more practice. But on his way there, he heard the door bell ring.

"Excuse me" said the customer to Ash, "But this wouldn't happen to be a restaurant now would it? (nod) Great! I'm starving! Let's see…… I'll have some of (insert main course name here) and some of (insert soup name here)"

Ash immediately began to panic and quickly looked for the nearest object he could write on. Luckily, the cash register had a notepad and a incy-wincy pencil that must've been used for about two or three months and sharpened with a cutter. After writing down the order he immediately dashed off towards the kitchen to give the list. Who knows… this might actually be the first customer this restaurant has ever had in who knows how long?

**(Arena District Pokemon center)**

Brendan, Griselda and Rika were sitting on the empty set of chairs discussing a very serious topic. But right now the meeting was at a certain hold due to one of their members not being there. Griselda was popping her bubblegum as usual, Rika was tapping something on her portable laptop and the leader of the pack was simply…… waiting. But Brendan was not a patient boy. With every second ticking on the clock, he had to make sure every moment counts. And with the second preliminary round closing in, he knew that Red wouldn't be far off in completing his goal.

But just when Rika wasn't about to take it any longer, the last member of the group finally showed up, "Hey… sorry I'm late" said Frank who looked like a guy who hasn't slept in days. At first, Rika really wanted to nag his ears off, but with one whiff of the boy's clothes, she immediately plugged up her nose and gave out a 'bleh' sound. "Eeeewww! What happened to you!?"

The hip hop trainer simply gave her a tired glare, "Don't ask…"

"You looked like you were thrown in a trashcan and dumped with garbage"

Frank chuckled sarcastically, "You have no idea how close you are…"

With the whole team assembled, Brendan immediately cleared his throat to signal to his friends to begin the meeting, "Now that we're all here. We can begin. (pause) Alright… let's do a recap of our situation. We know that Red is planning to take the 'Fountain' and we know that he's getting a small group of elite trainers to help him. But right now what we need to know is…… who"

Rika quickly followed in, "I've crosschecked the list of 'aces' in the city and they change as fast as the days themselves. They… could be any of the 18 trainers or 18 coordinators. But since we cut out Gary and his gang… that leaves us with 31 Pokemon trainers"

"What about Kevin and his gang?" Frank asked

"I've been trying to get a hold on their location, but it might take awhile. They've been moving in a randomized pattern so I can't really tell what any of them are doing. The only time when they meet would be at the Residential Area 1" Rika then turned to her leader, "Other than that, we're completely out of leads"

"Bummer" Frank added.

After hearing the reports from his companions, Brendan simply hid his mouth under his hand as he explained the next step of their plans, "Well anyway…" he began, "It looks like the Pokemon Rangers have noticed Red and his threat to the league, so now they're taking precaution and placing more security throughout the districts. The 'Fountain' is also being well guarded at times. At least, when he steals 'it' we'll have evidence to prove it"

"So… what now?" Griselda said finally after popping her gum one more time.

"We keep searching" came the white haired boy's instant reply, "Once the second round begins, I want all of you to keep your eyes on him. I want to know where he goes, where he stays, what he eats and which bathroom he goes to. Frank, you'll be in charge with that"

"Fine by me" the hip hopper waved positively, "I don't have anything else better to do"

"A shower would be a good start" Rika added plugging her nose again, "Ehhh… make that three showers phew!"

"Hey! I was doing my job!"

"For once I agree with Rika" Griselda added plainly and coldly to her brother

"Wha wha?! Now you've got my sister against me!?"

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn restaurant) (02:00 PM)**

After a hefty meal and a well earned rest, the first customer of the Half Way Home Inn heads off to the distance with a happy face and a happy stomach. With just one bite of Soledad's cooking, the man was practically so happy that he could just smile all day without a care in the world.

"Thank you, come again" said Ash and Soledad together with a bow. When the customer was out of sight, the girl turned to the boy with a wide open smile, "Thanks a lot for the help Ash. If you hadn't take him up we would've been in big trouble"

"It's no problem. It's the least I could do since you and grandfather are so busy" the boy replied along with his Pikachu. But that statement didn't exactly make the girl feel any better. In fact I think it only made it worse. "Sorry about that Ash. Usually, my grandfather would look after the customers and I would do the cooking"

"Don't you have any helpers?"

Soledad sighed again, "The last of the employees quit months ago since we don't usually get customers. In fact, I think that was the first customer this place had in years" as the two of them continued the conversation, they quickly pulled up a chair and made themselves comfortable.

But just as they chatted on about random topics, an idea suddenly popped into Lewis's head, "Hey! This gives me an idea!" the other two quickly turned to the old man with a questionable face, "Ash… how would you like to work here in the Half Way Home Inn? (huh?) If you agree… I'll let you use the inn room, the dojo and the hot spring anytime you want! No charge"

"Really?" Ash asked with a little hint of disbelief. Lewis nodded back, "Yes! Since you need to train for the Valmarian league, I'm sure staying near the dojo would be in your best interest. Besides… driving back from district to district is such a drag"

But then Soledad snickered, "Hmph! You probably just want him to take your place so you can go and cook again" Ash noticed her mumbling and quickly let out a sweat drop to express his feeling for the whole idea. But Lewis did have a point though. With the Arena District being used for the prelim rounds and no training ground available, it would be in Ash's best interest to stay as close as he can to the gym so that he may practice whenever he wants.

After a moment of thought, Ash finally came to a decision, "I'll take it!"

Lewis smiled widely like a Slowbro from ear to ear as he heard the boy's answer. And with that, he quickly shook the boy's hand with glee, "Excellent! You can start right now!" before Ash knew it, Lewis removed his apron and put it on the boy and slowly walked away towards the master's lodging, "Clean up the mess here in the restaurant and after that you can continue cleaning the kitchen"

But then Soledad stood up to protest, "Grandpa! You can't just drop all of your chores to him!" but it was too late. Ash had already accepted the job even though the job was more than what he actually bargained for. With the old man gone, the girl only sulked back to her chair and sighed once more, "Sorry about this. My grandpa doesn't really likes responsibility so he can be quite a lazy mouth"

"That's ok" Ash waved it off, "I used to do this a lot back during my travels. But most of the time, I would usually be doing this with Brock" the boy quickly got to work and collected all the plates on the table. "Besides… I'm sure you could use the extra help"

"If only grandpa would spend more time working, then maybe we could some work done around here" the two of them instantly began to laugh together like two friends should. But unknown to both of them… is that Lewis was listening right behind the door he just exited. There was sly grin on his face and somehow…… I think only the gods know why.


	58. Safer Than Sorry Part 3

**Chapter 58: Safer Than Sorry (Part 3)**

**(Half Way Home Inn restaurant) (04:00 PM) (16 hours till the second round)**

A few hours after Ash was given his new job, he instantly got right to work. In just two hours after he was given Lewis's apron, he went right on into cleaning the kitchen, washing the dishes and repairing some of the squeaky chairs that had been annoying them for quite some time. At first, Soledad doubted that they could get anything done today, but it seemed like Ash had proved her wrong. In what was supposed to be done in weeks were instantly finished within just two hours. In just 120 minutes, the inside of the restaurant looked like it has been totally refurnished. Even Rosa helped! With her unique Pokemon talents, she could do a lot of things!

"Well… that's the last one" Ash wiped the sweat off his forehead as he finished with the last of the chairs. "What do you think Pikachu?" the little yellow mouse didn't really know how a good chair should look, but after going on top of it and trying to see if it squeaked or tilted in anyway he instantly gave out a thumbs up. (Pika pikachu!)

"Thanks for your help Ash" Soledad came in with a tray of freshly cooked delicacies, "Wow… it looks like you actually fixed everything"

"Yeah… but now all we have to do is paint the wall and this place will be as good as new" the girl simply chuckled at his interest. If only her grandfather wasn't so lazy then maybe they could've finished the work in half the time. "Why don't we take a break for now? I'm sure you're tired seeing that you haven't had lunch yet" the mere mention of food was more than enough to get Ash's stomach grumbling again. With the groaning sound coming out of his tummy, the boy couldn't help but blush embarrassingly. He really needed to get control over his stomach or else his social life will go down the drain.

"Ehehehehe…… I guess… your right…" he submitted. And so, by submitting to his hunger, the two of them pulled up a chair and opened up the window for some nice clean air. The restaurant was so stuffy that it already sounded like a great idea just thinking about it. "Alright! Let's eat! (ittedakimasu!)" and with one word, the boy quickly dug into his plate like a wild animal. All of his manners and gentlemanhood was instantly forgotten like it never even existed.

In just a matter of seconds, the boy had already finished half of his meal, but just as he was enjoying it so, a sudden chuckle from a certain pink haired trainer caught his attention, "Huh?" again the boy realized that he had acted out of place again. He knew that there was someone else with him, but sometimes he just loses it when he's hungry.

"Oh sorry about that" this time it was his turn to apologize.

But Soledad waved it off, "Oh don't be. It's nice to know that someone appreciates my cooking other than my grandfather of course" they both let out a soft giggle altogether.

But then Ash realized that he was the only one that was eating, "Uh so… why aren't you eating?"

"Huh? Oh I already had my share" she replied, "Besides, you worked even harder than I did so think nothing of it teeheehee… dig in"

"Well… don't mind if I do!" and with that, Ash quickly got back into eating, but in a much slower pace.

"By the way Ash" Soledad continued as the boy turned to her for a moment, "I've been wondering... Where did you get all those wounds?" she gestured to the boy's bandages which were obviously visible to anyone. In fact, the only reason why people could hardly recognize him was because of these bandages. He had some on his arms, some on his legs and plenty on his stomach. The boy really had to resist an urge to look at Rosa for a moment there, but he can visibly tell that the pink Pokemon felt partially responsible for damage inflicted upon him.

"Ahehehe… it's kind of a long story" and probably one that she would have a hard time believing too.

However… just when they were just about to continue their little friendly conversation, the aroma of the well cooked food seemed to have finally caught the attention of the pedestrians crossing the road. Thanks to Ash leaving the window open, it wasn't long till the people began to wonder where the wonderful smell was coming from.

"What is that delightful smell?" said one of the shoppers.

"Hey… let's go eat there guys!" said a young teen to his friends to which the six of them whole heartedly agreed.

"Mommy, mommy! Let's go eat there!"

And when the customers came in they all said together in unison, "Hello! We'd like to order please!" Ash and Soledad could only look back at them with a quizzled face.

**(Half Way Home Inn kitchen)**

Lewis was humming his favorite music tune after finishing the stew (again) for once he was actually proud that he didn't burn anything or anyone up. But just as he was going to carry the plate to the restaurant, Soledad suddenly dashed right in front of him with apron on and a spatula in hand, "Oh hey there Soledad, you should…"

"No time grandpa!" she cut him off like she was in a hurry, "We'll talk later some other time!"

"Eh?" unable to understand what was all the ruckus, the old man decided to see what was going on in the restaurant. By the time he got there, his eyes widened like the dish being served on the table. The whole room was packed with customers! Every table and every chair was occupied and Ash was having trouble keeping track with the order lists. Even though he tried his best to get one order at a time, there were simply just too many people. Seeing that the boy needed a hand, Lewis quickly dropped his stew on the table and began working at the cash register.

Once Soledad was finished with the first batch, Ash quickly head back towards the kitchen to get the tray and hand the girl the next order. It was a good thing Ash went to the market this morning, or else they would've been in big trouble.

After an hour of cooking and serving, Soledad managed to fill in more than thirty orders, but it didn't look like the orders were gonna stop any time soon.

"Soledad, is the miso soup ready?" Ash entered the kitchen slightly sweating like a pig. Soledad quickly pointed to the table next to her, "Yeah they're ready! Can you bring the order of table eight too?" she gestured to the three trays next to the miso soup.

Ash tried his best to carry them all together but just when he thought he got the hang of it, his feet suddenly slipped off the floor. But just before he could drop the dishes on the ground, Rosa quickly came in and caught the trays in a professional way without even spilling a drop. "Whoa… thanks a lot Rosa" the boy appreciated the pink Pokemon's quick thinking.

"_You are working too fast your majesty"_ the Guardian stated, _"You shouldn't even be doing such menial tasks"_

"Ahehe. Sorry Rosa, it's just that I want to help any way I can that's all" the boy apologized with his usual trademark grin. But then Soledad's voice came in, "Ash, table two need their drinks refilled"

"Ah! Ok I'm coming" but before the boy went to help him, Rosa turned with a serious face. _"You're seriously going to do this?"_ she asked which was replied with a confident nod, _"Very well…"_ she quickly pulled out a smaller size apron and wrapped it around her waist, _"Give me the trays"_

"Really? You'd help? But… are you sure?"

The pink Lucario only smirked back in reply, _"I don't really have much experience in public dining areas Ash… but if my talents were good enough to serve kings of the old, then I should be overqualified for tasks such as these" _

"Alright then!" Ash perked up with his fists raised, "Let's do this! (Pi pikachu!)" with the aid of Rosa and Pikachu, Ash was able to cut his work time to a mere minimal. With Pikachu cute charms and sparkling personality, he was a big hit with the kids and some of the older generations. Rosa on the other hand intrigued some of the trainers that came by. It was rare to see a Lucario in these parts and ever rarer to see one clad in pink. The Guardian didn't really like the stares she was getting but she had little choice since she promised to help the king. And thanks to her telekinetic abilities, she was able to tell which dish goes to which person.

And with just three hours, the fame of the restaurant suddenly skyrocketed through the roof. Rumors were spreading faster than the plagues themselves. The sight of someone who looked like Ash Ketchum, the oddly colored Lucario and the tasty food being made was an ear candy and it peek curiosity to everyone in the city. Before Lewis knew it, the waiting rack on the outside of the compound was lined up even longer than the roller coaster in the amusement park.

"Thank you, come again" said Ash to the leaving patrons. Once he cleaned up the table and taking the dish to the kitchen, he immediately greeted the new customers who were next in line. But then suddenly, Pikachu came in and alerted the boy to follow him to the kitchen, "Huh? What is it Pikachu? (Pikapika!)" quickly not trusting his mouth, Ash quickly followed his little Pikapal to the kitchen where there seemed to be a slight looking dilemma.

"I can't believe this is actually happening!" Soledad shouted, "Of all the time to run out of coal and gas!"

"Hey Soledad, what's wrong?" Ash asked

The girl quickly turned around with a sad-disappointing expression on her face, "The stove is out of gas!" she whined, "And we used up the last of our coal to light the fire. (to Lewis) You were supposed to buy them this morning you dope!!"

"Ahehehe… sorry pumpkin"

Without fire, Soledad would be unable to cook and it would probably take hours before the gas or coal shipment to get to the restaurant on time. But just when they thought they were out of options, Ash thought of a great idea. He quickly took threeof his Pokeballs and threw them in the air, "Sceptile, Corphish, Burno, I choose you!" immediately, three of his Pokemons appeared. Sceptile as usual… placed a wheat straw on his lips, Corphish just tapped its pincers with a smile while the Houndoom (Burno) barked affectionately to its master. At first, Lewis and Soledad didn't really know why he called out these three Pokemons, but after what the boy did next, they completely understood.

"Sorry to call you guys so late" Ash apologized modestly, "But I really need your help. Sceptile, help Soledad with the cooking, Burno, I need you to start a small fire and… Corphish, I need your bubble beam to help with cleaning the dishes" the three Pokemons were probably more than happy to oblige.

With Sceptile's pound attack, he was able to flatten flour and dough like saucer plates, and with its accurate leaf blade attack, it could cut through anything thrown at it. It didn't matter if it was fruits, veggies or meat, the grass Pokemon can take it on without a flinch. With Burno's controllable flame thrower, Soledad was able to cook faster than she actually anticipated. Corphish also did his part by using its bubblebeam attack to clean the dishes. And with just a spray of mint, the dishes looked and smelled just as new.

"Hey can we have some more ramen over here?" asked one of the patrons to Ash.

"Sure thing!" Ash replied with his usual smile, "Hey Pikachu, you mind taking these dishes to Soledad? I have my hands full right now" the little yellow buddy only smiled back and quickly brought the plates back to the kitchen on its back.

But just as the moon finally began to take its place amongst the stars, the restaurant was finally able to serve the last customer with satisfaction.

"Thank you, please come again" the boy said with a bow along with Pikachu and Rosa. "No, thank you" replied the patron, "This has been the most invigorating restaurant I've ever been in my life! By the way, where did get that Lucario? I've never seen one with that kind of colors. Would you be interested in a trade?"

"Uh… sorry, but no thanks" Ash replied with honestly with a little sweat drop, "I wouldn't part with Rosa for anything" this earned him a feint blush from the pink Pokemon.

"Is that so? Well, I'll come back again tomorrow. Bye!" and with that, Ash quickly put in the closed sign on the door and locked the entrance with a defining click sound. As he turned back, he was immediately greeted by the sight of Lewis buried underneath a stack of papers. "Wooooooo weeeee!!" the old man shouted, "This must be the most we made in five years! I can't believe how fast those customers came in and came out!"

"Well… I'm glad I could help"

But then to the boy's surprise, Lewis grabbed Ash's shoulder and shook them excitingly, "My boy, you are certainly a good luck charm to this establishment! Consider yourself officially hired! Welcome aboard the Half Way Home Inn crew! Ha ha!!" with the old man off counting how much his restaurant had made, Ash decided to rest his arms back at the kitchen, but when he got there, he was even more surprised to what he saw.

Sceptile, Houndoom, and Corphish were all sleeping on the grass peacefully with a towel wrapped around them to protect them from the cold. Someone… probably Soledad must be responsible for it. Not wanting to bother them, the boy continued on into the kitchen, only to find Soledad sleeping on the bench with an exhausted face. The poor girl was so weak that she barely even had the time to clean herself up. Some of the plates were still not yet cleaned, the stove was plain messy and the utensils were scattered all over the place.

Seeing the girl in such a state made Ash laughed. It was probably ironic, but it looked all the girls he thought were actually tough really had a soft spot deep inside of them. Not wanting to disturb her rest, the boy took off his Hoenn hooded jacket and gently placed it on the girl's back. After cooking for so long… she truly earned her rest. "Goodnight Soledad" he whispered to her before placing a pillow on the girl's head. With the young coordinator sleeping like a baby, Ash decided to finish off the cleaning regime. It might take a long while, but what the heck!

**(The next morning) (Arena District) (The beginning of the second preliminary round!!!!) (07:23 AM)**

Fireworks fired up into the sky, parades going all across the field, crowds cheering and trainers and coordinators quickly assembled on the grounds of the Arena District. If one should look at the place now and compared to the first match, they would say that the populace had undoubtedly dwindled. When the gang first entered this district during the first round preliminary, they barely had any elbow room, but now it looks like there was plenty of space to move around.

"Hmm… not here either" Dawn stated as she looked around the fast food joint.

It wasn't long until Brock entered the scene, "Hey Dawn, have you seen Ash yet?" the boy asked which was replied with a negative shake of her head, "Hmm… this is bad. The second round is starting in a few minutes and Ash isn't here"

"Do you think… do you think something happened to him?" the blue haired coordinator said with worry clearly visible in her voice, but Brock only smiled back, "Hey… Ash is smart enough not to get himself in trouble. I'm sure he probably just over slept. He'll be here any minute, I'm certain of it" but in truth, the squinty eyed boy was a little worried himself. Ash was no fool, but trouble just seems to follow him wherever his walked. In fact… the boy could actually get lost in the city!!! The mere thought of it only worried the man even more.

"Hey guys!" Tracey called in from the crowd, "Any luck?" the other two only shook their heads in reply. "Hmm… he didn't come back last night. And he didn't comeback the night before… could he be in trouble"

"Well… that's a possibility"

"Well, I'll try calling the police to see if they saw anyone with his description" Tracey quickly went to the nearest telephone booth and began dialing the police to see if anyone comes up with his name or location.

But then soon, Johanna came by, "Dawn sweetie, there you are. I've been looking all over for you. Come on, we might be called up next"

"Oh hey mom" the girl replied plainly, "I was just looking for Ash but it looks like he's not here at the moment"

But the mother only gave her daughter a slight pat on the back, "Oh don't worry Dawn. I'm sure he'll be here. He's probably tired from all the training he did last night" and then quickly she turned in a whisper, "And just between you and me… I think Ash likes you…" again, the girl quickly became as red as a tomato being boiled in hot water with steam and sweat all put together. "Tee hee hee" Johanna smirked with glee.

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn)**

As the morning sun finally rose once more to claim its rightful place in the sky, the stars of the night mother quickly hid themselves behind the clouds and awaited for the next time they come out and shine as brightly as they do every night.

"Emm… hmm…" Soledad moaned with great comfort as her eyes fluttered to the morning rays. "Hmmmm…. Ahhh…" with her body recharged and her stressed arm relaxed the girl leaped off from her sleeping position and out into the open. "Hmm… that was nice nap…" she said to herself unconsciously wearing Ash's jacket on herself.

As she came to the restaurant area she found the place to be as deserted as usual, Lewis was snoring on the chair next to the cash register like a baby. Seeing that it was getting sort of late, the girl decided to wake the old man up before the alarm clock rings. "Grandpa… grandpa wake up, it's already morning" she nudged the old man gently which woke him up instantly, "Huh? Oh morning pumpkin. Is it morning already?"

"A little pass morning grandpa" Soledad joked, "Have you seen Ash?"

The old man thought for a moment before remembering, "Ash? Oh him. That kid stayed up late last night cleaning up the kitchen. I tell ya: if there were more people like him, the world would be a much better place eh hehehehehe. I think he's probably still sleeping in his room"

"Well, I'll go and make him some breakfast" she volunteered before heading off towards the kitchen, but then Lewis stopped her, "Hey… don't you have the Valmarian league to go to…?"

Silence…

Silence…

Silence…

"AHHHHHHH!!!!!!" with a scream that would even frighten the dead themselves, Soledad quickly went to Ash's room and barged in without warning. Rosa would've pounded her to a pulp if she did that, but right now the Guardian was too tired to even lift a finger. "Ash! Ash, wake up! Hurry wake up!"

"Uh huh? Yes… sir, can I take your order…zzzzzz?" even during his sleep the boy was still in his working mode. Seeing that he won't be waking up the normal way, Soledad quickly called Lapras, her water Pokemon, "Lapras, use water gun on Ash!" the water Pokemon quickly fired a cold stream of water on the boy which woke him up completely, "Ah!! Wha! Wha wha wha!? What's happening!?"

But there wasn't much time for long explanation, "Ash, hurry up and get change! The Valmarian league is starting in twenty minutes!"

"WHAT!? Why didn't anyone wake me up!?"

"I just woke up too so come on!"

Before Lewis knew it, the whole compound was in a complete uproar. Even though there were only two workers, the noise they gave out made it felt like three families were living here.

"Ahh! Where are my shoes!?" Ash shouted to anyone who could answer.

"Grandpa, have you seen my boots!?"

"Pikachu, help me find my hat!"

"Where are my hair clips!?"

Even with the two teen panicking over trivial matters, Lewis quietly remained on his set, unmoved from his previous position, "Haa… this certainly is a lively morning" he sighed, "I wonder if something interesting will happen today"

When the two of them finally finished finding their things, they quickly put on their foot wear and head off to Soledad's car only to find out that the main road was in a deadlock traffic mode. "Oh man! What a traffic!" Ash stated, "We'll never get there in time for the competition!"

"If only we had an alternative way of transportation" Soledad muttered to herself as she thought of a way to beat the road. But then luckily, Lewis had an idea, "Ahem…" the old man let out a sarcastic cough as he handed the both Ash and Soledad a pair of roller blades and protective gears. "I was hoping these things would come in handy some day ahehehehe"

"Thanks Lewis!" Ash appreciated and quickly began putting on the cool set of wheels. "Alright… I'm ready!" but just before could skate away, Lewis halted them, "Hold on a minute" he stopped them, "Soledad, you're still wearing Ash's jacket" the girl quickly remembered the jacket she had on herself, "Huh? Oh yeah! (to Ash) Here Ash, thanks" she blushed slightly a little curious on how she could forget such details.

"No problem" the boy replied before turning to Lewis again, "Thanks a lot for the skates Lewis. I'll be sure to return them to ya!" Since Pikachu couldn't keep up with the boy's speed, Ash decided to tuck him in his jacket so that he wouldn't fall off. Rosa on the other hand can travel faster than both of them combined so she had no problem in keeping up with them.

"Hey no problem! Just be sure to watch where you're going" and with that the two teens quickly skated away on the side road, avoiding all the traffic and pedestrians.

Since Valmarian city was a big city, roller skates were perfect to maneuver around the streets and alleyways quickly and without too much difficulties. In a matter of minutes, Soledad was able to get them out of the Old Town district and onto the bridge connecting to the Industrial District. But just when they thought they could make it, fate seemed to have something in store for them.

There was a slight accident on the bridge to the Industrial District. Apparently, a truck full of Miltank manure crashed and is now blocking the side road of the area. "Hey… what's going on?" Ash asked to which the police officer answered, "Sorry you two, but the bridge is closed until we can get this truck off" he said professionally.

"And how long would that take?"

The officer thought for a moment before answering back, "Hmm… if the toe truck gets her, I'd say about six hours"

"Six hours!?" Ash shrieked, "We don't have that kind of time" but then Soledad quickly spotted something coming below the bridge. It was a small fishing ship that usually makes runs through the city water systems. If her sources were right, then that boat would also be stopping by the Arena District, but the only question now was on how to get on the ship.

Ting!

"Ash, follow me!" Soledad quickly grabbed the boy's hand and dragged him down the slopes of the waterway. Ash barely had time to react when he started speeding up at an uncontrollable pace. With a ramp in front of them, the boy could only hope they won't turn into fish food.

"Hey! Stop!" the police officer tried to stop them from doing something so reckless, but with Soledad's accurate timing, they were able to get on board the boat without much harm.

"Boss?" the captain of the ship who was a teenager and also a member of Soledad's gang was by complete surprise with the woman's appearance, "What are you doing here?" but there was no time to explain. Soledad took off her helmet and shouted back, "No time to explain! Can you get us to the Arena District in ten minutes? It's an emergency!"

The captain of the boat only smiled back, "Sure thing boss! Hold on tight!" with a change of the gear, the fishing boat soon speeded up to 40 knots. Ash was barely able to stand up when the boat voomed into the distance. Before the police officer could even radio for backup, they were already long gone.

**(Arena District)**

As Adam Vile and his sister Sabrina Vile began greeting the trainers and coordinators to the second round of the Valmarian league, Richie and the rest of the gang could only wonder where Ash was. The boy would never miss out on something this big and there was no way in heck that he would even think about it! He came too far just to quit now.

A few minutes after the speech began, Brock came by to report his findings, "Did you find him?" May asked a little worried about the boy as well, but sadly Brock shook his head in response. "This is certainly unexpected" Drew muttered, "Maybe something happened to him?"

But just as they about to jump into conclusion, Todd, the photographer suddenly spot two familiar figures walking through the gates, "Hmm? Hey look! There he is over there!" with one word, the gang instantly jerked their heads to the area the boy pointed at. And to his truth, there he was panting like a tired dog and sweating like a Slowbro in a sauna bath. And surprisingly he was not alone. Beside him, holding his hand and equally tired as him was none other than Soledad herself.

"Ash!" Richie was the first to call out his name. Once the boy caught a whiff of his breath, he turned to his friends with a slight smile. "Hey guys… did I miss anything?" he was afraid that he might've disqualified or something like that.

"Not at all" Kenny replied holding a smirk, "You're just in time for the opening speech. Come on! Let's get back to the arena" with their idol back to their side, the gang quickly returned to the site of the battle for which they about to take part in.

"Welcome, trainers and coordinators!" Adam began, "Before we continue to the second round, I would like to congratulate all of you who have made through to the first round of Valmarian league! But…… as you all know, the next round will now test your very skill as a true Pokemon trainer!"

"The coordinators will be doing a double performance battle royale!" Sabrina added.

"And the trainers will be doing a 3-3 battle!" Adam finished, "So I want to see every last one of you give it their all! (cheers) And so… without further ado…… we will now begin the second round of the Valmarian league!" and with that the crowd immediately abrupt into a loud roar creating a slight sensational shockwave. "So let us begin with the Randomizer!"

"Well… it looks like we'll have to split up for now" Zoey stated before waving off her other friends. But just when the two sides were about to split up, Soledad quickly remembered something, "Oh yeah… hey Ash!" she quickly ran towards the boy to hand him something that he would never expect, "Here's your breakfast and lunch" it was a lunchbox wrapped in a green handkerchief with flower petals decorated on them. "I made it when we looking for our things this morning. Take it as thanks for a good job yesterday" the boy only gave her a confused look before opening the boxed meal. To his surprise, it was one of his favorites! It was actually two boxes made into one. One side had eggs, bread with butter and a bottle of juice and on the other side had rice cakes, ham and a can of soda.

"Wow! Thanks a lot Soledad! They look awesome!" unable to resist the urge, the young trainer decided to take a little bite before moving on, "Emm hmm! They're delicious!" the moment he said those words, Soledad suddenly began to get a strange feeling developing in her heart. Her blood level began to increase and her heart beat hastened as if it was on a race against the world itself. "Wow… man… I can't wait to try the rest! Thanks again Soledad!" but then he noticed that her face was getting redder by the minute, "Huh? Is something wrong?"

With her heart back in its place the girl quickly shook her head in response, "Uh no it's nothing… nothing! I uh… I got… I gotta go!"

"H… hey wait!" Ash wanted to stop her from running away, but it looks like the girl was just simply too fast for her. "What's up with her? (Pika?) Oh well… at least she made me some delicious food (Pikapika!) Come on Pikachu, let's go see our next match"

**(Coordinator's corner)**

As Sabrina Vile continued with her opening speech to the coordinators that were coming into the Arena District, the first batch of competitors entered the fields to begin the second round prelims. But just as the match continued on, Johanna decided that it was time for her to take a little break. If it's not her daughter or any of her friends who are on stage, then she considered it irrelevant to watch. So instead of standing around all day waiting for her name to be called in by the Randomizer, she decided to take a little break in one of the fast food joints. But then suddenly, to her surprise, Soledad was there too, but it looked like she was in a state of deep thought.

"May I sit here?" the afro haired mother asked, however to her surprise, Soledad didn't even respond. "Soledad?" she called in to which the girl instantly panicked, "Huh!? Wha!? What?! Is it my turn already!?"

But the mother simply waved it off, "I was just wondering if I could sit here" she gestured to the chair on the opposite side of the girl.

"Huh? Oh sure! Please join me" Soledad chuckled uncertainly.

This earned her a confused look from Johanna. When the mother first met with the girl, she thought that she was kind of like Cynthia. Strong, tough, confident and always on her guard, but now after this encounter, she was now completely the opposite of what she used to be. "Is something wrong? You look a little red Soledad"

The girl instantly made out a soft blush as she scratched the back of her head shyly, "Oh… I worked pretty late with grandpa last night, so I didn't get much sleep. I'm still kind of tired ahehehehe" she half lied I guess.

But Johanna didn't seem too convinced with her story. It was probably true that the girl worked all night, but something else was bothering her and she was certain it wasn't work. "Could it be…?" she thought of a way off topic but decided to keep it to herself for now. Who knows… if she was anything like Cynthia was then her thought wouldn't be far off the main reason.

But just as they were about to continue their conversation, the speaker in the trainer's corner perked in. "Ladies and gentlemen! The first round of the second prelim round is about to begin!"

**(Trainer's corner)**

Although a lot of people were expecting Ash to be the first one to fight, they were greeted by the sight of another trainer. As Ash and the gang spotted the person, they almost thought that they were looking at professor Elm in his younger days! The trainer that came in was wearing a green short sleeve T-shirt, long brown pants and a hairstyle that would definitely match up to professor Elm.

"Hey… who's that?" Richie asked a little curious on who that person was.

As the trainers approached the field, the referee waved up his flag to announce the match, "The first match is about to begin! On the red corner, stands Vincent, the Pokemon trainer from New Bark town! (cheers) And on the blue corner stands (cheers!) from (more cheers!) this will be a 3-3 match with no time limit! The last trainer with a Pokemon standing will be declared the winner! Trainers, choose your Pokemons!"

The red team's trainer went first, "I choose Zubat, Ninjask and Aron!" the three said Pokemon instantly came out of their respective Pokeballs and prepared to do battle. The audience were a little stunned with the trainer's choice of combination, but the trainer known as Vincent only smirked back in reply.

As the crowd anticipate the boy's choices, Ash couldn't help but feel that he had met that trainer somewhere before. "Hmm… he does look a little familiar" he quickly delved into his mind and searched for any clues on where he had encountered him.

But then it was Vincent's turn to choose his Pokemon, "Looks like it's my turn" he said confidently, "Meganium, Golduck, Magneton Let's go!" the evolved Pokemons of the young trainer appeared and from the looks of it, they seemed to be seasoned veteran of the battle arena.

With the two trainers confident about their decision, the referee waved his flag to signal the beginning of the match, "The trainers have chosen their Pokemons! So let the battle begin!" and then on cue, the crowd went into a roar of cheers and whistles to the start of the match.

Vincent went on first, "Magneton, tackle! Golduck, fury swipe!" the two Pokemons quickly head on in for an attack formation, but the other trainer was already in his defensive move. "Zubat, Ninjask, support! Aron, attack them with tackle!" the three of his Pokemons quickly head off to fight the other two of Vincent's Pokemons.

But a few seconds before they clashed, the professor Elm look-alike smirked as he turned to his best bud Meganium, "Meganium, cover them with razor leaf!" the grass Pokemon nodded and quickly dished out a wave of leaves which stunned its opponents for just a few seconds, but that was all the tim the boy needed for his attack to work. With just one blow… BAM! He knocked all three of them down back to their corner.

"Alright, get back to formation everyone!" Vincent commanded. In an instant, the three of his Pokemons returned to their previous grounds to assume a defensive formation.

"Whoa, that was some combination attack" Max said slightly amazed by Vincent's tactics and even Paul seemed interested on how the opposing trainer would do to beat him.

But Ash decided to leave it. Even though he was still quite curious on why the guy seemed so familiar to him, he thought that it would be better to sit back and relax until his name gets called in. Beside… he still had that delicious breakfast-lunch meal waiting for him in his backpack so there was no need to rush. "Come on Pikachu, let's find someplace to sit and eat" the little mouse gladly agreed and followed its master to the umbrella equipped table.

**(Back on the battlefield)**

"Aron, charge in! Zubat, super sonic! Ninjask, quick attack, let's go!" the opposing trainer ordered with a lot of stress building up in his head. After being beaten back at the beginning of the match by such a simply move, he panicked and decided to go for a do or die attack. But that was probably a foolish move on his part. With Vincent smirking on the other corner with his head held up high, every professional trainer already knew that this match was over. The opponent was a rookie, probably someone who hasn't even experienced a lot of battles yet. This led the people to wonder… which city would nominate someone like this?

"Golduck, Magneton, block them! Meganium, go for a solar beam!" with the opponent's team blocked off by a attack move, the grass Pokemon had plenty of time to charge up for the final blow which sent them all flying back to their corner of the field.

As the referee inspected the three Pokemons, he waved his flag up high to announce the victor, "Aron, Ninjask and Zubat are unable to battle" he declared, "The winner of the first match goes to Vincent of New Bark town!"

The audiences congratulated on the boy for his victory, but were somewhat unimpressed since this was only the beginning. During the first round of the preliminary, the tension was already on top of its boiling point because of Ash and Gary, but now… some of the battles seemed rather dull and redundant.

**(Back with Ash) (10:34 AM)**

With the matches continuing with no signs of stop, Ash decided to take his time and wait for his name to be called in before doing anything rash. The table he was in was empty so Pikachu and Rosa didn't mind taking the seats. But just when the boy was about to dig in onto his fine meal, a jolt of pain suddenly panged up his arm which caused him to flinch, dropping his spoon on the table in the process. When the Guardian noticed his painful reaction, she got into worry mode almost instantly, _"What's wrong your majesty?"_she asked telepathically.

Ash checked out his arm and looked back at it curiously, "I dunno… I was just picking up my spoon when…" but then he just waved it off, "It's probably nothing. Maybe my arms just a little tired ahehehe" but Rosa didn't seem to buy the story one bit. With her unique Pokemon abilities, the pink Lucario scanned the boy's right arm for any bone fracture of deceases. But surprisingly… there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"_Perhaps you would need a physician to see your arm_" she recommended him to the Pokemon center nearby. But with the match-ups going on, he wouldn't want to miss a second of it. After the pain finally went away, the boy resumed eating the delicious meal prepared for him by Soledad.

However… just when he was about to take a spoonful of the delicious treat, a Jigglypuff suddenly appeared out of the blues with a smile plastered on its face. "Huh? A Jigglypuff?" (Jigly! Jiglypuff!) the little round Pokemon chuckled back at him. Strangely, Ash was able to tell that this was not the same Jigglypuff that he had been seeing for the pass few years. One of the most obvious features would probably be the microphone-marker that it always carries around, but other than that… he couldn't really tell.

As the two of them starred at each other for a moment, the Jigglypuff suddenly yoinked a good piece of Ash's meal with one single gulp. "Hey!" Ash yelled out, "Who aid you could take something from me!?" but then to his surprise, the little Pokemon took the lunchbox and scram away before the boy had any chance to react. "Hey! Come back here!"

And with that, the 'great' chase begins. Not wanting to lose a meal to a little round Pokemon that appeared out of nowhere, Ash dashed off from his seat along with his Pikachu like cat and mouse……… well… cat-mouse and uh…… little mouse? Oh who cares!?

Due to the little Pokemon's small size, Jigglupuff was able to walk right through the crowd without much of a rift-raft, but for Ash, he had to plough through the people and make his way towards the other side of the district. After running for about ten or twenty minutes and going through the massed amount of trainers and watchers, Ash was finally able to corner the little thief in a small alley down the roadside. "I… huff huff… got you… huff huff… now!" after catching his breath, the boy slowly made his way towards like a wolf cornering its prey.

He didn't want to hurt the little thing, but when food is involve, he was gonna have to let out a few strings.

But just mere seconds before Ash could reach out and grab his meal, he was suddenly struck on the head with a purse that seemed to weigh a ton! "Get away from her you creep!" (WHAM!) the weight of the bag was more than enough to send Ash a meters away and onto a wall like a pack of bricks against a lump of hardened cement. "Keep your hands off my Little Pink you fleabag!"

Once the boy was able to recover from the harsh blow, he looked up to his attacker and realized that it was a girl. "Oh… my head…!" he groaned loudly. He then noticed the little Jigglypuff heading towards her.

The girl was probably in her mid teens and she definitely had the figure of a supermodel. She had blue hair which was covered by a small cap on the bunk top. She wore a pink sleeveless shirt which was also then covered by a white long sleeve vest that was then left unbuttoned. She also wear a pair of black and blue running shorts and a brightly colored pair of running shoes.

"Are you ok Little Pink?" the little girl cooed to her like a pet. It was then Ash realized that the girl was probably her master or owner if you would call it that. "Hey… is this Jigglypuff, with you?" he asked which was replied with a huff from the girl, "That's right buster!" she said annoyingly, "And if you try to hurt a single strain of hair off of my Little Pink, then you have another thing coming!"

But then Ash waved up his hand in defense, "What!? No, I wasn't trying to hurt her! I just wanted that lunchbox she stole from me!" the anger on the girl's face quickly dropped down below zero as she turned her attention back to her Jigglypuff which she amply named 'Little Pink' and to the boy's truth, she really was carrying a lunchbox. "Oh my! Little Pink, how many times do I have to tell you: Not to go taking other people's things!?" but Little Pink only replied with a small laugh and chuckle.

**(Ten minutes later back at the table)**

After explaining the misunderstood situation to each other, Ash and the other trainer quickly got back to the table that he dashed away a few minutes ago. "I'm really sorry about that" the blue haired girl apologized, "When I saw you attacking Little Pink like that, I kind of jumped to conclusion without thinking ahehehehe"

But Ash just waved it off, "Hey its ok. If someone was doing something like that to Pikachu, I would've done the same. It means that you must really care for your Pokemons right?"

"Yeah… Little Pink and I have been together for a long time now" she clarified, "When you creeping up on her like that, I really thought that you were some kind of Pokemon thief or something" she exhaled softly before continuing, "Oh… where are my manners? My name's Marina, I'm a Pokemon coordinator and battle trainer from New Bark town" that little phrase was more than enough to get Ash's attention, "Huh? So which one are you?"

"Me? Oh I signed in as a coordinator" she explained, "But I also love doing battles and winning badges too"

"Wow! Just like me! Except that I'm a trainer and I usually do contests for fun" they both let out a soft chuckle to lighten up the mood. But just when they were having fun, Marina suddenly gave out an odd face when Ash decided to continue eating. "Well…?" she said in a questioning tone.

Ash looked back at her with a puzzling expression, "Well? Well what?"

"Aren't you gonna ask me something?" but the boy only looked back at her with a confused stare, "I was?"

"Haven't you heard of me?" she pointed to herself, "Marina, doesn't that ring a bell?"

Ash thought for a second trying to recall her name, but sadly nothing seemed to be popping up in her head. "Sorry, but I'm not really sure if we've met" this only led her to face fall on the table with a large sweat drop on her head. "You've got to be kidding me…" she muttered to herself. "So what's your name?" she asked.

"Oh me? My name's Ash, Ash Ketchum and I'm from Pallet town" the mere mention of the name almost literally turned Marina into stone. "A… a…… Ash? As in… the Ash Ketchum… the reigning champion of the world?"

"The one and the same" he smiled back, "Oh and these are my friends, Pikachu and Rosa (Lucario)" the girl noticed the pink Guardian and became a little intrigue, "Oh my, I've never seen a Lucario with such coloring before"

"_You're not the first person to say that"_ Rosa said telepathically but only Ash was able to hear her.

After the two humans talked for a little while, Marina decided to turn modest, "Well Ash, as apology for hitting you back there. Why don't I buy you something?" but the boy declined, "No it's ok. I already have my lunchbox here and besides… you were only protecting your friend"

"But I feel so terrible hitting you like that" she chuckled slightly as she brought out her purse. When she took out the large solid brick off the bottom, Ash only returned with a sweat drop. Apparently, the girl probably kept that thing in her bag just in case someone snuck up on her. It was a common strategy used by celebrities to beat up the paparazzi whenever they approach.

But just as Ash was about to dig in again on his meal, another voice perked up from behind, "Hey Marina!" Ash and Marina quickly turned to the side where a boy probably the same age as Marina was waving at them. "Hey Jimmy, over here!" Marina waved back.

The boy was probably a few inches taller than Marina and had a wacky hairstyle of some sort which was covered by a yellow cap positioned backwards. He wore a black T-shirt and a red jacket, a pair of orange shorts and a good pair of sneakers.

"Hey there Marina" the boy known as Jimmy approached them, "I've been looking all over for you. I thought I told you to wait for me until my match was over?"

The girl only gave out an apologetic look, "Sorry Jimmy. Little Pink here went and got herself in trouble. Oh that reminds me. Ash, this here is my friend Jimmy. He's also from New Bark town" the two trainers greeted each other with a slight nod before finally returning to their seats.

**(5 minutes later)**

"So you're Ash, the famous champ I've been hearing about huh?" Jimmy stated, not surprised one bit that he was talking to a living legend. "Never thought I'd actually get to meet the famous champ himself hehehehehe" he chuckled slightly as he took a sip off his can of soda, "You might not remember me, but I was actually in the Hoenn league when you became champion"

"Really?" Ash said in wonder, "I guess I'll have to check the list of participants next time"

"Yeah… but during that time, I only became one of the top 18s" Jimmy explained.

But as they continued on with the conversation, Pikachu decided to grab a bottle of ketchup from the table and began drinking from the tube. "Hey, is this your Pikachu Ash?" the girl asked which he replied with a slight nod, "Oh my he looks so much cuter up close! Look at those bright red cheeks and those fluffy ears! Oh I've always wanted to see you!" the little mouse was a little embarrassed to have someone call him cute which mad him blush even more. "Oh would you look at that… he's blushing tee heehee"

Beep beep… beep beep

That was the sound of Ash's Pokedex-phone ringing. "Hello?" he answered and when the video screen popped in, he smiled, "Oh hey professor, how are ya!"

"I was going to ask you the same thing my boy" Samuel smiled out happily and relieved to see his favorite trainer still up and in good health. If he only removes the bandages that were covering some part of his arm and neck then maybe the old man would stop worrying about him. "Anyway Ash, I've sent all of your Pokemons and your belongings to Nurse Joy in the Old Town District just like you ask. She'll take care of them until you get to her"

"Thanks a lot professor" the boy appreciated his help, "With so many things happening, I wouldn't want to go back and forth to train everyone. Oh… by the way. Aren't you gonna come and watch? The second round is pretty exciting"

"I wish I could Ash, but the folks here in the lab are quite the buzzers. I'm sure you'll be able to get through the round with no problems. Your mother should be there somewhere so try not to get her worried ok. (chatter) Huh? Oh sorry Ash, it looks like I need to hang up now. Good luck and send my regards to your friends too… bye!" and with that the screen darkened.

Ding dong ding dong

When the speaker sounded up, the three trainers quickly hushed and listened to the announcement, "Paging trainer Marina. Paging trainer Marina. Please report to the stage to begin your match in ten minutes"

"Well that's me" the blue haired girl stood from her seat as she returned Little Pink to her Pokeball, "I gotta go now, so I'll see you two later ok" and with that she walked off towards the coordinator's corner to begin her match.

**(Time skip) (After the match-ups)**

After Vincent was finished with his battle, the gang decided to wait for their turn on the fields. But with minutes turned to hours turned to more hours, the Randomizer didn't seem to be turning on their favor. Trainer after trainer and coordinator after coordinator came in and came out of the fields but none of them were any of Ash's gang or his close friends.

With the sun setting down below the great walls of the city, the final matches were finally done. A lot of people were going to leave the city tonight that much was for sure. With the second round still continuing for the next six days, who knows what might happen?

**(Half Way Home Inn restaurant) (08:30 PM)**

"Haa…" that was the sound of Ash sighing after returning from the Arena District along with Soledad. Even after waiting for eleven hours and thirty minutes, all he did there was simply watched while the other trainers had their fun. It was exciting watching a Pokemon battle, but it was even more exciting participating in one. "After all that… we didn't even get a chance to battle" he groaned before sighing back onto the table.

A few seconds later, Lewis came to the scene and noticed the boy's darkening mood, "Hmm? Hey there Ash, what's the matter?"

"Huh? Oh hi Lewis…" the boy greeted with a small sigh at the end, "It's nothing big, it's just we didn't get to battle on the fields today" the old man laughed softly to his poor demise, "Oh is that all? I thought it was something important hehehehehehehe. Anyway, get yourself cleaned and go to bed early. You wouldn't want to wake up late like today now would you?"

"Yeah… I think I'll do that" Ash replied mumbily, "But… there seemed very few customers this evening"

"Oh I decided to close the store early today" Lewis replied with a small grin, "Ever since that big blow out yesterday, I thought that you two deserved a good long break. Besides, Soledad's the only person in this establishment who can cook ahehehehe" Ash soon followed suit to his chuckle and quickly turned another soft laugh. But just when Ash was about to go to bath-house and get himself a nice relaxing shower, two familiar old couples reentered the store with wide smiles on their faces.

"Hey there Lewis, we're back!" said the bald old man.

Lewis quickly remembered that his most loyal customers still needed feeding, "Oh hey there you guys. Still back for more I see"

"Never forget your number one customers hee-hee-hee-hee-hee"

Lewis quickly yelled back to the kitchen, "Hey Soledad, my old buddies are back! Can we have those dry seaweeds and prune juice?" the said girl quickly appeared behind the curtained doorway wearing an apron around her waist, "Again? Oh ok… but I think we're out of seaweeds already"

"Already? We should've bought some this morning" but then Lewis was immediately brought into a chokehold by his own grand daughter. "That's because you were the one who was supposed to buy them!" she screamed at the old man's ears, "You had the whole morning and all you did was lay around playing Shogi with your friends! (Japanese chess)"

At that moment, Ash would've panicked, but after knowing those two for awhile, he soon figured that this was something that was common to happen between them. It was either physical pain, or affection between granddaughter and grandfather. So instead… he just sweat dropped and sighed.

But then… quickly remembering the bento (lunch box) prepared for him, Ash pulled out the green box from his backpack and presented it to the girl, "Oh yeah Soledad" the girl quickly dropped her grandfather on the ground and turned to the boy, "Here's the lunchbox you gave me this morning"

"Oh…" she replied a little surprised. In fact, the young teen seemed to have completely forgotten about it. "Did you like it?" she asked which was replied with a confident nodding of the head, "Yeah… it was the best meal I had yet" the boy added, "If this is how you cook for breakfast and lunch, then I can't wait what's for dinner" little did Ash know, that what he said was probably the biggest compliment ever given to her.

"R… really?" in but mere seconds, Soledad unconsciously began to blush through her cheeks again which did not go unnoticed by the old folks, "T… thank you" she appreciated the gesture.

After that, Ash quickly left the building for a little nice relaxing bath and hopefully it would take the smell off his shirt. After roller skating all the way to the other side of the city, a good steam bath sounded very good.

Once the remaining inhabitants knew that the boy was out of ear shot, they all immediately turned to the Kanto coordinator with a sly grin strapped on their mouths. Soledad noticed this and quickly cocked a curious brow up a notch, "W… what are you guys looking at?"

The bald man's wife started first, "Why Soledad, I never thought you were that kind of lady (chuckle)" Lewis nodded in agreement.

"Wh… wha?"

"We knew that you would find someone someday… but I never expected that you would prefer… younger men" in that point on, Soledad turned nearly as red as a ripe baked tomato. Steam began to puff out of her ears and her bodily temperature was going sky high. "If I had known that, I would've brought my grandson along with me hee hee hee hee"

"You're taking this all wrong!" Soledad shouted out of embarrassment, "I only made this because he worked hard yesterday!"

But then Lewis interrupted, "Oh? But I didn't get one" this only earned him a bonk on the head with the lunch box, "Ow!!! What was that for!?"

"I only give it to those who worked hard grandpa" she explained sarcastically.

"That's it!" the bald man shouted suddenly, "She passed the first test!" his wife nodded in agreement, "The first sign of love is always denial. But don't worry dear. I'm sure you'll find a way to bloom your feelings"

"I'm not in love!" Soledad screamed out at them to the top of her lunges, but it looked like any she said was turned to deaf ears. Not wanting to hear another word from the oldies, Soledad decided to head back towards the kitchen, "Geeze, the nerve of those people!" before she start to prepare to cook the requested dishes that were ordered, she decided to clean the lunchbox first. But just when she opened the lid, she was surprised to see that the whole box had been emptied and cleaned. _"He cleaned it?"_ she thought to herself before turning her sights to the inn house through the window, _"He must've really liked it……"_


	59. The Second Round Rumble

**Chapter 59: The Second Round Rumble!**

**(Half Way Home Inn exterior) (05:00 AM)**

It was five o'clock in the morning here in Valmarian city, and with the sun slowly climbing its way to the top, the moon gently falls back down towards the mountain… so that it could take its turn… to rest.

But the morning peace… was about to be ruined by a certain over-caring mother and her best friend.

Johanna and Cynthia were hiding behind the bushes in the compound garden just a few feet away from the kitchen with stealth suits and binoculars. After Soledad's suspicious behavior yesterday during the Valmarian league, Johanna had to make sure that this incident was just temporary.

"What are we doing here again Johanna?" the ex-champ of the Valmarian league yawned as she asked wearily.

"My sources tell me that Ash and Soledad have been staying together"

"Isn't that what Ash told us already?" Cynthia countered taking in another yawn, "He told us that he wanted to stay near the training grounds so that he didn't have to walk all the way from the hotel back here"

"That's true" Johanna said amply, "But leaving that sensitive boy in the care of a woman like Soledad can be dangerous" to Cynthia's surprise, Johanna stood up from her hiding position and posed like a girl on a quest to find the holy grail or something, "As a caring loving mother of Dawn, it is my duty and responsibility to make sure that my future son in law is protected from the seductive charms from any girls!"

"Tch… yeah right" Cynthia muttered to herself.

But then suddenly, as she finished her little dramatical speech, the door to the kitchen suddenly opened up, causing the two of them to shush. To their surprise, it was none other than Soledad, the chef of the inn. "There she is…" Johanna snickered, "Now Cynthia… listen closely to what I'm about to say. There are four steps to know that if a girl is in love (there is?) and they are immediately followed with one another. Understand?"

"If you say so" the blonde replied boringly

"Ok… now watch closely"

**(Half Way Home Inn kitchen)**

Waking up early was common for Soledad. She was probably one of those early birds who would walk up and a take the early worms.

As she entered the kitchen, she immediately got to work on making breakfast. With the stove turned on, an apron strapped around her waist, and the plates and other utensils ready for the meal, there was no doubt in her mind that she was gonna make an even better one than before. "Hmm… now let's see… what should I make today?" she opened up her recipe book and began scrolling down the many dishes lined up on the pages. "Omelet and fried rice? No, grandpa had that already. Maybe something more spicy like… ooohh… how about Chilly con-car-ne? Hmm… but I don't know if Ash even likes spicy fo..od…" quickly noticing the words coming out of her mouth the girl began shaking her head forcefully to eliminate the thought, "What am thinking!? This is supposed to be for everyone! Not just Ash and myself!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

On the outside of the kitchen window, you can see that Johanna and Cynthia were sneaking up closer and closer to get a better view on the girl's move. Once the mother saw Soledad talking to herself, her eyes widened slightly, "Oh no… that's the first step! She's talking to herself!" she gritted her teeth forcefully with a sawmill kind of sound. "There are only three more steps to go!"

"She could be thinking of someone else you know" Cynthia tried to reason with her, but the mother refused to listen.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Back in the kitchen, Soledad resumed to her work while at the same time trying to get the thought of the boy out of her head. It was a painstaking process, but it was better than foolishly thinking that Lewis and the other seniors were right. "Alright… let's see… a little bit of this and a little bit of that… and… ohh and don't a forget this" the girl was happily humming her favorite song tune while at the same time adding all the ingredients to the boiling soup.

With five minutes on her timer, all the girl had to do now was to wait for the soup to be ready and she could be on her way to the restaurant. But just when she sat on the chair near the kitchen, her eyes locked onto the lunchbox Ash had yesterday. The lid was still open and the utensils she gave were still inside. Ash must've really taken the liberty to clean it up until it was sparkling like the night sky itself.

"Hmm… well… he did work hard last night" Soledad mumbled to herself before unconsciously picking the green box up. As she looked closely at the empty box, she could begin to remember Ash's face almost instantly.

"_It was delicious. If this is how you cook for breakfast and lunch then I can't wait what's for dinner"_

"Was it really that good?" she asked herself before finally deciding to make another meal for the boy. "No one complimented me on my cooking before…… not even grandpa" she chuckled out slightly. Once her thoughts were beginning to zoom back to the boy's features she began to giggle even louder, "Teehee… maybe I should make him two breakfast today. And after that maybe even a little lunch and…" after realizing the foolish words she was saying to herself she quickly shook her head again to get Ash's image off her mind, "Focus Soledad, focus! Stop thinking about him like that! This isn't supposed to turn into a romantic comedy television series ahahahahahaha!" she blushed and turned around uncontrollably like a doll being played by a professional puppeteer.

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Ash Johanna noticed the girl's strange movements and slightly feint blushes appearing on her cheeks, she began to chew on her own dress like it was made out of rice or something. "Oh no! She wiggling and blushing at the same time!" she yelled out in a soft tone, "I can't believe she was able to do the second and third step all at once!"

Even Cynthia was beginning to get a little suspicious of the young coordinator's behavior. When she first saw the young teen, she thought that the pink haired coordinator would be like her. Strong, brave and confident… but after today, she was beginning to have second thoughts. "So… J.J…" she asked her best friend who was still busy chewing on her dress, "How do you know when someone is in love? It's a little strange and awkward"

"Oh? Actually… Dawn did the same thing when she was cooking for Ash" the mother explained, "The day before Ash was leaving, she…"

**(Flashback) (One year and three months ago)**

After Johanna was finally allowed to leave her bed after her dreadful fever, the mother decided that it was high time she decided to get back to work. She didn't want to continue living like an old granny with Glameow forever. So after a few good stretches and getting changed into her usual house clothes, the mother quickly head down stairs only to hear a soft humming tune of her daughter's voice.

As the mother took a peek, she immediately saw Dawn, still in her traveling outfit wearing a pink apron tied around her neck and waist. She was cooking… and at the same time she was humming.

It was Dawn's favorite Pokemon theme song, but she rarely sings it out loud very much alone hums it. Just when Johanna was about to ask her what she was so happy about, the back door of the house suddenly opened, which made her decide to hide behind the wall.

"Hey Dawn" it was Ash, "I put the laundries in the closet, is there anything else for me to do?" but the young coordinator only shook her head in reply, "That's ok Ash. All the chores are done already" she said with a cheerful smile. Just when Ash was about to head in to the living room to relax a bit, his nose suddenly caught whiff of the pot in front of the girl.

"Hey… what are making?" with the boy's endless curiosity he poked his head into the gutter and took a deep breath of the girl's cooking. "Hmm… this smells great! Mind if I had a taste?" Dawn couldn't possibly refuse him since the boy deserved it for all of his hard work.

Taking a small cup full of the delicious treat, she handed it to the boy a little shyly. Once Ash took one sip and gulp, he gloomed down a bit. At that very moment, Dawn was afraid that he might not like it since it was probably her first try cooking for humans. Poffins were no problem since her mom taught her how to do it when she was still a little girl, but to cook for Ash needed her to think differently. "Is something wrong?" she asked a little worried of what the boy's reaction would be.

After a few moments of silence from the boy, Ash lift the cup back and starred seriously at her, "I knew it…" this made Dawn even more worried. Was that even a positive compliment or a negative insult? "You've been learning from Brock haven't you? (huh?)" Dawn was now confused when the boy finally flashed out his smile, "This soup is great! Brock hasn't made something like this ever since we traveled back in Johto for the second time!" this relieved the girl's intensity by a large margin. For a moment there, she actually believed that the boy didn't like her cooking.

"So you like it?" she asked to which the boy nodded in reply.

"Are you kidding? I love it! Mind if I had another one?" Ash quickly began taking another cupful of the soup.

"Hey! Quit it! It's not even done yet Ash!"

"Oh come on! Just one more sip!"

"No! Wait for lunch time and then you can have it!"

"But I'm hungry!"

"Then stomach it!"

With the two teens still arguing in the kitchen, Johanna couldn't help but grin and chuckle silently at the enlightening scene. Not wanting to bother them, the mother soon made her way towards the living room to begin with her cleaning, but to her amazement, it looks like Brock already finished that.

**(Flashback end)**

After finishing her tale of her daughter's obvious love struck experience, Johanna couldn't help but smile chibily like a cat while her best friend Cynthia look back at her with a strange look. "I… see…" the blonde champ said uncertain with the way of Johanna's wiggling sensation.

"And to think that my dear daughter would actually have a huge crush on a boy like Ash ahohohohohoho!" the afro woman giggled out a little loud. But thankfully it was still early morning so no one would be alarmed about it.

"So J.J…" Cynthia perked in, "What's the last step?"

"Huh? Oh that's easy" Johanna waved it off, "The last step is…"

And then as if on cue to her story, a sudden scream came from the compound kitchen which startled the two champs to heck. Apparently when Soledad was busy off day dreaming and trying to forget the boy's image from her mental conscious, the stove was left on and the soup she was boiling suddenly began to bubble and burst out like firecrackers! And not only that, but the bread she was heating up also began to burn up and the ramen she was heating in the microwave suddenly caught on fire.

"AHH!!" the young teen coordinator screamed, "What's going on! Ahh! The bread! Oh no, my soup! Ahh the noodles! AHHH!!"

"Let me guess…" Cynthia tentavely stated, "That's the last step?" Johanna nodded, "Yup… the last step is that you always become mentally unconscious… (sigh) I guess this just made a mother's work even harder than before"

**(H.W.H Inn restaurant) (1 hour later)**

Morning was always a welcome sight for Ash and his Pokemons. Whenever the sun rose, it always meant that it was the time for new adventures, new opportunities… and of course… a new day. But best of all, today was going to be his day to battle in the second round of the Valmarian league…… well… that's what he hopes so.

But a morning in the Half Way Home Inn was probably one of the best Ash had yet to experience. With a whole room all to himself, three wonderful meals a day, a practice field next door and a job to keep him occupied for the rest of the league, the boy was on his way to living the wonderful life of an upstanding citizen.

However… it seemed like this morning has suddenly changed. When Ash and Pikachu arrived on the table, they were expecting Soledad to fix them a wonderful treat like always, but now… those lovely platters seemed to have been replaced with a bowl of cereal and a glass of natural orange juice. "Uhh…?" that was probably the only expression Lewis and Ash could give when they arrive.

Soledad on the other corner simply gave out a fake laugh, "Ahehehe… sorry about this" she apologized, "I seemed to have dosed off when I was cooking so I hope you don't mind that we just have some plain old cereal ahehehehehe"

But Ash smiled back, "Its ok. I'm used to having this at home all the time back when my mom was out working early" as the boy checked up his watch, he realized that he only had a few hours until the league resumes the second round again. And he wouldn't want to miss it for the world.

"Well I guess you'll eat anything huh Ash" Lewis said in a laughing tone, but Ash was too busy eating to reply to his statement. Right now all he wanted to do was to fill up his stomach with energy and head on to the road so that he can beat the traffic.

**(After breakfast) (07:30 AM)**

After getting themselves cleaned and revitalize from their morning glories, Ash and Soledad departed from the inn to get to the Arena District. As expected, the road was already packed with cars, taxis and buses. Usually only those with jobs in the early morning would be leaving for their work place, but with the Valmarian league going on, the traffic on the road seemed to have doubled. Not even the highways were safe from the rampaging amount of trainers crossing through the bridges.

"Well… I guess we should be on our way" Soledad stated as she placed her Pokeballs in her sling-bag. Ash nodded in agreement and decided to head off too. However… unknown to the both of them, that they were being followed by two sets of eyes, Johanna and Cynthia. Usually this would be Team Rocket's usual strategy to stalk their prey, but it looks like their role was taken by these two.

As Ash and Soledad slowly walk away towards the intersection, Johanna only huffed and puffed, "Hmph! Look at her… swaying herself, trying to act all womanlike" she began, "(sniff sniff) She's wearing a mark 4 perfume today… and look at that… she even applied makeup today… Ohhh… smart move" she then turned to Cynthia who seemed rather disturb with the mother's strange behavior. "Watch closely Cynthia… watch her every move and you'll know exactly how she feels"

The blonde champ only nodded back dumbly in reply.

As Ash and Soledad made their way through the intersection, they noticed that the nearby stores were slowly opening to greet their customers with their wonderful products and service. As they went through the bridge that connected to the Industrial District, they were greeted with an ice cream cart which was selling mixed coned flavors as their specialty. "Hey look" Soledad pointed, "Why don't we have a little snack along the way?"

Ash quickly agreed. A little treat for the tummy was something that he wouldn't decline, "Sure. I could use something cold for the stomach" but as they approach the cart, Ash got a strange feeling that he met the two salesmen before. James, was the one taking the watch while Jessie and Meowth were dosing off "I'll have one vanilla flavored please" Soledad requested.

The one with blue hair replied first (James) "Why of course… It would be my pleasure…" Luckily for Ash and Soledad, it looked like the two so called villains were still drowsy from this morning's slumber. Who knows where those two would've slept?

"And I'll take two chocolates and one strawberry please" Ash ordered with his hand raised. As James unconsciously gave them their requested orders, Ash gave Pikachu the strawberry and gave the second chocolate to Rosa knowing that it was probably her favorite. After paying him up, the two trainers resumed their journey towards the district.

"Thank you, come again…" said the tired semi-villain as he returned to his napping position.

But then the ruckus seemed to have awoken Jessie and Meowth, "Who was that James?" the purple haired woman asked drowsily. "Was it Santa Clause?" Meowth added as he rubbed his eyes of his morning sand. But James just waved it off, "Oh nothing… it was only the twerp and his Pikachu buying ice cream… go back to sleep… (yawn)"

"Oh ok…" and with that the three of them dosed back to dreamvile, completely oblivious to what the man had just said.

But even this small evet didn't pass Johanna's inspection. With her keen eyes and over imaginative mind, she was able to decipher the whole even metaphorically. "Hmm… another smart move. Ice cream in broad daylight, a walk through the park, and a nice atmosphere for that romantic feeling… hmm… it looks like Soledad is putting a bigger fight than I thought" the mother counted all the move the girl was making and made sure that she didn't do anything too attractively aggressive (I have no idea what that means)

After going through the Arena District and passing the bridge to the Residential area 1, the two of them were granted passage to one of the most beautiful areas in the entire city. It was like the whole district itself was one big giant garden or something. There were fountains everywhere and the land was tended too around the clock to keep its beauty to perfection.

Though Ash would've liked to spend some time to see what sights this district had to offer, he had bigger things to do. So after taking the next turn, they decided to take a short cut through one of the many parks scattered across the district.

The place they were in was magnificent. Trees grew nearly as tall as the houses creating meadows and shades bountiful for the grass, and the natural spring at the edge of the lake gave out a soothing watery sound. By the time the two of them made it to the center of the park, they were with an even more wonderful sight. At the center of the fountain overlooking the entire area was a statue made of steel of Lugia, the legendary Pokemon.

"Hey… isn't that Lugia?" Ash recognized the Pokemon's face almost instantly as he caught a glimpse of it with his own two eyes. "Indeed it is" Soledad answered, "Don't you know that Valmarian city is actually dedicated to Lugia?" the boy shook his head in reply, "Well… not many people know about the real history, because the generation change the story all the time" the two of them continued to gaze at the wonderful architecture before them. A strong gush of wind blew through the trees, cutting through the wind creating a sweet melody sound. If only this land was inhabited by Pokemons then this scene would've been perfect.

After having a peaceful moment together, Soledad suddenly began to get that awkward feeling in her chest again. While she tried her best to shake it off, her heart would not lie. It wasn't a bad feeling or something… it was just… strange……… strangely… nice.

"Hey Ash" she called out to the boy, "Mind if we take a break here for a moment? I'm kinda tired" Ash reluctantly agreed to her since they were already so close to the district gates anyway.

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However… unknown to the both of them was that Johanna and Cynthia were not far behind to watch their walk in the park go. "Hmm… so she's using the 'I'm tired' card huh" Johanna mumbled to herself, "A smart move Soledad, but it won't work on Ash"

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With Soledad sitting back to finish what remains of her ice cream, Ash decided that it was time for him to do a little stretching to pass on the time. He needed to be prepared for the battle that came up next. Who knows? Maybe he might actually get to battle today.

"So Ash" the girl called him, "Which Pokemon are you going to use to battle on your 3-3 match?" our young trainer immediately stopped his stretching routine and turned to her, "Huh? Well… I didn't have much time to practice back at the inn so I haven't really decided yet" he explained casually, "But if I were to choose then I would need a team that's ready for any battle"

"That would be a pretty hard team to find" Soledad commented on his idea, "Every Pokemon has their own strength and weaknesses so I'm not sure if you'll be able to handle all that pressure. Besides, it's always best if you focus on just one key point at a time. Spreading out your abilities is good at some points but they won't be as effective as before"

But Ash rejected that, "Hey don't worry. With me and my buddies, anything is possible! Right Pikachu? (Pikapika!) the two partners held out their heads up high with smiles on their faces. "What about you Soledad? Since you're a coordinator you're gonna be having a double performance battle. Have you chosen which Pokemons you're gonna battle with?"

The simply nodded back in reply, "I sure have" she then took out two Pokeballs and showed it to him, but she did not release her Pokemons, "These are two of my best Pokemons… and they've never failed me once"

"Then you must've trainer them really hard"

She nodded again, "Yes I have. In fact… I was actually expecting a double performance battle so these two are practically partners"

"That's great Soledad!" Ash said in excitement, "Teamwork is everything in a double battle. I wouldn't be surprised if you won this round without a scratch" the girl allowed a slight blush to come out her cheeks as Ash let out a praise to her. "T… thanks Ash" she said shyly.

"Hey I'm only saying the truth" the boy said jokingly with his trademark smile which only made her blush even more.

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"AHHHH!!!" Johanna gritted her teeth loudly as she tried to contain a scream in her lunges. "I can't believe he's showing off his trademark smile! That smile is the ultimate move! We have to do something before this gets out of hand Cynthia!"

…

…

…

"Cynthia?" as Johanna turned to her blonde friend, she noticed that even Cynthia was blushing madly like Soledad because of Ash's smile. It was like she was being hypnotized by his childlike charms and mature strength. But then the battle champion was quickly brought out of her trance when Johanna slammed her head with a magical mallet. "I didn't bring you here just so you can see Ash smile like that! Now get a grip woman!"

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"Do you hear something?" Soledad quickly noticed a strange sound coming from a nearby bush but was unable to determine what it was. "I don't hear anything" Ash added after a moment of silence. But just when they were about to go and investigate, the bell of the Arena District began to sound out, causing Ash to awaken from his actual intention. "Oh no! The match-ups are about to start! Come on Soledad!" before the girl had a chance to react, Ash grab her hand and pulled her away like a luggage that was left behind.

**(Arena District) (2****nd**** day of the second round preliminaries)**

As Ash and his field Soledad entered the district, they weren't surprised to see the amount of trainers appearing today. Since only those with Valmarian badges were allowed inside the district during this time, the audiences had to take up their positions on the stands and the nearby fast food joints. The most popular joint would probably 'Al's Place' because of its giant TV monitors that showed all the most exciting battles and competitions.

"Phew… we made it" Ash panted slightly with relief as he entered the fray. "Well, I guess this is where we split up" Soledad nodded in agreement, "Yeah…" she said a little sad on leaving him. As she tried her best to turn away and head to the coordinator's corner, Soledad felt like a strong grip was keeping her there, like her whole body was going against her will.

But just before she could and fall onto the boy, a sudden appearance of Johanna seemed to have scared the ghost out of them. "Hey there you two! Nice weather isn't it?" her unexpected pop up was so surprising that Pikachu nearly fell off his master's shoulder. "Ahh! Hey there Johanna" Ash replied after calming down a bit, "You scared me there for a moment"

"Oh sorry" the mother said innocently, "I just saw you coming through the gates so I thought it would be proper for a mother in l…aw…… I mean a close friend to greet you"

"Well you're pretty energetic today" Ash replied holding his usual smile. "I guess you're just as excited about the Valmarian league as we are"

"Oh not at all" the mother replied waving her hand, "At times like these, it's always best if you kept a cool head. By the way, are you eating well Ash? You look like you haven't had breakfast" she then changed the subject almost instantly making them confused on what they were talking about.

But Ash simply nodded his head in reply, "Don't worry! With Soledad's cooking, I think I might even gain a few pounds hehehehehe" but then the topic of food reminded the young female chef of the bento (lunchbox) she made for him, "Oh that reminds me Ash. Here. I made this for your lunch. It's not much since I burnt everything ahehehe but I hope you'll like it"

Unable to wait for his next surprise meal, Ash quickly opened the box to see what lovely dish had been prepared for him this time. His lunchbox this time was changed from flowery green to calm aqua-blue covered with a handkerchief with Lapras pictures on it. "Wow… (Pika…)" once Ash took a peek in it, he was amazed on what the girl was able to cook at such a short amount of time.

"You like it?" she asked which was replied with a confident nod, "That's good… I try to match the meal with the lunchbox. Oh and here's you drink" she quickly pulled out a cold can of ginseng tea from her sling bag and gave it him, "I heard from Brock that you usually like to eat a lot of junk food so I decided to give you something that provides nutrients" she mocked him as she waved her index finger in the air, "This will keep your body healthy and this cold tea will calm all of your senses"

Right at that moment, Ash felt like he was being mothered by the girl or something. He was used to having his mother telling him what to eat and all since she runs the only restaurant in Pallet town, Pallet House.

**A/N: I'm not sure if Pallet House is real but Takeshi Shudo, the novelizer of Pokemon said so. You can check this out in Bulbapedia**

But just when Soledad was going to continue with her remarks, the speaker on the sides began to sound out. "Attention…" it began, "Would Pokemon coordinator Soledad, please report to stage number 5 for her double performance battle round. I repeat: Would Pokemon coordinator Soledad, come to stage number 5 for her performance battle…… thanks you"

"Well that's your call!" Johanna interrupted them, "Come on Soledad, you don't want to miss your match!" before the young teen coordinator from Kanto knew it, the mother was already pushing her out of the area to leave poor Ash alone. But just they could mix in with the crowd, Ash opened up his mouth, "Hey, mind if I come and watch?"

"Oh no dear" Johanna cut Soledad off before she could speak, "You have a match to be in. Who knows when they might call your name?"

But Ash just waved it off, "That's ok. The trainer's corner is nearby so I can see who'll be next on the field" without a way to break the boy off, Johanna had no other choice but to submit defeat. If she used any other reason, it was possible that Ash might get suspicious.

**(5 minutes later) (Second round preliminary, 384****th**** coordinator's match) (Soledad VS Acker)**

**A/N: Acker is an OC**

As Soledad and the other trainer took to the field, the crowd grew into a deep silence while the other matches continued without much disturbance. For two strong trainers to meet at such a field was so intense that the audience needed to store up their breath when the winner comes out. Everyone was hyped and even Ash seemed to be looking forward to this match.

When the trainers took to their respective positions, the MC of the performance battle stepped in on stage, "Welcome all you young coordinators of Valmarian city! (cheers) We are about to begin the next match of the Valmarian league contest! I'm your host… Birdie!" the girl looked exactly like her other sisters Bunny and Kitty which Ash have been encountering recently. And who knows how many more are out there?

"Today will be an exciting match between 'ace' coordinator Soledad from Pewter city, Kanto and Acker, from Celadon city, also from Kanto! (cheers) And so without further ado, let's put our usual five minute timer on the clock! Coordinators, please choose your Pokemons!"

Soledad went up first, "Let's give them a good show! Lapras, Butterfree, go!" a dinosaur and butterfly-like Pokemon appeared out of their Pokeballs, giving out that glamorous look on their faces. With just one look at those two, Ash could already tell that they were a winning duo team. "Go Soledad, you can do it!" he cheered from the crowd, but it was probably a squeak compared to the amount of screams and shouts that were coming from the other stages.

"I choose, Roserade and Shinx!" said the other trainer when his Pokemons appeared. With his confident smirk and those determined eyes, even a newbie can tell that this guy was a veteran on the stage.

As Kitty darted her eyes towards the two battle ready trainers, she lifted her hand in the air and in the count down from three, she shouted, "BEGIN!" and there goes the battle!

"Roserade, use magical leaf! Shix, go on in with a spark attack!" the two fine Pokemons quickly dished out their attacks under their master's order. As they moved out, the audience could see that Roserade was providing cover for Shix and allowing its spark attack to hit Lapras. But Soledad didn't earn the title of ace just because of her looks. With her heart truly in battle, she waved up her hands and ordered a counter maneuver, "Butterfree, use gust! Lapras, watergun!"

With that quick order, Butterfree let out a wind so strong that the leafs that Roserade used were easily blown away and not only that, but it also stunned Shix down for a few seconds, giving Lapras plenty of time to dish out her attack.

"Amazing!" Kitty announced, "Soledad was able to counter her opponent's attack with a perfect maneuver! And with that gust attack and watergun… not only is it a powerful attack combination, but it also seems to be creating a beautiful pattern too! What a performance!" as Ash gave up from the stands to look at the point bars, he could see that Soledad was now ahead by a large margin! And it has only been ten seconds!

With Acker stunned by the counter attack, the 'ace' coordinator decided to move in for the win, "Lapras, hidden power attack! Butterfree, steel wing!" with Lapras creating a beautiful array of lights around Butterfree, the crowd became ecstatic. With all the lights and the steel wing reflecting its rays to the crowd it almost looked like it was New Year's Eve was already here.

Stunned by the beautiful display performed by Soledad, Acker was unable to conjure up a defense formation and before he knew it, Roserade and Shix were also blinded by the light and were easily knocked out to the ground.

"And that's it!" Kitty declared, "Roserade and Shix are no longer able to battle. The winner of this match goes to Soledad from Pewter city! Let's give a round of applause for her, everyone!" and the crowd followed suit. Having her Valmarian badge returned, Soledad approached her recent opponent and shook his hand to congratulate on a battle well done. Even though the battle was short, Soledad didn't really hold back at all. She gave out some of her best moves just for show.

**(5 minutes later after Soledad's match)**

Once Soledad has been declared the winner, the girl decided to take a little break at Al's Place for a little rest and relaxation. She didn't expect her match to be that easy so she thought that she might've overdone it a little bit. For a moment there she actually thought that she was gonna meet a real tough opponent, but it looks like the Randomizer can't tell between the difference between the strong and the weak.

But then her relaxation was cut short when a certain raven haired boy showed up, "Hey there Soledad" Ash greeted suddenly which surprised her slightly, "Oh… h… hey Ash" she said stuttering, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to congratulate you" the boy took a seat on the opposite side of the table, "It's amazing that you were able to take out your opponent in just two moves. For me it would take me a couple of turns before I could take him down" he let out his trademark smile which really melted the girl's heart. "Hey, since your match is done, wanna have lunch? We can share this" he pulled out the lunchbox which she gave to him earlier.

But Soledad quickly waved her hands defense, "N… no! You should eat it Ash, you'll need the energy for your next battle"

"Don't worry" the boy cut her off, "There's plenty for both of us here. Besides… I feel kinda bad that you had to spend your time making this for me. And there's plenty for the both of us" in the end, Ash won the argument and Soledad was forced to submit into sharing the meal that she especially prepared for him.

To his truth, Ash was right. Since her mind was so busy thinking of what to cook, Soledad seemed to have made more than she should have for his lunchbox. The box was so full that it was already showing through the dented covers.

But as they continued to enjoy their meal together, the TV screen suddenly popped into the 565th match on the trainer's corner. And to their surprise, it was none other than Paul, the trainer from Veilstone city and the ex-rival of Ash. "Hey look, it's Paul!" Ash noticed showing a slight smile up his lips. Paul was on the 19th field with Ursaring, Murkrow and Weavile and from the looks of it, he seemed to be winning. The opposing trainer had only two Pokemons left which were a Mankey and Machop since his third one was knocked out by the previous attack, but it didn't seem like the guy was gonna throw in the white towel just yet.

"And we're back ladies and gentlemen!" the MC announced, "The battle on field number 19 is truly heating up! Right now Paul, a top notch trainer from the Shinou region is making a wonderful stand on his own"

"You got that right Fred" said the female MC, "But you're gonna have a hard time convincing his opponent that. It doesn't look like he's gonna give up just yet"

"Right you are Jewel" the MC known as Fred replied, "So let's see what our trainers will do next? With such a close encounter, I'm sure that both of them still have plenty of surprises in store"

**(On battlefield 19) (Second preliminary round, 565****th**** battle match) (Paul VS Grumble)**

With Paul standing on one side and his opponent on the other, the crowd held their breath as the next move kicked in. "Ursaring, hyperbeam!" Paul ordered which the bear Pokemon complied. As Ursaring charged up the attack, Grumble, the opposing trainer decided to make one last attempt to even the odds, "Mankey, Machop, split up and attack their formation on the sides!" the two fighting Pokemon quickly dashed off from their positions and headed towards separate flanks of Paul's defensive line.

"Now Ursaring! Fire!" the bear Pokemon hastily unleashed one of its most deadliest attacks, but with two Pokemons to choose from, it couldn't make up its mind and eventually missed. "Darn!" Paul cursed under his breath, "Weavile, Murkrow, intercept them! Ursaring, fall back!" the two dark Pokemons quickly rushed off to cover Ursaring while it recovers from the hyperbeam attack. But to everyone's surprise, that was exactly what Grumble wanted him to do.

"Excellent! Mankey, Machop, use take down on Ursaring!" seeing that the two Pokemons were clearly expert fighters, Paul underestimated their speed and before he knew it, they passed through his Pokemons without much of a hit. "Oh no! Ursaring, look out!" but the poor bear barely had enough time to even notice the attacks when they came to him.

In just mere seconds, one of Paul's most powerful Pokemons fell to the ground, unconscious by the attacks.

One the fall was confirmed, the referee raised up his flag, "Ursaring is unable to battle!" the crowd went into a series of 'oohh's and 'ahhhhh's, which none could tell if they were insults or compliments. "Return, Ursaring" Paul ordered it back to its Pokeball, "Good…" he complimented softly and gave it a gentle tap on the top. Luckily no one could see him do those things, but Ash knew bright well. The boy really has changed a lot after that match with him back in the Shinou league. Seeing him respecting the other Pokemons even just a little made our hero perk up a soft smile.

"What an amazing turn around!" Fred stated through his mic, "Now both trainers are down to two Pokemons each! This 3-3 battle has just turned into a 2-2 battle ladies and gentlemen! What will they do next!?"

"Mankey, Machop, fall back to defensive formation!" Grumble ordered his two Pokemons to fall back to their previous locations. With an equal match coming onto the field, Paul had to come up with some new tactics if he wants to win this. "Murkrow, Weavile, prepare for all out…" the Shinou trainer said with no emotions in his words.

"It looks like both trainers are preparing for one more showdown!" the female MC Jewel added, "I have a feeling that this might be the final strike!"

The audience huddled with anticipation. The intensity of such a duel could on result in one winner and one winner alone. The mood was so high that some of the people were even standing on top of their seats!

"Weavile, shadow ball! Murkrow, aerial ace now!" with that single chain of command, the two dark Pokemons of Paul moved swiftly like the wind and put in a head on attack. Some might consider this to be foolhardy but since he was dealing with two fighting Pokemons, attacking on any sides would just prove the same results. The boy had to focus everything he had right at that moment to one area and hope that it would be strong enough to break a hole through his opponent's defense.

"Mankey, Machop, both of you hold on tight! Keep it together!" Grumble ordered. But then suddenly, his two Pokemons began to feel slightly intimidated by the fast paced attack.

**(Somewhere along the crowd)**

Havic and his compadres were watching the match through a large screen TV near Al's place, having a little breakfast to keep the morning energy up high. Steve was checking on his laptop the latest news and gossips happening around the city while Emma and Havic busied themselves to the battle in front of them.

"That Paul kid an't bad" the ex-boss started, "He's actually using that old intimidate tactic to scare off his opponents"

"Intimidate?" Emma asked

Havic simply adjusted his shades and smirked, "Yup. With that fast paced attack, you can be sure anyone would be afraid to see it coming to you head on. I tell ya… that kid's got talent"

"Kind of reminds me of you" Steve added not taking his eyes off his laptop even just for one second. "Power and strength are all you need for a win right?"

"That's my policy" Havic replied with a small sigh, "Oh yeah that reminds me. How long until you can hack the Randomizer again?"

"Dunno… it looks like they doubled the firewall again" the Bad-Mix rubbed his fuzzy hair together as a gesture to his frustration, "Arghhhhh! I can't work like this! If those guys in the high-ups keep doubling the security, then we'll be having an even more difficult time going through the preliminaries!"

"I didn't ask for your opinion! I asked on how long!?"

"Hey you're not the one cracking down on the system!" Steve countered, "I'd like to see you try breaking through other people's computers without leaving a trace!"

"Hey don't point the blame at me like that" Havic replied calmly, "You're the one who's gonna have to tell Gary about the whole thing" the mere mention of the boy's name was more than enough to take the colors out of Steve's face. With Gary's reputation soaring through the roof, the more people began to fear him rather than to respect him. Though the people and street vendors praise his presence, his appearance alone was enough to make an entire gang go into hiding.

Taking what Havic had said a few seconds ago, Steve quickly got back to work at a much faster pace in hopes to eradicate the security system.

**(Back with Ash and Soledad)**

"Hmm… Paul's really giving out a good match out there" Soledad stated as she chewed through the salad in the blue lunchbox she was sharing with Ash. Ash nodded in agreement, "Yeah… ghat twaner is weally shumting (Yeah… that trainer is really something)" he said with his mouth full. After gulping down the large bite that he took, the boy let out a good o'l happy blow. He wasn't really used to eating salad and healthy food, but with the way Soledad makes them, he could barely refuse it.

"Hmm… this salad is great!" Ash said finally after taking his eyes off the screen for a moment. "I wonder which one I should try next?"

"Why not this one?" the girl pointed out, "I grew these tomatoes at the garden myself. And they're bright fresh"

"Ok then!" he reached out to the red veggies with his fork, but then he dropped it when another jolt of pain soared through his right arm. "Ahh…!" he shrieked out slightly loud.

Once Rosa caught sight of this, she immediately went into worry mode.

"Are you ok Ash?" Soledad asked.

But the boy just shook it off, "Ahh it's nothing. I'm just a little tired from last night ahehehehe"

"You're not working too hard now are you?" the girl got in closer to the table with a slightly worried face, "If my grandpa is letting you do too much then tell me ok?"

But again, Ash waved it off, "Hey, don't worry. I'm happy to work for Lewis. He keeps me busy most of the day and I get to use the gym and hot springs for free"

"But lately you haven't been using any of those facilities at all"

Ash thought for a second there and knew instantly that she was right. With Lewis providing him with all those work and the numbers of customers increasing every night, the boy barely even has enough time to get himself a decent bath. "Oh yeah… now that you mentioned it… I guess I haven't been training either ahehehehe"

"Well how about this?" Soledad offered with her hand on the table, "Why don't we take the time off tonight and I'll be your practice partner for the dojo?"

"But… are you sure Lewis would allow it?"

Soledad simply let out a smirk and snuffed her nose with her thumb, "Don't worry about it. I'll just tell grandpa that you need the time to practice for your match" but then suddenly the customers that were watching the match on TV began to cheer like it was someone's birthday. Some began to clap while some were still wiping the food of their mouths. As Ash turned back to the television, he realized that Paul had beaten his opponent with the final attack.

"Mankey and Machoke are no longer able to battle!" the referee announced, "The victory goes to Paul from Veilstone city of Shinou!"

Once both trainers returned their Pokemons back to their respective Pokeballs, Paul decided that it was time to get his Pokemons to the Pokemon center. While the rest of crowd congratulated him on his win, the boy vanished into the background just like before.

"I guess Paul made it through the second round" Ash said with a hint of praise in his tone, _"He's really changed. And to think it's only been a year since we last battle at the Shinou region"_ he thought to himself.

But just as Soledad and Ash slowly bonded with each other, a certain jealous mother was not far behind to eavesdrop on their conversation. Johanna was only but a few tables away from them and since she was done with her match she had all the time she need to snoop around and find a way for Ash to get on her side. "Look at those two… simply unimaginable" she groaned through her teeth, "How could Ash possibly fall for someone as wrinkled as her"

"Uh… Johanna" Brock stated out with a little sweatdrop. For some reason, he and Tracey seemed to have been dragged onto this table with the overly aggressive mother to act as support for her alibi. If Ash were to find out that she was there, at least she would have an excuse on why. "Can you tell us what're we doing here?"

"Shhh!" she hushed them back, "Do you want to blow up my cover!? I'm trying to listen on what they're trying to say! This is for Dawn and for her future!"

"Uh… ok…" the boy sighed back in return. But as he looked at what Johanna was spying on, he immediately raised a quizzled eye, "So what's wrong with Ash being with Soledad? It's not like they're having a date or anything right?" this only made Johanna crush her binoculars into pieces as she scanned Ash's surroundings.

"A… date…?" she muttered before turning her eyes back to Brock. The squinty eyed boy couldn't really explain it, but when she looked back at him like that, it felt like he probably nearly signed his own death sentence. "Don't you even joke about that you little twinkle toes!!!" Johanna screamed at him while grabbing the boy's collars and shaking him back and forth like some manikin. "This is a serious matter! My family line is at stake and I'm not about to let some girl sweep him off his feet without a fight!" but just as Brock lost conscious through the violent reaction the mother gave out, a sudden giggle caught Tracey's attention.

"Still fighting a losing battle Johanna?" it was Caroline Maples, May and Max's mother.

"Hey there Mrs. Maple…" Brock groaned before Johanna dropped him onto the ground like a sack of meat.

"Caroline…" Johanna slithered her name quietly like she was a rival or something, "I see you're here to try and take Ash onto your side as well am I right?" but Caroline only smiled back innocently as she waved it off, "Oh please. I'm through with that already" this made Johanna's eyes widened slightly with curiosity, "What? So you're not going to fight anymore?"

"Oh I didn't say that" May's mother replied casually, "You see… I figured that going for the direct approach was simply far too hard for any of us to accomplish. I mean let's face it, Ash won't be able to choose between any of the girls and he's probably still not interested in his own love life. He's a far more complicated boy than any of the one's we've seen"

"_You have no idea how complicated"_ Tracey thought to himself as he was caught between the fueling stare battle between the two mothers.

"So what are you getting at Caroline?" Johanna asked as she was finally getting irritated with her rival's snobby attitude, "If you're not going to fight for Ash then how are you going to win him"

Caroline simply smiled back and held out two coupon tickets on her fingers, "That's easy… I decided to take the indirect approach" she explained, "These here are two tickets to an all day shopping spree at the Samson department store… and guess who'll be going there?" she cooed very snakelike which made Johanna think for a moment. Ash wasn't much of a shopping person unlike May and Dawn and he never likes going to the department store.

"I don't get it" she said finally. But Caroline expected an answer similar to that. "Tell me Johanna" she began, "When Ash came to Dawn's life, what was your first impression of him?"

"That's easy. He smart, strong, handsome and not to mention an excellent Pokemon trainer. Sure… he might not be as smart as those kids in college, but when he puts his mind into something… he can do accomplish a lot of things"

"Exactly… and when he impressed us… we knew exactly that he would be the perfect son-in-law right" Johanna only nodded back in reply, "So that's why… I decided to spend some time with Ash's mother instead…" this made the afro headed girl shot up a surprised look, "Wait…… you mean…"

Caroline once again smirked with victory, "Ahh… I see you're getting it" she cooed, "And once the two of us become close friends…"

…

…

…

…

…

"A mother's decision…" Johanna finished, "The ultimate weapon…"

"Exactly" and then Caroline slowly stood up and walked away, "So bah-bye now. I'll send you an invitation to the wedding ahehehe"

"Wait a minute! W… wait! Come back here Caroline!"

With the two mothers off to fight on about this ridiculous war and Brock unconscious on the ground dreaming something about Nurse Joy, Tracey looked both ways before raising his hand, "Bill please…"

**(Back with Ash)**

Just as Ash and Soledad continued to enjoy their time together, the MC of the Pokemon battle began to speak up through the TV. "And now ladies and gentlemen! For our next battle… we have two determined trainers ready to battle it out to the finish! But on this match we have for you a special treat for all you proud trainers! On the red corner, coming all the way from Kanto… is the famous Salon Battle Maiden… Anabel!!" this made Ash turn his attention back to the television.

"Hey! Check it out! Anabel's up next" he said in excitement.

"And on the blue corner, also coming from Kanto and one of Celadon city's favorite…the astounding Mandi!" (You can see this trainer in Indigo League series: Round One Begin) a blue haired trainer wearing a giant red headband and a pink vest entered the field waving to the crowd throwing air kisses at the same time.

"Thank you everyone, thank you. You're all a wonderful audience mwah mwah!" the trainer known as Mandi responded to the crowd. But just as he turned to his opponent his eyes turned to a small heart shape, "Oh my my my… what a lovely opponent I am having" he flirted, "I must say: you truly are a popular girl mam-mua-zel Anabel. I have heard of your beauty but have not believed it until I finally set my eyes on you and I must say that the rumors do not do you justice" but this only earned him a minor chuckle from the crowd.

If someone had flirted like that with Anabel a couple of years ago, she would've blushed madly with embarrassment. But now that she was few years older and wiser… and not to mention in love, she only let out a confused face before replying, "Uh…?"

"Oh you must forgive me" Mandi added with slight sarcasm, "I have not introduced myself properly. I am the astounding Mandi and I am an expert trainer who came all the way from Kanto. Perhaps you've heard of mua?"

"Uh………" there a short pause in the air while the man continued to bow like an idiot in battle, "Sorry… but I've never heard of you before" another short pause followed that sentence but this time, added by a couple of dust ball that appeared out of nowhere. After a long and awkward silence Mandi spoke up.

"Y… you have not heard of me?" Anabel shook her head dumbly in reply, "Sorry, I'm afraid you're just not that famous"

"Ohhhhhh…" the crowd echoed.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it that way" Anabel quickly apologized through her fumbled words, "It's just that I thought that if you were famous I would've heard of you, but since I've never heard of you, I figured that you weren't really that famous and…" as the girl continued to blabber on and on and on and on without stop, Mandi began to throb an annoyed vein up his head. After two whole minutes of Anabel continued barrage of unintentional insults, he had enough.

"ENOUGH!!" the so called 'astounding' Mandi barked out of anger, "I simply complimented you and your beauty and you dare insult me in front of my fans!? That's it! I planned to let you go easily, but this time…… no more Mr. nice Mandi! Let's go Golbat, Exeggutor, Seadra!

Ash simply let out a small sweat drop with a fake smile, "Wow… I guess Anabel made him mad"

"Uh… ok…" Anabel added before following the guy's moves, "Let's go Alakazam, Metagross, Espeon… my friends!" the three psychic Pokemons appeared all looking fresh and ready to fight. After years of intense training and facing worthy opponents at the Battle Frontier, these three could already be officially called veterans of the field.

"The trainers have chosen their Pokemons!" the referee announced, "And now… let the battle begin!"

"Seadra, use watergun, Goldbat, wing attack, Exeggutor, use confuse ray!" Mandi ordered out first with a quick fast paced attack in hopes to catch Anabel off guard.

"Amazing!" the MC Fred perked up, "The astounding Mandi is launching an all out attack at the beginning of the match! It looks like he's trying to catch Anabel off guard!"

"Alakazam, use light screen now!" the super computer brained Pokemon quickly twirled up its batons and cast some sort of magic field that surrounded the three of them.

"It looks like Anabel is going on to the defense!" MC Jewel added, "Let's just hope it's enough to hold off against those attacks!"

But just as Anabel expected, the attacks Mandi's Pokemon gave out just bounced off harmlessly against the light screen attack. "Good work, now Alakazam, use psybeam!" the psychic Pokemon quickly unleashed a counterattack which sent Golbat and the rest of the opponent's team flying back to the other side of the field. Wanting to keep the momentum up, Anabel hastily move in to make this a quick battle, "Metagross, use hyper beam, Espeon, shadow ball!"

The two attacks hit their targets but it doesn't seem like Mandi's Pokemons are about to give up just yet. "Golbat, use your gust attack!" the astounding trainer ordered which was followed to the letter. Golbat quickly flapped its wings, creating a small dust cloud which hampered Anabel's Pokemons.

"That was an excellent move by Mandi!" Fred announced through his mic, "Using those dust clouds to blind Espeon and Metagross like that would've earned him big points in the contest round! But sadly this is a battlefield"

Seeing that the dust cloud was keeping her Pokemons pinned down, Anabel decided to make a move before Mandi has a chance to organize a counter offensive. "Alakazam, use psychic and give your friends some cover!!" the long mustache Pokemon quickly sent Golbat flying with its telekinetic abilities making the gust attack stop.

"Oh ho… it looks like Mandi is in quite a pickle" the MC Jewel stated, "Without that gust attack, his Pokemons are now wide open on the field! Can he still pull off another miracle move?"

"_The answer is for that question is that he can and he will"_ Mandi thought to himself with a slight smirk.

With victory so close in hand, the Salon Maiden moved in once more to lay on the finishing blow, "Espeon, use quick attack! Metagross, body slam! Alakazam, stay back and support!" the two Pokemons quickly shuffled themselves in order and attack. But Anabel was no fool. She maybe winning now, but she knows that it was better to be safe rather than sorry.

**-It's better to overreact and laugh about it later than to live and regret it-**

**-Common saying-**

"Seadra, use watergun! Exeggutor, hypnosis!" Mandi ordered but Anabel was ready for a pierce maneuver. "Alakazam use psybeam to distract them!" the psychic Pokemon quickly unleash a powerful beam that knocked the opponents off their focus. And without any defense left, Mandi's Pokemons soon fell out of the ring and eyes swirling around clockwise.

"Oh… NOOOO!!!" Mandi screamed, "My dream if becoming a 5-star celebrity………… ruined!!!!!"

"Seadra, Golbat and Exeggutor are no longer able to battle! This match goes the Salon Battle Maiden, Anabel!!!" the referee declared with both flags raised in the air. And then on cue, the crowd erupted into applause and cheers sending a shockwave of excitement to the entire district. These were the matches that were probably worth watching on TV.

"Wow… I guess the crowd really liked it" Ash added with a slight smile crossing his lips.

"But… how can this be" Mandi sulked on the ground, depressed on the whole defeat on the second round thing. "I'm the astounding Mandi………… To lose at the preliminaries is like…… losing your soul… except worse… (sob) (sob)"

**(Time skip) (06:00 PM) (Half Way Home Inn dojo)**

After the match ups were finally done, Ash and Soledad returned to the Half Way Home inn for a little rest and relaxation. When they got home, Soledad forced Lewis into submission on closing the shop early so that she and the boy could have time to train in the dojo. After a quick wash up and an early change of clothes, Ash decided to make a fast call before he went to the fields.

"Hey there Ash" professor Oak said through the phone on the other line, "It's good to see you all fine and well. Although it's too bad you didn't get to battle today"

But Ash just waved it off, "That's ok professor. That only gives me more times to practice and get better. Besides, it's not like I'm in a rush or anything. With the matches finishing quickly, I wouldn't be surprised if I actually get to battle tomorrow" the professor nodded approvingly, "Hmm… spoken like a true trainer indeed. Well if you think you're really gonna battle tomorrow then I'll be there"

"Really?" the boy replied in confusion, "But what about your work at the Pokemon lab?"

"Oh I've already finished my research for the week my boy. Besides… an exciting match from you wouldn't be something anyone would want to miss. (chatter chatter) Oh I think that's my cue Ash. I'll see you again tomorrow at the Arena District. Be sure to get plenty of sleep and stay healthy at all times. Bye bye now" with one last wave from the old man, the two of them quickly hung up with smiles on their faces.

Once Ash stood away from the phone, he stretched out his arms a little bit before moving on towards the field where all of his Pokemons had taken up residence. Even though the gym was mainly used for practicing and battling, it also served as an accommodation for the Pokemons. Thanks to the wide open spaces, and large open windows, even flying Pokemons felt secure in that building.

"Looks like you're all having a good time" Ash said to his Pokemons which they all replied with a smile. "That's great! You guys play nice ok?"

But then suddenly, another presence entered the gym through the main door. "Hey Ash!" it was Soledad and Lewis, carrying several trays of Pokemon foods. "Sorry for the delay. My grandpa and I had to buy some Pokechow at the Pokemart" Ash quickly noticed the small cans of food that the old man was carrying at the back.

Once all the Pokemons were given their respective bowls and began chowing down on their food, the young teenage coordinator turned to the boy who was grooming his Entei on the neck fur. Ash really loved his Pokemons and he probably cared for them just like any other human beings. Even though he doesn't understand anything they say anymore, he still loved to talk to them and he would always get a positive response from each of them too.

"That's a good boy Entei" Ash praised it, "Now eat your Pokechow and you can go play with the others (roar…)" the legendary beast woofed softly like a pet dog. But then to Ash's surprise, Entei began to lick him on the cheek which made the boy laugh slightly, "Hey ahahahaha! That tickles Entei stop it ahahaha" but then suddenly, Ambipom appeared out the back and quickly grabbed the boy's hat before he even knew what was happening. "Hey! Ambipom, give me back my hat! (Aipom pom hohohoho!) Come on Ambipom, that's one of my favorite hats! Don't make me come up that tree and get ya!" he threatened jokingly but the monkey Pokemon simply laughed back at him as always. "Oh come on Ambipom. Doesn't this joke ever get old to you?"

"I think he's just trying to get your attention" Soledad chuckled, a little humored by the scene in front of her. "I know that" Ash replied, "But there's an easier way to get my attention you know" he groaned while rubbing his hair together. "Oh well… might as well get this over with" but just when he was about to go and chase Ambipom up the tree on the grass battlefield, a certain pink flying Pokemon suddenly came out of nowhere and crashed right onto Ash, "Wahhhh!" he yelped as his face met the ground. "Gligar! Not you too!" the slow-licking-winking-bat Pokemon simply flew off Ash and smiled goofily at him. "Man… keeping you guys in order is like trying to keep a storm in check"

"It's probably because they haven't seen you for awhile now" the young coordinator added, "Anyway… shall we get on with our training? You're going to need three of them to fight for the 3-3 match"

"Hmm? Oh yeah" Ash instantly remembered that he hasn't even chosen which Pokemon to take with him during the second round, "I haven't even decided who to take with me yet…" as he turned back to his Pokemons, he quickly realized that they had already finished their food and were beginning to run amuck all over again, "Hey guys, can you sit still for a moment?"

Seeing his master at such a stressed level, Bulbasaur decided that it was time for order. But due to the group becoming a much larger force than before, it took a lot longer to bring the compadres together.

"Thanks Bulbasaur" Ash thanked the little grass Pokemon as it saluted back to its master. "Alright… let's see… I'm gonna need three of you guys"

"Well for starters" Soledad began, "You're going to need Pokemons who can work well with each other. Teamwork is very essential when fighting in a 3-3 battle. They'll also need to be strong and tough since appearance doesn't really matter in Pokemon battles"

Taking Soledad's word for it, Ash quickly got into thinking mode to pick who he should take for the next round. "Hmm… strong, tough and good at teamwork" after a few minutes of hard thought, he quickly clapped his hands together with his final decision, "Alright I got it! Pikachu, I'm gonna need you to sit this one out (Pika?) Sorry buddy, I know you're strong but I'm gonna need others to do this ok? (Pikachu pikapi)" the little electric mouse nodded before moving out of the way. "Ok… Sceptile, Noctowl, Kingler, you three are in"

The three veteran Pokemons smiled and squealed happily as they've been paired together. "Ok, I guess this is my new winning team"

"An excellent choice" Soledad complimented, "But let's see how they fair in battle"

**(5 minutes later)**

After choosing the grass field as their battleground, Ash and Soledad moved onto their respective corners with their Pokemons to begin their practice match. "Alright Ash" Soledad warned, "We'll be having a 3-3 match with no time limit. Show me what kind of combinations you have and don't hold back ok?"

"Hey, I wouldn't hold back on you even if you asked me too" the boy implied holding up a smirk, "Alright, lay it on me!"

"Very well" the two of them quickly got into their combat stances, "Let's start off with defense first. I'm going to order my Pokemons to attack and it'll be your job to form a defensive line ok? (nod) Alright… here I go! Lapras, water gun, Slowbro hyper beam, Butterfree, aerial ace!" the three Pokemons quickly unleashed their attack!

"Everyone, dodge it!" the three of Ash's Pokemons quickly split up into three different directions which made Soledad's plan go a lot easier than expected, "Gotcha! Lapras, attack Noctowl, Slowbro, get Sceptile, Butterfree, take Kingler!"

With all pairs facing each other on a one on one each, Ash quickly realized that he had fallen for Soledad's trap. "What the?"

"Well that was easy" Soledad smirked, "I know you're a strong Pokemon trainer Ash, so that's why I'm taking every step carefully. Your Pokemons maybe strong and perhaps they might be even stronger together"

"So that's why you had me split up and let them face against each of their weakest types" Ash calculated on her plan and found it to be very effective indeed. The girl knew how strong he really was therefore she decided to do whatever she can to get an edge in battle. If Ash's Pokemons were together, they would really make a formidable group, but when separated and facing against a type they were weak against……… then this battle might actually make the boy make a run for his money.

"Ok Ash, let's start again" Soledad added with a wave of her hand, "Your Pokemons are strong when working together, so it's always better if you can keep them together as long as possible. Think of them as one and not three"

"Hmm… think of them as one…?" Ash mimicked a little curious on how to do that, "Hmm… ok I'll try"

"But first…" she held out one finger up, "You need to set up a formation (huh?) Formations are like where you put your Pokemons. Kind of like this…" Soledad then turn to her Pokemons, "Everyone, line formation now!" in an instant, Slowbro formed as the central figure while Butterfree and Lapras took to his sides. "When your Pokemons are in formation, you'll also need to assign the leader. Let's say that Slowbro here is the leader. Slowbro, move up to that tree!" in an instant, the large chubby Pokemon with a silly grin moved up to the designated tree and to Ash's surprise, the other two Pokemons followed it and remained on its side. "You see? So wherever the leader of the formation goes, the others will follow as well"

"Hey that looks pretty cool" Ash replied excited with something new, "Alright, let me try. Sceptile, you'll be the leader. (Scep sceptile!) Kingler, you take the left (cookree cookree) and Noctowl, you take the right! (croo!) Alright, Sceptile, go to that tree!" the grass Pokemon quickly dashed towards the tree, but unfortunately… nothing seemed to be going as planned. Kingler was too slow to follow up and Noctowl was too fast for either of them. "Wahh!?"

"Hmm… it looks like speed is also an issue there" Soledad noted, "Why don't you try attacking first Ash?"

"Ok. Sceptile, bullet seed! Noctowl, gust attack! Kingler, hyper beam on that tree!" the three Pokemons quickly fired out, but with their attacks colliding together, the attacks barely even touched the tree.

"Well that was awkward

But then suddenly, another explosion occurred out of the kitchen, "Soledad!" came Lewis's voice, "I blew up the toaster again!" this made the girl sighed depressingly all over again, "Not again…" she groaned, "That's the third time this week! How many times do I have to replace a kitchenware a week??" she hastily recalled her Pokemons and dashed toward the kitchen to help her grandfather. Hopefully only the thing that he destroyed would be the toaster.

With Ash left alone on the field, he quickly turned to his three Pokemons who seemed to be a little ashamed on their uncooperative teamwork. "Hey don't worry guys" Ash cheered them up, "This is still pretty new to me too. Therefore we're gonna have to learn to work together so that we can win on the next round! You guys with me? (cheers)"

But then Ash quickly felt a pull on his lower jacket which made him jolt his head towards Rosa, "Excuse me your majesty… but if you wish it… I would be more than happy to teach you"

"Teach? Teach me what?" the boy tilted his head in confusion

"These battle formations that this girl I teaching you is similar to the ones I had back when I instated as a Guardian" she explained, "It's quite simply if you know the right tricks"

Ash put his head in the air for a moment before looking back at her, "Well… if it helps me and my Pokemons improve on this 3-3 battle then I'm all for it. What do you say guys? (Sceptile!) (Cookree!) (Croo croo!)" the three Pokemons quickly sounded back in reply. "Alright Rosa… you got yourself three students! What should we do first?"

"Four students actually" the pink Pokemon corrected pointing at the raven haired boy, "If you want me to train them, I will also need to train you"

"But I'm tired" he groaned but this only earned him a pinch on the ear, "Ow ow ow ow ow!!! Not the ear!"

"The only thing you've been doing all day is eating, waiting and sleeping!" the Guardian barked out right onto Ash's ear making him hear every word right onto his eardrums, "Even if you like it or not: You and the others will be training with me now! And if I find you lagging behind I won't hesitate to discipline you to the fullest extent of my authority! (to the Pokemons) And that goes for the rest of you lot! Now come with me! We'll have our training outside"

"_What did I get myself into this time"_ Ash thought to himself as he got dragged by the ear all the way out of the dojo.

With a rough training regime coming to Ash, will he become an even better trainer than before? And with the second preliminary rounds well on its way to the end, only time can tell who will come out victorious.


	60. Ash Ketchum's Elites

**Chapter 60: Ash Ketchum's Elite**

**(Half Way Home Inn) (05:30 AM)**

It was another bright and sunny morning here in the Half Way Home Inn. With the sun high above the sky and not a cloud in sight, it seemed like a perfect day for a Pokemon battle. As usual, Soledad was the first to wake up and enter the kitchen. Right now, she was probably used to waking up early and right now it had probably been one of her habits. "Alright… let's see… what to make for breakfast today" she said to herself while taking out the recipe book from the newly acquired shelves. After Lewis blew up the place last night, she had to redecorate the whole place all over again.

But when she recalled the event of the explosion, she quickly let out a sigh of disappointment when she remembered that she wasn't able to practice with Ash that night. "Haa…… I can't believe grandpa was able to blow up the toaster and the stove in just one night. Thanks to him… I didn't get to teach Ash anything" but then her eyes quickly came upon the old lunchbox she gave him yesterday. After thinking about it for a moment, she thought that this would be a perfect excuse to make him another one of her tasty treats. "Alright… I guess I'll have to make it up to him by making another lunchbox!" she said with a smile on her face.

As she reached out to grab one of the many lunchboxes in the cupboard, she noticed that the one she gave to Ash yesterday was sitting idly on the sink. When she opened it, she wasn't surprised to see the whole thing cleaned off sparkling like a crystal case. The utensils that were provided were neatly wrapped within the handkerchief that was used to hold the box making the whole box look like it hasn't even been used yet.

Seeing how nicely washed the box was, Soledad let out a small giggle to herself. She never really thought of Ash to be such a hygienic person since he always sweats like a pig in the summer. But seeing how he liked her dishes, she was actually beginning to grow fond of him.

"Ok then… let's see…" the girl quickly got into thinking mode on what to make the boy, "Since I'm sure he'll be battling today, I guess he'll need something that gives a lot of stamina" after a few moments of thought, the young teenage coordinator quickly scrolled through her recipe book again to find out which dish would serve to give the boy the necessary amount of energy to make it through. "Hmm… some meat would do… put it's gonna take me awhile to cook them" she said to herself, "Maybe salad? No… I gave that to him yesterday. Hmm… let's see… stamina, stamina, stamina…"

But as the girl continued to rage on, on what to make for the boy, she didn't notice that Lewis had entered the kitchen, "Hey there pumpkin!" he greeted with a loud shout which shook the girl up. "AHH!! Grandpa! What are you doing here!?"

"Hmm? That's a silly question. I live here of course. Why else would I be here?" he pointed out what was supposed to be the obvious. But then he quickly noticed that the girl was looking at her recipe book, "Hello, what's this? Are you making something for Ash again?"

"Y… yeah…" she reluctantly replied, "Since I wasn't able to practice with him last night, I thought I'd make something to cheer him up"

But then the old man sulked, "You never made anything for me…"

"That's because Ash is a hard worker and you're not!" she countered, "Wait for me at the restaurant. Breakfast will be done in a minute" she quickly shut the recipe book annoyingly before returning to the stove.

**(Uno Café)**

The Uno Café was not looking as cheerful as it used to be on this faithful morning. Usually this place would be lively even though only Gary and his crew were allowed inside. But today… the meeting that took place inside was rather dark and secretive… like they plotting to overthrow the president or something like that.

"So why'd you call me Havic?" Gary asked leaning on the wall with a frown on his face. He didn't like being summoned onto meetings like this since he would be mostly busy with training or find out Ash's weakness. "This had better be important"

Havic didn't even seem to flinch to the boy's words. He was probably used to his cold tone and dark stare already, "We brought you here to hold off our usual meeting boss" he began, "I got good news and bad news too"

"What's the good news?"

"Well… the good news is that Steve here was able to hack onto the Randomizer and get the trainer and coordinator codes. So now we have complete control over the Valmarian league and who gets to fight with who. The bad news is… so does the Bail Outs"

"The Bail Outs have control over the Randomizer too?" Jaques clarified cocking up a brow to which Havic nodded, "Yeah… so it looks like we're at a tie battle against computer geeks"

"So what's the point?" Gary asked getting a little impatient with all this meeting and wished that the ex-boss would simply get right one to the point.

"Well the good news is that we can reserve fights" Havic replied finally.

"There's a loophole here within the Randomizer's system which allows us to gain a ten second advantage on whoever's hacking on the other line" Steve added taking his eyes off his laptop, "I can now arrange battles and whoever you want to fight"

If the gang told this information to Gary a few months back he would probably consider this act to be nothing more but pure cheating. In that moment he would've immediately reported them to the authorities and sent them right to jail. But as he thought of the possibilities that had just recently opened up to him… he had to reconsider his thoughts. "Hmmm… tell me more…"

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn)**

As Lewis sat down on the chair while Soledad placed her newly made dishes onto the table, the Hoothoot clock suddenly began to 'hoot' signaling that it was almost time for the Valmarian league second round to begin. "Oh my… is that the time already?" Soledad was the first to notice the timer. "You go ahead and eat grandpa, I'll go wake up Ash"

Before the man even got a chance to reply, the girl quickly dashed off towards the inn to wake up the young boy. "Ash?" she knocked on his door a few times before calling out his name, "Ash, are you awake? It's almost time for the preliminary rounds to begin" but sadly there was no reply. The lights inside were out and it felt no one has used this room last night, "Ash? Ash, are you in there?" she called once more, but again there was no reply. Seeing that time wasn't exactly on her side, the girl decided to intrude, "Ash, I'm coming in…" but when she opened the slide door, she was surprised to see the whole room to be emptied. "Eh?"

Seeing that there was no one here, she decided to check out the room to see if there was any sign of the box, "Ash? Hello?" she called out, but again there was still no reply.

Even though Ash had only spent a few days here at her inn, the boy really did make himself at home. His clothes were neatly folded in the cabinet and some of his favorites were hanging on the wall hanger. Next to his clothes was his backpack which was carelessly left open, revealing several small boxes which caught Soledad's attention. As she opened one of them she quickly realized that these cartridges were actually used to hold his Pokemon badges. She recognized the first set, since they most likely came from Kanto. The more she looked at them, the more intrigued she became of them. Each of them were neatly polished, making them shine and spark against the morning rays, "They really look like jewelry collection" she said to herself.

Finally convinced that the boy was no longer in his room, Soledad decided to check up the other possible locations on where Ash might be. She checked the men's bathhouse, the toilet, and even the dojo, but sadly it appears all areas were of the same result. He couldn't have left the inn since it was still so early in the morning and he couldn't be in the Pokemon center either since the closest one was right next door. If he was, then Soledad would've seen him pass through the restaurant's door.

"Hmm… where could he be?" just as the girl was about to check on the hot springs, a sudden snoring sound quickly caught the attention of her ears. "Huh? What's that sound?" as she checked the garden area, her eyes suddenly widened when she noticed that the boy that she was looking for was sleeping under the pavilion that centered the garden grounds. "There you are…" she said slightly relieved. "Ash… it's time to wake up" she nudged him softly on the shoulder to try and wake him up.

The boy groaned and moaned for a few seconds before replying, "Emmm… just a few more minutes. I'll do the dishes later……" he mumbled in his sleeps.

But this only made the girl chuckle. "Come on Ash, you don't want to miss the Valmarian league now do you?"

The mere mention of the Valmarian preliminary rounds instantly made the boy jolt his head up. "AHHH!! No! The match ups!!! I'm late acck!" as the boy got up from his sleeping position; he instantly tripped over the sidewalk and fell right onto the bushes, "Ouch…"

**(5 minutes later)**

After getting the boy out of the bushes and patching up the new scars on his face, the small unrelated family members finally sat back on the table to begin breakfast. "Ahehehe… sorry about that" Ash apologized, "I guess I must've dozed off when I was training back there"

"Sleeping outdoors huh?" Lewis clarified which the boy nodded in reply. "I know sleeping outdoors is fun and all, but it couldn't hurt to bring a sleeping bag. I wouldn't want you to catch a cold especially when the second preliminary rounds are up"

"Yeah…" Ash replied rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.

But then Soledad's voice popped in the conversation, "Here you go…" she gave Ash a bowl of rice which he gladly accepted, "You'd better eat a lot Ash. You're going to need the energy to take out your opponent today. Oh and that reminds me. Before I forget: here's your lunchbox" she quickly pulled out a medium sized lunchbox from the floor and placed it on the chair right next to Ash. To the boy's surprise, the box she gave out was completely different to previous ones she gave out before. This one was now in the color of energetic orange with Primape pictures decorated on the handkerchief.

As Ash opened up the box due to the wonderful aroma it gave out, his mouth gapped wide open allowing a fall of drool to pour onto the floor. Inside the box was a 2 cup size of fried rice dipped in soy sauce, a large slice of chopped meat, eight pieces of different variety of sushi and on the side was a bottle of orange juice energy drink.

"Wow…" Ash drooled uncontrollably as his arm unconsciously got closer to the box. But before his fingers could even reach the delicious bento, Soledad quickly pulled out a hand size fan from her pocket and slapped the boy's hand making him jolt back to his original position. "Yeow! What was that for?!" he asked a little surprise on the girl's reaction.

"This is for lunch" Soledad explained to him puffing, "You are not to eat it until you get to the Arena District. Now eat your breakfast before it gets cold"

"Yes ma'am…" Ash grumbled as he resumed to his meal. But just as he got through half of his bowl, his Pokedex-phone suddenly began to ring, "Hello?" he answered.

When the video screen popped in, the boy was surprised on who was on the other line, "Hey there honey!" said Delia in her usual cheerful tone. "How're you doing sweety?"

"Mom?!" the boy replied completely ecstatic, "Hey mom, I haven't heard from you for awhile. How are ya?"

"Oh just peachy dear" Delia smiled cheerfully at him, "Caroline, Johanna and I were just about to go to an all day shopping spree at the mall. I was hoping to bring you along but seeing that you have still have a match, I guess you'll still be busy at the Arena District"

"Yeah…" Ash replied a little disheartened.

"But never mind about that" the mother quickly changed the topic seeing that her son wasn't comfortable with it, "How about you dear? Are you eating well? I haven't seen you in awhile so I thought I'd call. Your friends are also missing you ever since you decided to move out of the hotel. Is everything alright back there?"

"Yeah mom. I'm doing fine here. I got a whole gym here to practice on and I help out around the restaurant when I have time. And Soledad here makes great food" the girl at the sides smiled to his compliment.

"Well that's good to hear"

"Delia, we're leaving!" came Caroline's voice in background.

"Ooopsy. Looks like I got to go honey. Be sure to wash yourself and don't forget to change your underwear too ok" the boy quickly turned crimson red when his mother mentioned his undergarments out loud. On the corner of his eye, he could see that both Soledad and Lewis were chuckling and giggling at him. And with their farewells said, the screen turned off.

And right on cue, the Hoothoot clock began to hoot once again, making Ash turn his attention back to the time. "Oh no!" he shouted, "It's almost eight o'clock! I'm gonna be late for the second round!" after shoving the whole dish into his throat and gulping them all down with a glass of water, Ash quickly got his backpack and dashed right onto the door.

"Ash, wait for me!" Soledad shot up before following the boy, but before she could take one step forward, Lewis grabbed her by her shirt collar and pulled her in, "And just where do you think you're going, young lady?" he said sarcastically, "You promised me that you'd help open out at the restaurant when you finish up your match, so come on, we got a lot of work to do" and before the girl even knew it, she was already being dragged into the kitchen to help prepare for the customer's orders.

**(Arena District)**

After Ash hastily dashed off from the Old Town District, he set a new record of running through the city's districts in just ten minutes. When he arrived at the Battle areas, he was surprised to see his friends all there to greet him.

"Hey Ash!" Brock came first, "Glad to see you made it. You're just in time… as usual"

The boy panted heavily like a tired dog before he replying, "Huff huff huff… Sorry about that huff huff. I kinda woke up late this morning huff huff"

"Well the match-ups won't be starting in a few more minutes" Tracey added, "Wanna go and grab something to eat?" but Ash simply waved it off since he already had Soledad's home made lunch with him. "Nah, you guys go on ahead" Ash declined, "I got something else to do (Pika pika)" and before the others had a chance to even start a conversation with him, the boy rushed off towards the Pokemon center leaving behind a confused group.

"Now that's got to be a first" May pouted, "I never heard Ash refused a free meal before"

Brock nodded in agreement, equally surprised by the boy's strange behavior, "I guess there's a first for everything" he chukled

By the time Ash made it to the P.K.C, he didn't find it to be unusual to have the place empty. Since it was still the beginning of the day, the Pokemon center should be common to look deserted. But don't get me wrong. When the match ups starts again, this place would look like a jar of honey attracting all the bees in the word. There were twelve Nurse Joys on the reception desk and just when Ash entered, the dozen of them quickly bowed down in synch.

"Welcome… to the Pokemon Center" the nurses said in unison which confused Ash for a moment. After recovering from the shock the boy quickly ran up to the reception desk and hand over his Pokemon belt. "Nurse Joy, do you mind doing a little check up on my Pokemons?"

"Why of course Ash" she replied which made Ash tilted his head in wonder, "Oh… I guess you don't remember me. I'm Nurse Joy from Varidian city. I took care of your Pikachu when it was injured remember? I think it was four years ago since you first came to my Pokemon center. You were so tired and messy that you looked like you went through a hailstorm" (You can find this Nurse Joy in Pokemon episode 2: Pokemon Emergency)

"Oh yeah!" Ash instantly remembered when he first encountered a Nurse Joy back in Varidian city. "That was when I first started out on my journey! You helped me when Pikachu here was hurt. Right Pikachu? (Pikachu!)" the little mouse yipped in reply.

"So you do remember" Nurse Joy stated happily, "I'm glad. Anyway, I'll bring these Pokemons to the checkup room. Please wait here until I'm finished"

With a nod from the nurse, Ash quickly took her advice and waited on one of the waiting benches in the Pokemon center to catch up some much needed snoozing. Ever since last night's training regime with Rosa, he felt like his bone marrows were still popping like they were being cracked. Even though the boy hasn't fully recovered from the battle at fort Gregro, he was still able to move his muscles without much difficulty at all.

Thanks to his four years of adventure and dangerous journeys, he probably grew a huge tolerance against pain and by traveling through the different regions around the world; his body became content and familiar with the weather making him impervious to Mother Nature's hashes weathers. With all of these abilities forged into him and his courage unrivaled, the boy could truly be known as a true hero of the ages.

However… just when Ash waited for his Pokemons to get their usual medical checkups, the familiar jolt of pain suddenly began to surge onto his right arm again, where the tattooed markings originated from. "Ackk!" he groaned softly not wanting the other nurses to see him in that painful state. But no groan or moans escapes the ears of Rosa. With her task as Ash's personal bodyguard, it was her duty to make sure that the boy was not ill or injured in any way. If he was sick then it would be her task to make sure he was kept away from harm and tended until he was better.

"_Your majesty"_ she spoke in his mind softly, _"What's wrong?"_ but the boy was focusing too hard on his arm to respond to her question. Quickly sensing that this was no ordinary illness, Rosa quickly took the boy's right arm and used her aura ability to find out what was wrong. She scanned the boy's muscles and found nothing to be out of place. His bones were intact except for a few minor cracks that were still on the verge of healing. His blood pressure was ok and there didn't seem to be any kind of contamination. But just as the pink Guardian scanned deeper into his system, her eyes suddenly widened when she removed the bandages on Ash's arm.

Black ink, were spilling out of the bite marks of when the strange creature bit him back in Kanto. As the ink pooled out, they began to form into shapes and symbols slightly different from the original context. Once Ash regained control, he forced every ounce of his endurance to fight the pain away. "Ah…… what… what is this?"

"No… it can't be…" Rosa muttered out which caught Ash's attention, "Rosa, what is this? My arm is…"

"_Yes… I can see that Ash…"_ she replied telepathically, _"I'm not really certain what it is… but it looks similar to the one the ki… I mean Hsa had. But there are some markings that I am not familiar with"_

"Do you think this is some sort of a sign?" he asked hoping that this wouldn't result into another war. But Rosa only shook her head in reply, _"I'm not sure. My knowledge and familiarization on ancient markings are rather limited. Hagard, should be able to decipher them within a week or so. But it looks like they've stopped for now"_ she paused for a moment, while trying to analyze what was being written on the boy's arm, _"Hmm… these markings are rather unusual to me"_ she admitted, _"It would be best if no one sees these markings your majesty"_ Ash nodded in comply and quickly took out another roll of bandages out of his backpack to cover the markings.

**(Arena District) (J's place)**

Kevin, the leader of the Elite Fives was taking a short break at the famous fast food joint along with his other comrades in arms. After seeing the first few trainers roll in and out of the arena, the boss of the Bail Outs decided to wait patiently rather than to stand around while the others have their fun.

"Man… this is soooo… boring!" Binor sighed, "Just how long do I have to stay and wait like this!? My Pokemons are itching for a fight!"

"Calm yourself Binor" Kevin insisted, "Enjoy the scenery while you still can, for who knows…… your next opponent might just be your last"

But the rock Pokemon trainer digressed, "Ahhh come on Kevin! During the first round, I barely even broke a sweat! Can't that silly machine pair me up with someone strong for once!?"

"Be careful what you wish for Binor" Kyle, the blue haired water Pokemon trainer replied, "Your wish might actually come true" but then the other guy only flexed his muscle in response, "Ha! Bring it on! I can take anything that machine can throw at me! I'll even take on that little Ketchum kid again!"

"But didn't he almost beat you, the first time?" Claire added which made the boy sulk his head down.

"Hahaha! Binor looks funny oru!" Eesal laughed through her tiny chibi face.

"Now now Eesal, don't make fun of others" Kevin cooed silently as he sipped on his drink.

**(At the coordinator's corner)**

Dawn, May, Drew, Kenny, Johanna, Tracey and Zoey were all waiting patiently at one of the waiting areas as the contest battle continued excitingly. Since every contest matches were timed with only five minutes, the coordinator's area depleted much quicker than the Pokemon battles. During contests, it doesn't really matter how strong your Pokemons are. As long as they keep pulling out beautiful and awe inspiring moves, you're a sure-sure win.

"Wow… I can't believe there are still so many coordinators" Dawn stated as she looked around the area. And to her truth, she was right. Once the coordinator finished up with their matches, they simply abandon the place to wait for their next battle.

"That only proves that a lot of them had already won" May replied, "But I'm not worried. As long as I do my best, there's no way I can lose!"

"But aren't you guys worried?" Kenny pointed out, "I mean, there's a chance that we might actually get to fight each other"

"No need to worry" Dawn said her usual catch phrase again. "I won the Shinou grand festival didn't I? A simple double performance battle shouldn't be a problem tee hee"

But then suddenly, the voice speaker began to turn up, "Paging coordinator Dawn, paging coordinator Dawn. Please report to waiting area of stage number 37 your contest battle will begin shortly" this perked up the gang's attention. "Oh-o. It looks like you're up next Dawn" Tracey warned. "You'd better hurry or else you're going to miss the match"

"Already on it!" she replied.

But then her mother called in, "Dawn sweetie, be careful and don't underestimate your opponent!"

"Don't worry mom!" she replied while dashing off, "I've done this a hundred times, it'll be a piece of cake!" but this only made Johanna sigh with frustration, "It's when she says don't worry is when I worry the most"

"Hey, but that's the Dawn we all know" Kenny added which earned some agreeable nods from the gang. "But I got to say" the boy added, "She really has grown. To think that the kid I used to tease as Deedee turned out to be the champion of the grand festival. Man… the world really is a strange place"

"Like professor Oak used to say in one of his haikus" May interrupted.

Life is never straight

There are turns and there are twists

But all the same path

"Hey… the professor said that to me too" said Tracey.

**(Back with Ash)**

Once Ash finished wrapping his arm with a new set of bandages, he flexed out his muscles a few times to see if any part of his body were still stiff from last night's training. "Well it looks like I'm ready to go" the boy said to himself, "You ready Pikachu? (Pikachu!)" the little mouse replied holding up a paw in the air. "Right! Come on out you three!" he quickly summoned out Kingler, Sceptile, and Noctowl, "Everyone, this is it! Today I have a feeling that we're going to battle, so I want you all to give it your best ok!"

But then suddenly, another voice perked in, "You sure look excited" as Ash turned to the new presence, he realized that it was none other but his long time friend and companion, Brock. "Hey Brock! What are you doing here?"

"I came to check up on you" the Pokemon breeder replied, "You gave us quite a scare when you said you didn't want to eat. (pause) Are these the three Pokemons you're gonna use for the 3-3 match?" Ash nodded back in reply, "You bet! And I've gone through some special training last night. Me and my Pokemons are gonna become even stronger than before, right guys!?" (Sceptile!) (Croo!) (Crookie!) with Ash's brilliant aura shining out again, Brock couldn't help but burst his heart out with pride. During times like these, Brock would've given Ash some sort of advice or something to remind him of his weaknesses. But now it looks like Brock ran out of good quotes to match the mood.

"You… know… its kind of funny" the squinty eyed boy began, "When we first met back in Pewter city gym, you barely knew the first thing about Pokemon battles"

"I was?"

"You were also reckless, hard headed and sometimes very stubborn to admit that you were wrong (pause) But now that I think about it… I find out that things weren't exactly that bad" he then turned towards the window overlooking the battlefields, "People nowadays… they don't usually know how far they've gone… until they actually look back and see. My father always tells me that whenever I was confused" he then turn back to Ash as he starred back at him with a quizzled face, "Ahehe… I guess I'm not really making much sense to you, am I? (nod) Well Ash……… all I just want to say is……… thank you"

"Huh?"

"If you didn't start your Pokemon journey… I would've still been trapped in the gym along with my other brothers and sisters" he continued, "And I would never have continued my dream as a Pokemon breeder. So…… thanks Ash…… for everything"

The boy simply looked back at him, completely caught by surprised, "Uhh…… your welcome…… I guess"

Brock then rubbed his head in slight embarrassment. He's never been this emotional ever since he met Professor Ivy. "Usually I'd say 'do your best' or 'don't do anything rash' but I think you probably know that already" they both laughed out together easing the tension a bit. "…… so…… all I'm gonna say Ash… is good luck" he extended his hand with a smile on his face, "It's been a great honor traveling with you"

"Brock…" Ash didn't really know that Brock could become so emotional at times like this. Usually the boy would be practically gluing himself to one of the many Joys around him, but right now, the man was being very mature for some reason. Not wanting to keep him hanging, Ash gladly returned the shake and smirked back cheerfully like before. "Me too Brock… it's been a real honor traveling with you too" but then their dramatical scene was cut short when they notice the Nurse Joys all sobbing and crying over this little scene.

"What a beautiful sight… (sniff)" said the first Joy.

"A true bond between best of friends" said another, "I've never seen such a happier moment (sniff)" but this only earned them a small laugh from the two boys.

But just when Ash was about to start another conversation, the speaker of the Arena District soon turned on, signaling an announcement. "Paging trainer Ash Ketchum and Binor" the lady on the other line began. "Paging trainer Ash Ketchum and Binor. Please report to battlefield number 41 to begin your next match. I repeat: Would trainer Ash Ketchum and Binor report to battlefield number 41 to begin their next battle? Thank you"

"It looks like you're up" Brock smiled, "Good luck…"

"Don't worry about me Brock" Ash smiled back, "This second round… is in the bag" and with that, the boy dashed off towards the arena to begin his second round. With blessings from his best pal, he knew there was nothing that would stop him now.

"I guess some things really do never change…"

**(Half Way Home Inn)**

Soledad, the young coordinator and chef of the Half Way Home Inn was cooking once again at the kitchen, but even though her hands were on the dish, her mind was somewhere else. "(sigh) This is tiring…"

But then Lewis entered the room, "Soledad, are the orders for table number 13 ready yet?" Soledad simply pointed to the table beside her without even looking. "Oh… here we are. And can you hurry up with table 5? We have more customers coming"

"Yes grandpa, it'll be done in a few minutes" she finished with another sigh. "(sigh)… If Ash was here, we would've finished long ago" but just when she was about finished off her next dish, Ash's Ambipom suddenly appeared out of the window which made her jolt up from her gloomy position, "Ah!" she yelped, "Oh… it's you. You must be Ash's Ambipom (Ai pompom!) What do you have there you little rascal? Did you pick something up from the warehouse again?"

The monkey Pokemon quickly showed her an old television set which was surprisingly in good condition. "Hey… I've seen that TV before. It was in the attic of the warehouse. Does it still work?" Ambipom only shrugged back in response. "Well… I guess there's only one way to find out. Come on" with a few minutes to spare, Soledad quickly attach the old TV set onto the table and twists the antenna a bit to find the right frequency.

After a few minutes, the picture on the screen became clearer, "Hey… what da ya know? It actually still works. Let's see if the sound system still works" but since it was an old model, the girl couldn't tell which button was for the sounds or for the channels. After randomly pressing the buttons over and over again, the screen suddenly came to the Arena District and to her luck, Ash seemed to be on screen, "Ash?!" she gasped. But then suddenly the screen began to blur causing the girl to go on her knees, "Wait! Come back!" she then began banging on the old TV box in hopes that it would bring the picture back. But in the end… two wrongs didn't seem to make a right answer.

"Grrrr! Don't make me turn you into a toilet!"

**(Back in the Arena District) (Second preliminary round, 985****th**** match: Ash Ketchum VS Binor)**

As Ash took to his side of the field, the audience quickly roared out a series of cheers to boost the boy's spirit. "Wow! Listen to that crowd. I feel like we're the center of attention Pikachu (Pikapika!)" he then waved his arm up in the air and smiled happily to his adoring fans. "Hey there everybody!" he shouted back.

However… on the sidelines somewhere deep within the mass amount of trainers, Paul and Richie were also there to lend some morale support. "Look at him… doesn't that guy have any sense of dignity?" Paul remarked with his arms crossed, "He's waving at a thousand people out there. Doesn't he feel ashamed?"

But Richie only chuckled in response, "I guess you don't know Ash as well as I do" he began, "If you stay long enough, you figure out that Ash is like a wall…"

A short awkward pause emanated, leaving the Veilstone city trainer raising a brow, "I don' get it"

But just before Richie could continue, the MC of thje match began his announcement. "Ladies and gentlemen! We will now begin our next Pokemon battle!"

After the crowd cheer died down a little bit, the referee of the match quickly raise his flag to signal the two trainers that the match was about to begin, "This is 3-3 battle between Pokemon champion, Ash Ketchum from Pallet town, Kanto (cheer) and Binor from Rustboro city, Hoenn! Trainers, you may now choose your Pokemons!"

"I guess I'll go first" Binor smirked as he picked three Pokeballs from his belt, "Nosepass, Golem, Rhyhorn, let's rock it!" three rock type Pokemons immediately appeared, letting out a small roar in process. From the looks of it, the three of them seemed to be ready for anything Ash throws at them. "Let's see you try to beat this… kid"

Once Ash finished analyzing his opponent's Pokemons, he quickly turned to his little Pikapal, "Alright then… I guess you'll have to sit this one out Pikachu (Pikachu…)" the little mouse nodded and hastily leaped off the boy's shoulder to give him a morale boost on the sides. "Alright… I guess we'll see if Rosa's training pays off" he said to himself as he picked out three Pokeballs from his jacket. As he look at his companions, he made sure every breath he took in counted for something. After waiting for so long for his next match, he could already tell that the Randomizer really must've saved the bests for last. He meditated on the spot, making sure his breath control was in perfect synch with his body.

**(Flashback) (Last night)**

"So… what are we doing first Rosa?" Ash asked as he and Rosa exited the dojo. Knowing how good the ancient Guardian was, Ash was ready to face anything she was ready to throw at him. But what came next, probably caught him completely unexpected.

"Patience your majesty" Rosa calmed the boy down with one of her paws, "The first thing any fighter needs to practice first… is breathing (eh?) Now……… I want you to inhale and exhale in rhythm… like this" she quickly made an example by inhaling a large amount of oxygen then later she breathed out through her mouth. "Breath in through your nose… and breath out through your mouth. Now follow"

Ash reluctantly complied but in the end, it was better to follow and see where this would lead. "Uh… ok…" he then began breathing in through his nose and exhaled through his mouth. He did this for a whole full minute before deciding to ask, "So what does this do Ros (whack!) Yeow! What was… (whack!) Oww! Hey! What was that for!?"

"I did not tell you to stop breathing!" the pink Pokemon shot back, "Now stand your position and continue breathing!"

"But… (whack!) Ouch! Stop that! (whack!)"

"Raising your voice against your master!? (whack!)"

"Ok, but what does this have to do with battling?"

"Questioning your master's method?! (whack!) Now back to your breathing!" she ordered which Ash groaned to. With the boy breathing at a regular pace, Rosa could only smirk behind him. This kind of training reminded her of the time when she was still training the old king. But before she her mind could go onto day dreaming, she noticed that the rest of Ash's Pokemons were starring at her, "What are you looking at!? Get in line now and start breathing!" frightful of the Guardian's awesome might, everyone quickly got onto Ash's side and began breathing just like she ordered, heck even Pikachu was afraid of her.

**(End of flashback)**

After getting his breathing rhythm in sync with his body, Ash looked back at the field and readied himself for battle, "Well… here goes nothing…(pause) Sceptile, Kingler, Noctowl, I choose you guys!" the three said Pokemons immediately appeared out of their Pokeballs all looking ready for battle. "Alright guys, just like we practiced. Sceptile, you're the leader (Sceptile!)"

Once the referee noticed that both trainers have chosen their Pokemons, he quickly raise his flag to signal the beginning of the round, "Both trainers have chosen their Pokemons! The match will now begin! Trainers, are you ready!? (nod) Then……… BEGIN!!!"

"Golem, use takedown, Nosepass, use hidden power, Rhyhorn, use horn attack!" the three rock Pokemons quickly charged in against Ash's Pokemons, creating an attack formation, but Ash was ready. Following his breathing rhythm of 1…2 3, the boy quickly wave his hand to signal a move, "Alright everyone, go to the left and dodge it!"

With the order given, Sceptile quickly carried Kingler on its arm and dashed towards a safe location. Noctowl had no trouble getting to the other side since it was a flying type anyway.

"You're not getting away that easily!" Binor taunted, "Nosepass, use hidden power on Sceptile now!"

"Kingler, use hyper beam now!" even though Kingler was still on Scpetile's arms, it was still able to fire up a powerful attack causing Nosepass to flinch. "Good work! Now back to defense everyone!" the three Pokemons quickly settled down and reformed their line, creating some sort of a wedge formation.

Seeing that all of his close range attacks wouldn't work at a situation like this, Binor decided to go for the long range attacks, "Golem, use rock throw, Nosepass, thunder bolt, Rhyhorn, hyper beam!"

"Noctowl, use gust attack!" Ash ordered a defense move in hopes to blind his opponents and to his luck he succeeded. The gust attack was more than enough to make cause the attacks to miss giving the boy enough time to launch a counter attack. "Now Sceptile, use bullet seed!" the grass type Pokemon hastily unleash a volley of bullets out of its mouth causing some minor damage to Binor's rock Pokemons. "Great job!"

"Grrrr!" Binor gritted his teeth as all of his attack pattern seemed to be resulting in failure. "You guys might be strong together, but let's see how you fair when you guys are separated! Golem, use earthquake and shake them off! Nosepass, separate them using sand storm! Rhyhorn, fire it up with charge attack!"

"Amazing!" MC Jewel stated, "It looks like Binor isn't giving Ash Ketchum a chance to even catch his breath! He's really going all out!"

But Ash wasn't afraid of this kind of attacks. After his training routine with Rosa, this battle was probably just a walk in the national park.

**(Flashback)**

After the breathing routine was done, Rosa ordered all of her 'students' to form a line right in front of her in the dojo. "Alright, from here on out, I want you all to block the attacks I'm about to give" she explained, "There is very little room so maximize yourselves using whatever ability and resource you have at your disposal. You may use attacks too if you wish, but don't get your hopes up. Am I clear?"

"Uhh yeah… but what do I…" Ash didn't even have the chance to finish his sentence when Rosa suddenly shot out a shadow ball attack at him. "Hey! What was that for!?"

"I said 'Am I clear' when I ask a question I expect you to answer it, not question the question" Rosa replied holding up another shadow ball on her hand, "One more thing…… none of you are allowed to exit the battlefield no matter what the circumstances. If you do, I will make you all run a hundred laps around this building. Now……… defend yourselves!" and with that the girl Pokemon quickly unleash a flurry of shadow balls at Ash, Pikachu and his three Pokemons that he was going to use for the match.

"Ahhh! This is crazy! (Pikapi!)" Ash yelped out as he dodged the attacks one by one. But with Rosa's experience and accuracy, it became harder to avoid the shots. "You've got to be kidding me! Pikachu, thunderbolt! (PIIII KAAA CHUUUUU!!)" the electric mouse quickly release a powerful jolt of electricity which blocked the shadow ball. "Good work!" but then his compliment was cut short when Rosa a few more out of her attacks. "Oh ho! Sceptile, use bullet seed! Kingler, use hyper beam, Noctowl, use wing attack! Pikachu, use thunder shock!"

With the combination of all of his Pokemon's attacks, Ash and his pals were able to deflect and dodge the attacks that were given out. Even though Rosa was just a single Pokemon, Ash was still amazed that the pink Lucario can actually tire his group without even breaking a sweat. This only proves that he and his Pokemons could still become even stronger than they actually are.

After about an hour of doing the same routine of blocking and dodging, Ash and his group dropped to the ground completely exhausted to the nearest limit. "Man… what an exercise" he groaned, "I thought I was going to really die there for a moment"

But then Rosa came by to congratulate him on a job well done, "Very impressive Ash" she applauded slightly, "Usually it would take an army to match my skills, but it seemed like your companions were able to hold out longer than I had expected"

"Yeah…" the boy smiled back, "I'm just glad that routine is over"

"Over?" Rosa smirked, "That was only a warm up. The real thing hasn't even begun yet" with one swift move; Rosa immediately used double team to split herself into multiple pairs. Once Ash caught sight of this, he and his Pokemons paled even thinner than a sheet of see-through paper.

"AHHHHH!!!!! (BOOOM!)"

**(End of flashback)**

"Sceptile, use bullet seed, Kingler, bubble, Noctowl, wing attack let's go!" Ash ordered which seemed to work effectively. With Kingler's bubble attack, the earthquake attack was stop and Sceptile's bullet seed was so fast that it caught Nosepass unexpected. Noctowl also made contact. Even though its strength could not match against a rock type, Ash only needed Noctowl's speed to flinch the rock Pokemon down. "Good work everyone! Back to formation now!" he ordered to which the three compadres complied to the letter.

Back in the stands, Brock, Todd, Samuel Oak, Delia and Cynthia were all watching the match with great interest along with the thousand of Ash's fan clubs. Some were wearing the same clothes as Ash and some were even imitating his hat color.

"Amazing" Cynthia began, "Ash is really fighting like a professional out there"

"I'm not surprise, seeing that he's using his best Pokemons" professor Oak added with a smirk.

"His best?" Todd questioned.

"Yes… the three Pokemons Ash is using right now are probably the only veterans in his entire batch, excluding Pikachu of course" Samuel explained as he pointed to the boy's Pokemons, "Kingler over there made a pinching victory for Ash during his first time at the Indigo league. Noctowl, over there is his best flyer Pokemon and it really earned its wings during its stay at my lab. And of course…… Sceptile over there is the toughest one I've seen yet. Though it doesn't really say much, that Pokemon actually won more battles than I could remember"

Brock nodded in agreement too, "And it from the looks of things. Ash must've really trained last night. I've never seen him use those kinds of strategy before"

"Yeah…" Cynthia agreed, "He's actually using the support tactic"

"Support tactic?" Todd questioned again.

"It's an old strategy, but it still works even till today" the blonde champ explained, "All of Ash's Pokemons are supporting each other with their own abilities. Noctowl provides vision to Sceptile and Kingler, that's why Ash can tell where his opponent's are even during a sand storm. "Sceptile, with its speed is used for defense and offense which makes it an ideal leader of the group. Kingler, with its hard shell provides cover for both of them with its bubble and hyper beam attack"

"So each of them are part of a strong circle" professor Oak finished, "It's a good strategy, but if one of them should fall then Ash's strategy would be severely weakened since they all require one another to survive"

**(Back on the field)**

"Alright, let's move in for the counter attack!" Ash ordered, "Sceptile, use leaf blade!" the leader of the pack immediately charged against Binor's defense formation leaving the other two behind. Binor saw this as an opening and quickly exploit the flaw. "Heh, one against three ain't such a smart idea. Golem, tackle attack! Nosepass, use thunderbolt one more time! Rhyhorn, horn attack!"

"What an amazing sight" MC Fred stated through his microphone, "Binor is launching a major do or die attack against Ash's Sceptile alone. Will the grass Pokemon be able to take the heat!?"

Once Golem and Rhyhorn got close enough to Sceptile, Ash waved out his arm once more to give the signal, "Alright! Sceptile, jump into the air and glide!" the fully evolved Pokemon hastily dodge the two oncoming attacks and glided through the air like a kite. Once it reached the other side of the battlefield, Brock instantly knew what Ash was planning.

"Could it be? It is! It's a pincer move!" the squinty eyed boy stated in awe, "Ash is gonna attack Binor from both sides!"

Professor Oak, hearing this could only nod his head in agreement, "Emm hmm… an excellent maneuver indeed. Since Binor can only defend one area at a time, opening a second front from the sides can actually give Ash a clear cut advantage"

"Now Sceptile, use solar beam! Noctowl, use quick attack! Kingler, water gun full power!"

Unable to form a defensive maneuver due to his Pokemons slow mobility, Binor could do nothing but watch as his Pokemons get knocked out like worms to an early bird. "Ahh! Golem, Nosepass, Rhyhorn NOO!!"

After a few seconds had past with no action, the referee decided to wave his flag up to signal the winner, "Golem, Nosepass and Rhyhorn are no longer able to battle! The victory of this match goes to Sceptile, Kingler, Noctowl and their trainer Ash Ketchum!!" in an instant the audience began to roar and cheer for Ash like it was new year's eve all over again.

"And there you have it folks!" MC Fred continued, "The Pokemon champion Ash Ketchum has won it once again! And what an exciting match that was indeed! A brilliant use of both power and strategy!"

Once the announcement was over, Ash returned to the waiting area along with Binor to receive HIS Valmarian badge back. "Congratulation Ash" the referee commented, "You really outdid yourself. And for this, I proudly return your Valmarian badge"

"Thanks" the boy replied. But then he noticed Binor walking his way.

"That was a great battle Ash" he congratulated, "I always thought that a kid like you being a champion was probably just luck, but you really prove that you really are stronger than you look"

"Why… thanks" the boy smiled back, "You didn't do badly yourself. Your Pokemons really pulled out a lot of powerful attacks. If I got hit by one of your combinations, I would've been done for ahehehehe"

"I see" Binor seemed relieved that at least he got a compliment from his opponent, "Well… thanks for the match Ash… you really pulled it through for me. I wouldn't be surprised if you became one of the 18 aces"

"Yeah…………… but wait, aren't you supposed to be an ace?"

"Huh? Me?" Binor pointed at himself, "Oh sorry… I lost that title yesterday when I was battling at the practice field in the city gym. I guess you'll have to find yourself another 'ace' to battle. (chatter) Oh well, I'd better go. See you around Ash and good luck in the Valmarian league. Though I doubt you'll need it" the two of them quickly exchange a hand shake and walked away like two professional trainers.

Once Ash returned to the crowd, he gently opened his hand to look back at the Valmarian badge that was returned to him. The badge was just as the same as it looked but a little dustier due to the intensity of the battle. After seeing that, the boy quickly took a mental note to polish his badges when he gets back to his room back at the Half Way Home Inn. After that he would probably go to sleep to catch up on some much needed sleep. Even before the match his body was already dead tired from the training regime last night.

"Looks like we win again Pikachu (Pika)" the boy congratulated his group on a job well done. "(yawn) Boy… I guess that match took a lot more that I thought. I feel like I could just fall right here and sleep (Pikachu…)" the little mouse agreed by letting out an exhausting groan. "Why don't we head back to the inn and get some sleep? Since we have a whole week off, I guess we could start training again tomorrow?"

But just before Ash could it make out of the Arena District gates, his stomach suddenly began to growl, causing the boy to blush embarrassingly at himself. "Aheheheh… I guess we could stay awhile for lunch first (Pikachu)" quickly following the desire of his stomach, Ash hastily made his way towards J's place for a nice relaxing time, but to his luck all the tables seemed to have been taken already.

"Man… this place sure is bustling" he commented, "Maybe we should find another place Pikachu" but just before the boy left, an oddly familiar voice called out to him, catching the boy's attention, "Hey Ash!" Cynthia waved at him from one of the tables. When Ash saw her he immediately let out a smile as he approached her. "Hey there Cynthia" he replied. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just about to have lunch" she replied, "Wanna join me?" that was Ash needed to take his seat. Once Ash made himself comfortable on the chair, he opened up his lunchbox and began to dig in just like before. "I saw your match earlier" Cynthia gestured, "You really showed a lot of talent back there. I guess that goes to show that you-defeating-me wasn't all about luck"

"Heh… Binor said the same thing" Ash replied after taking a gulp of the food he was chewing, "And now that I'm finished with the second round, I can take the rest of the week training my Pokemons. I'm gonna become even stronger than I am now!" he flexed out his muscles completely oblivious to the stares he was getting from the crowd. But Cynthia simply chuckled at him. It was probably hard to imagine how the boy could become even stronger than he was now. If she didn't know better, she'd believe that Ash was probably at his strongest time in his life. To become even stronger would probably make him a god already through her POV. Little did she know that Ash, had already became a god once.

"Well… if you really want to become stronger" Cynthia gestured, "Why don't you and I have a practice battle?" the boy could give out a 'huh' sound as a reply, "Besides, you still owe me a rematch remember?" she reminded the boy of his unforgettable debt.

"Oh yeah… back at the quarry" Ash instantly remember, "I know! Why don't we have a match at Soledad's place? I'm sure she wouldn't mind us using it" if one should actually hear this conversation, it would almost sound like Ash is asking her out on a date, "We could practice there… just the two of us"

Just the two of us……………

That phrase alone was more than enough to make the great and powerful Cynthia turn crimson red. Her face was so hot it almost seemed like she spent 24 hours in the sauna trying to melt her own face or something. Though Ash doesn't realize it, everyone could tell that, that sentence can only be said when someone wants a date. (At least that's what my friend thinks)

"Just the two of us…" the girl mimicked with her mouth while blushing at the same time. "Just the two… of us…" she repeated again while her imagination went into overdrive.

**(Cynthia's imagination)**

Ash and Cynthia were sitting atop the gym's roof overlooking the moon's reflection on the half empty pond right in the middle of the garden. The two of them were having a nice peaceful meal just by the top of the roof with a mini table placed between them, and two bottles of water placed right beside their plates.

It seemed like an ordinary dinner date with nothing outstanding, until suddenly, a power-out occurred, blinding the two of them completely. With no one to see them, Cynthia decided to do a daring move. With Ash unable to see her and with the rest of the gang still confused on what was going on, Cynthia took advantage of the situation and snuggled closer to the boy giving out an excuse like 'ooops…' or 'sorry I didn't see you there'.

With their faces at such a close proximity, Cynthia controlled her heartbeat and focused on the task at hand. She had to make this moment just right if she wanted Ash to fall for her. As her face got closer and closer… their lips plucked and…

**(Pop)**

"Cynthia?" Ash called the girl back to reality before she drifts off into an eternal sleep in her own paradise (wouldn't that be nice?) "Is something wrong Cynthia? You were kind of out a few seconds ago" but the girl furiously shook her head in response, "No no no no no no! Not at all! I was just thinking of… uh… what I w…was going to use to battle against you" she stuttered momentarily which did not escape Ash's ears. To see the great Shinou ex-battle champion stutter like that almost like seeing a platypus doing back flips for no particular reason. (eh?)

But just when Ash could continue digging in on his meal, the large screen TV that was placed on top of the salad bar began to act up. The crowd seemed to be tensed by the battle and if that fight could attract that much of an audience, then it would be a match worthy of Ash's attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen! What an astounding battle!" said MC Jewel, "In just twenty seconds, Gary Oak was able to knock out three of his opponent's Pokemons all at once! Someone's got to set this as the fastest battle ever!"

On the screen of the TV Ash could see Gary and his Pokemons, Blastoise, Arcanine, and Umbreon posing in front of their master like some sort of bodyguard of a major crime boss. If one would look at it from a 'director's' point of view, he would actually believe that Gary was a son of a powerful Yakuza family group. With that annoying frown, the scar on his face, his purple-ish getup and those power-packed Pokemons, he would really cut out to be a gangster.

"Gary…" Ash sheathed through his teeth as he spoke his name. Usually he would enjoy having a powerful opponent like Gary to fight, but now their positions seemed to have changed to a whole new level of rivalry. With Gary on top of the world with thousands of trainers by his side, and Ash with but a handful of friends, he was definitely up against greater odds indeed.

"It looks like this Valmarian league is certainly going to be tough" Cynthia added noticing the boy's strange reaction on his old friend. But as the Gary left the stage to go do his own business, Ash quickly held his fist up high to set up his new goal, "Right…… if Gary is that strong then I guess we'll have to work twice as hard if we're to fight against him. (Pikapika)" the boy smirked up his lips and faced the TV screen as if waiting for the next match to begin, _"Just you wait Gary"_ he thought to himself, _"The next time we meet, I'll be a hundred times stronger than I was before!"_

**(Time skip) (Half Way Home Inn) (06:30 PM)**

It was evening here back at the Half Way Home Inn and the customer count had ended up to zero. With the last patron exiting the restaurant with an empty stomach, Lewis knew right away that it was time for him to close up shop. His restaurant didn't really have a stable opening or closing time due to his chef being unable to help around, but now that Soledad had finished her match, he would be able to get this place up and running for at least a week or two.

"Soledad, can you help me with the plates?" Lewis called out to his grandchild. "Soledad? Soledad, are you there?" she turned to her only to notice the girl starring blindly out the window with a sad and bored expression on her face.

Ever since she saw Ash finished his battle without any trouble, she was expecting the boy to come back right away to help her out with the restaurant. But I guess she was expecting too much from him. The boy was young and he'd certainly didn't like to spend most of his time wasting it on such trivial work. The more she thought about it, the more she believed that a work line like this was probably beneath him.

"Soledad…" Lewis called out extremely close to her ear, "Helloooooo…" but again, the girl simply sighed heavily in reply without saying a word. Irritated by the girl's lack of attention, Lewis suddenly pulled out a voice amplifier out of nowhere and set it to maximum. After clearing his throat for a moment, he yelled out to the top of his lunges, "SOLEDAD!!!!!!" the girl in question quickly leaped off her chair like a scarred chicken.

Once she recovered from the loud annoying sound of Lewis, she lodged back to the ground and massaged her ears just to make sure they weren't bleeding, "Grandpa! What was that for!?" she shouted back which was replied with an innocent giggle from the old man, "Well… if you took more time thinking of helping me rather than thinking about Ash all the time: I wouldn't have to raise my voice with this amplifier which I found at the warehouse (pause) Now hurry up and help me clean the tables"

"Ok… (hai…)" she surrendered to the man's order. But just when she got up from her chair, the door bell of the store suddenly rang. "Eh? Who could it be at this time?" Lewis wondered which Soledad followed in curiosity. The 'close' sign was already put up and no one would come and eat here during this time of late. At first, Soledad that it would be a patron who forgot his keys or something like that, but that would probably one in a million chances. So the last thought that came to her was…

"Ash…" she muttered out before dashing off towards the door. Lewis could barely even see her when she placed all the dishes on the old man's hands. "Acck!! Soledad, wait!"

But the girl was far too lost in her own mind to even listen. The only thing she wanted to see right now was Ash's cute little face and his Pikapal Pikachu. The door bell rang for a few times before she was able to get in front of it. A few seconds before she answered the door, Soledad made sure that she looked proper, neat, and womanly. Her appearance now might actually make a difference between her relationship with the boy……… at least that's what she thinks.

After a deep breath, a tiny mint candy and a small pint of perfume to add up to her charms, Soledad opened up the door and smiled her most brilliant smile ever. "Welcome home!" she said cheerfully.

But then her smile soon turned into a gloomy Frankenstein frown when she realized who was on the other side of the door. "Hey there!" said the old bald man and his wife and his other friends. "The Half Way Inn most loyal patrons: reporting for duty! Hee hee hee hee hee"

Soledad's head sulked down to the door completely disappointed, "Oh…… it's only you guys"

"Soledad!" Lewis shouted, "Don't say that to our most loyal customers! (to his friends) Come in my friends, please do come in" the old quickly served his friends the best seats in the house while he turned to his grand daughter, "Soledad, please go and fix us up some of those delicious seaweeds and rice cakes"

"Yeah… sure grandpa…" she sighed in defeat. But just before she could move to the kitchen, the door bell rang again.

"Soledad, could you answer that please?" Lewis asked while he busied himself with his guests.

When Soledad opened the door, she sighed and said, "Welcome to the inn. Sorry, but we're closed right now"

"Hey there Soledad" Ash replied cheerfully which the girl came to shock. "AHH!! Ash!?" Soledad shrieked.

"Uh… I live here now…" Ash pointed out with a small sweat drop. "Mind if we come in?"

"Uh… sure of course you can" the girl quickly excused herself from the door to allow the boy in. When Ash entered, he greeted the elders up too, "Hey there Lewis. Hey there everyone"

"Hey there Ash" the seniors greeted back.

"We saw your match this afternoon" Lewis added with a smile, "That was some battle you had there with Binor. You actually made it out with barely a scratch" the boy rubbed the back of his head modestly, "Oh… it wasn't really that great. I mean it was only a small battle ahehehe" he chuckled.

"Nonsense" the bald old man stated, "You beat that youngster like a cowboy fighting a rhino. You earned that victory fair and square"

"Thanks mister" Ash bowed slightly with another chuckle, "But has only been the second round. Who knows how many more trainers I'm going up against?"

"That only leaves the third and fourth round" Soledad interrupted, "If you can beat those, then you're a clear for the official Valmarian league. Maybe we can have another practice match tonight" she offered.

"Oh… sorry Soledad" Ash declined, "But I already have a friend of mine to practice with. (ding dong) Ah… that must be her now" without another word, Ash quickly rushed back towards the door and opened it up to greet a certain blonde champ. "Hey there Cynthia"

"Hey there Ash" the blonde woman greeted back as she stepped through the door, "Sorry to intrude"

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Cynthia" Ash introduced her to everyone. "(to Lewis) Oh hey Lewis, do you mind if I use the dojo again tonight? Since I don't have a match for the next week, I can help you around the restaurant"

"Sure, I don't mind" the old man smiled back, "Just be sure to clean up when you're done ok?"

"Sure" the boy replied.

(10 minutes later) (Dojo)

Once Ash and Cynthia moved in to the gym, they quickly released their Pokemons to begin their training regime. Cynthia was pointing out some flaws on Ash's techniques and showing him some new moves to increase his ability to control Pokemons. Every one of Ash's Pokemons were also included in this training routine. The flyers were all dancing in the air trying to hasten their speed to become even faster than they were before. The land based Pokemons were shadow boxing or sparring amongst themselves to increase their endurance on the battlefield and the swimmers tried their best to go against their weaker elemental attacks to hone their resistance.

But unknown to the rest of them, that a certain pink Lucario was making a little long distance call. Rosa, Ash's only present Guardian was hiding behind one of the tables to get her presence away from unwanted eyes. With everyone busy training and practicing for the next round, she found herself a nice quiet spot at a dark corner and began sending out a telepathic message to her other fellow Guardians.

The technique she was doing was similar to that of a cell-phone. You would dial up a particular name in your head and let the signal find the target. Once the signal reaches the other line, it was only a matter of time before the receiver answers the call.

"_Rosa?"_ came Hagard's telepathic voice.

"_It's about time you answered"_ Rosa stated with her eyes closed, _"I've been trying to contact you all afternoon. I couldn't reach Chaucer, and Sha-hear is probably still mad at me"_

The green Lucario chuckled, _"Heh… that one you got right. Even though he doesn't really show it, I can that he's downright furious about you leaving your post. Are you with…… him… right now?"_

"_His majesty is fine…… at the moment"_ she answered directly, _"Although his wounds are yet to heal, he seems to be recovering steadily"_

"_That's good to hear. We wouldn't want to lose two kings now would we"_ Hagard hastily slap himself mentally for his slip of the tongue, _"Oh… sorry… I shouldn't have said that"_ he knew that the king was a sensitive subject to Rosa, for she was probably one of the closest friends to the royal line. _"Anyway… I'm sure you probably didn't call me just because you missed me"_

The female Pokemon quickly got back to the subject at hand as she held the tears back in her eyes, _"I need your help Hagard"_ she began, _"Do you still remember the ancestor's markings?"_

"_You mean the one embedded on the bodies of the high-humans?"_ he clarified which was replied with a nod, _"Hmm… I remembered most of it. Why?"_

"_Because it is appearing on his majesty's arm_" if Hagard's eye grew any wider than it was now, they would probably fall off and roll down the floor. _"Impossible…"_ he replied, _"Hsa, removed the taint of the markings completely off the boy's soul. How is it possible for it to reappear?"_

"_Well it is here and it is growing rapidly through his arm_" Rosa shot back telepathically, _"You know as well as I do that Ash… I mean his majesty is just a mortal human. His body cannot sustain such power"_

"_Alright… calm down"_ Hagard ordered, _"We need to take this situation carefully. I'll tell the others about this and contact you later. In the mean time, try to see what the markings on his arm means. I'll send one of my Chosens to meet with you on the outskirts of that city"_

"_Understood"_ and with that, she broke out the contact line and stood up from her position to face the others. Ash was still training along with his other Pokemons and Cynthia was helping as best she could to show him some new moves. As Ash moved around smiling at all of his friends, the Guardian couldn't help but smile as the boy really did remind him of Hsa. If one would think about it, they would actually believe that he was a genetic clone of the ancient king.

The second round of the Valmarian league was done for Ash…… and with a new challenge coming right on the horizon, who knows what kind of exciting adventures he'll face next? All can be found at the next exciting and funny chapter of Pokemon: The Final Journey!!!


	61. Break Time Head Ache!

**Chapter 61: Break Time Head Ache!**

**(Half Way Home Inn) (07:00 AM)**

It was another beautiful morning here at the Half Way Home Inn and not one that you would see everyday. Ash was sleeping in his room waiting for his alarm clock to go off, Soledad woke up ten minutes ago to prepare breakfast and her grandfather was off to go fishing with his friends today at the canals. With the whole day off, it was gonna be a perfect day for the gang to train and improve for the next Valmarian preliminary round.

"Haaa… good morning Soledad" Ash yawned as he entered the kitchen house.

"Oh morning Ash" the girl greeted back, "Breakfast will be done in a few minutes, so why don't you go and set up the table at the restaurant?"

"Ok…" even though the boy was still drowsy from the morning wakeup call, he still listened very well to the orders given to him.

After putting down the chairs and arranging the tables, Ash decided to pass his time watching TV. It's not like he didn't have anything to do, it's just that now that he finished his second round he had to wait a few days for any announcements from the speakers which were spread all over the city. Back in the old days, he would barely have enough time to bring his Pokemons to the Pokemon center for a checkup and have a decent meal before his next battle. But thanks to his friend Brock, he was able to get a full course meal with just a normal piece of sandwich.

But just when the boy was flipping through the channels, he noticed that Ronda, the famous reporter from Shinou Now was on screen, "Eh? It's Ronda" this caught the attention of Pikachu and Rosa who both were sitting on their respective chairs.

"Hello and good morning viewers" Ronda began, "This is Ronda, reporting to you live from Valmarian Woods on a special broadcast. A few hours ago, reports of Pokemon sightings are coming from all over the Valmarian isles. This is actually an astounding breakthrough since it has been noted that there are no Pokemons living on the isles. Standing with me right now is none other than the famed Pokemon researcher professor Oak" the screen then moved up to the professor who was with some of his assistants.

"Professor Oak" Ash smiled happily to see his old mentor again.

"Professor…" Ronda continued, "You specialize in the evolution and behavior of Pokemons, correct? (nod) Can you explain how these Pokemons suddenly appear on the isles?"

Samuel slowly approach the mic and cleared his throat before speaking, "Well to be honest to you Ronda: I'm not even certain myself. Travelers and explorers have searched through the Valmarian islands for decades without any contact with Pokemons at all. My theory is that these Pokemons here must've migrated from another region or country. Although I don't have any proof at the moment, professor Rowan and his assistants have already counted 200 kinds of Pokemons already from different isles"

"So you have no idea on how these Pokemons got here?" Ronda inquired which was replied with a nod.

"Not yet at least, but we're bound to get to the bottom of this"

"Thank you for your time professor" Ronda bowed slightly in respect before turning back to the camera, "Well… if you heard it here than you've probably heard it first. This is Ronda, live from Valmarian Woods" and with that, the screen turned blank.

"Well… that was interesting (Pikachu…)" Ash stated as he turned the TV off. A few minutes later, Soledad entered the room with a platter full of tasty looking delicacies. Even though Ash wasn't gonna battle today, he sure was going to have a good breakfast morning.

"Hey Ash, breakfast is ready" Soledad greeted, "I also got your Pokemons out of the gym. They should be eating on the Pokefood I bought"

"Thank you" the boy replied, "Maybe later, I'll go back to the dojo and practice with all my Pokemons. Right Pikachu? (Pika!)"

"Well then, we wouldn't want to train with an empty stomach" the girl cooed back, "Eat as much as you like. Grandpa is out fishing with his friends today so he left me in charge of the restaurant. You can spend the whole day in the gym if you want. I'll be out shopping for some ingredients later in the afternoon" Ash literally yipped inside of his head knowing that he was going to have one heck of a day in his hands.

But then suddenly, the land line phone next to the cash register began to ring. Not wanting to hear that irritating ring, Soledad answered it, "Hello, this is the Half Way Home Inn. Soledad speaking"

"Oh hey there pumpkin!" came Lewis's voice on the other line.

"Grandpa? Is something wrong?"

"Oh it's just terrible Soledad! Something terrible happened!" Soledad's face turned worried she knew that her grandfather was not joking. "Why? What's wrong? What happened?!"

"I left my lure box in my room!" if Lewis was right next to the girl right now, Soledad would've given him a pulp of his life. To think that the emergency was just because he left his lures at home, "You what?!" Soledad questioned.

"Ahehehe… yeah, I was kind of in a hurry to meet my friends at the canal that I forgot about it" the old man explained, "Do you mind bringing it here at the east docks?"

"Do I have to?" she questioned again. "Oh alright, just wait for me there. (grumble grumble)" she then puts down the phone and sigh out loud like yak, "Great, now I have to deliver his lures and go to the groceries"

"Hey, maybe I can help" Ash volunteered.

"But what about your training Ash?"

But the boy simply waved it off, "Oh don't worry. I'll have plenty of time to train when I come back. Besides, I got nothing better to do" the girl really didn't want to bother Ash anymore than she was now. With grandpa suddenly giving him his job and letting him do all the repairs around the facilities, she was even actually ashamed of having him around. But it seemed like this situation required his aid. Usually, she would be able to call one of her few gang members who reside in the Old Town District, but with the match-ups still going on she was certain that each one of them should be busy.

Unable to find a quick solution, she ended up accepting the boy's offer and gladly gave him the list of things he needed to buy. If her calculations were right, the Pokemart should open right when Ash reaches the door.

"Ok Ash, here are the things I need you to buy" Soledad explained, "There might be too many for you to carry, so bring some of your Pokemons too just in case"

"Hey, no need to worry" the boy smug his nose before going through the door, "Well, I'm off. I'll see you back here in two hours!" and with that, the boy dashed off towards the Pokemart along with Rosa and Pikachu who were probably more than enough to help with the groceries.

With Ash gone into the distance, Soledad quickly put it in her top reminder to give Lewis a lecture of a life time. A guest of honor like Ash should never do this kind of labor, especially one who will one day rule over all Pokemons. Not wanting to waste time, the girl quickly head back into her room to get her grandfather's lure box. But then she noticed that Ash didn't even finish up his breakfast. "Oh dear… it looks like Ash didn't finish breakfast" but this only gave the girl another good excuse to cook up something tasty for him.

**(With Ash)**

As Ash walked through the Old Town streets, he wasn't surprised to see the roads empty. During the beginning of the second prelim rounds, practically everyone in the city were rushing off to the Arena District hoping to get a chance to get a glimpse on a good fight, but now that it's been a whole week, the matches were now getting thinner and thinner by the minute.

The boy still couldn't believe it though. Usually, Ash would encounter one or two groups of trainers or coordinators, but now… there were practically hundreds of them just by looking at a local gift shop. Though the boy wouldn't show it, the feeling inside of him was probably beyond ecstatic. Just thinking about it already began to make his bones tingle.

But as Ash thought of these things through his mind, he suddenly realize that he was already at the Pokemart. "Wow… I guess time flies when your head's in the air" but this only made Rosa sighed in disappointment. To think that this airhead was actually going to be the ruler of a once mighty empire was practically somewhat beyond her imagination. Sure, Hsa was able to rule it without worries, but that was because he had the wisdom and intelligence of a thousand Alakazams. That guy was a born ruler, but Ash…… well… he's a leader that much is true, but leading a country was a lot more difficult than leading a small band of humans.

As they entered the Pokemart, Ash immediately got to work on finding the groceries Soledad wanted him to buy. Quickly following the list that was scribbled down on a small notepad, the boy was able to find all the things needed. Before, when Brock gave him a list, half the things on it would be written in some sort of alien language in which he would take weeks in deciphering.

After getting most of things down on the basket, the boy noticed that Rosa was once again, looking at the chocolates being stashed at the shelves. Chocolates were pretty rare to find during her time and to see them being sold at a small public store like this was probably one of her dreams come true. And as usual, Ash allowed her to take one of them into the basket. A little extra snack on the way back wouldn't hurt the stomach too badly.

But just when the boy was about to make it back to the cash register, his eyes suddenly came across the Pokemon League corner. Of course… as the curios boy he was, Ash decide to take a little peek to see what was on sale. As usual, there were some new Pokeball designs up for grabs along with some neat fancy Pokeball seals that were popular among the Pokemon contests. If Ash didn't know better, Dawn would've probably bought the whole set by now… a top coordinator like her always knows that it was best to have a wide variety of selections before going into a contest. She probably made it a habit of hers already.

However… as he giggled away the thought, Ash's eyes tilted slightly to the right, to where the latest addition to the Pokemon toys. Other than the usual fake Pokeballs which bore a stuff doll in each set, there were replicas of Pokemon league badges that the kids were so hooked into. There was no reason why these things were illegal. A real badge would be made out of pure minerals but these replicas could easily be switched apart just by touching it. The colors were also very feint so addicted buyers would have to replace the replica once every two or three weeks.

But simply looking at those badges simply brought so much joy to Ash's heart. To think that he had traveled great distances just to earn these brightly colored jewelries. But just when he was chuckling out a thought… one particular badge seemed to disturbed his attention.

There… the last one in stock behind the row of badges… clad in aqua blue, shaped in a frozen drop of water, was none other… than the Cascade badge. The mere sight of it quickly brought in a flow of untamed memories like a tsunami crushing against the beaches of Pallet town. Deep within that boy's head, an untapped part of his past long being ignored was now resurfacing like a beast clawing its way out of a hole that was meant to imprison it. But now the beast has grown, and its cages were too weak to bar its path any longer.

Ash tried to force the memories away, but his mind could no longer ignore what was rightfully there. He placed his hand over his left cheek where the unwanted pain still lingered as if it bore a mark for the one who had committed a crime. Even though it had been days since he was given that painful slap, the mind refused to forget it.

"_YOU ARE THE MOST SELFISH, ANNOYING PERSON I HAVE EVER MET IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!!! YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYONE OTHER THAN YOURSELF!!! I WOULDN'T BE SURPRISED IF YOU LOST!!!!"_

He clenched his fist tightly, as if he was suppressing all the anger that was building inside of him. He still couldn't believe it happened though. After thinking about it now, that bad memory just seemed to be a nightmare. But who was he kidding? He knew every moment from that point was real beyond belief. He knew… the moment his face twitched to the sides… that everything that happened that night… was real as the fish in the sea.

"_Ash?"_ but then his thoughts were quickly interrupted when a feint voice echoed through his ear. As he tilted his head to the right, he was greeted by the sight of Rosa who seemed slightly worried about the boy's condition. _"Are you alright? You seemed troubled"_ but the boy just waved it off, "Oh it's nothing. I was just checking out the badges" he forced out a small to hide the pain, but not even the best liar in the entire world could fool a Guardian like Rosa.

Not wanting to press the issue anymore, the pink Lucario decided to drop it and follow him back to the inn.

"Thank you, please come again" said the clerk with a slight bow.

As Ash left the Pokemart he quickly distributed the packages to his pals to help carry them. Rosa with her strong two arms was able to carry three plastic bags without any problems. Pikachu, due to his small size, was only able to carry one. So the rest was left for Ash.

The journey back to the Inn was not too far away from ordinary. The roads were fine, but Ash just didn't feel right with some of the stares he was getting. But he could probably understand why they were looking at him like that. Other than having an oddly colored Pokemon traveling with him, his bandages make him look like one of the war veterans who just got out of the hospitals. It wasn't like he was still wounded or anything, it's just that some parts of his bones were still undergoing a process of healing from the battle with Mewtwo.

However… just when they arrived at the inn, Ash suddenly heard a familiar kind of rumble sound coming from the Pokemon center next door. He knew that sound very well and even a rookie trainer can tell what it was. It was a battle!

"Hmm… why don't we take a little side trip guys?" Ash said to his traveling Pokemons. Rosa simply scoffed while Pikachu yipped in agreement.

When they entered, Ash immediately entered the training area at the back ignoring the six Nurse Joys that were stationed at the reception desk. When he got there, he was surprised to see more than a hundred trainers gathered at the facility. "Whoa!" sadly, there were only five battlefields to fight on and from the looks of it, waiting in line could take a little while. "I didn't know this place is so popular"

"Well at least they're playing within the rules" came Nurse Joy who appeared out from one of the battlegrounds.

"Oh hey Nurse Joy, are you hosting this battle?" Ash asked. But the girl simply shook her head in reply, "I'm afraid not" she began, "I'm just here to check up on the Pokemons. With everyone training for the next round, the Pokemon center is really packing a lot of pressure, so that's why I'm just making sure that the trainers don't push their Pokemons too far"

"So… who's running the matches?" Ash turned to face the pink haired nurse, "This looks too big to be a practice match"

"Good observation" she chuckled, "Actually, that man over there is holding this match" she pointed to a man off the distance. "He's one of the eighteen aces in the trainer's league, so if you want to have a match, he's the one you'll need to talk too. By the way, do I know you from somewhere? You look oddly familiar"

"I am?" the boy questioned.

But then Nurse Joy immediately clapped her hands together, "Oh I remember now. You're that new helper whose been staying at the Half Way Home Inn, am I right?" Ash nodded dumbly in reply, "I knew it. I heard Soledad got herself some new help, so I'm guessing that must be you, right?" again, Ash nodded dumbly in reply.

"Uh… yeah… I am"

"That's great!" she squealed, "I know that you're a busy man, but could you do something for me?" she quickly pulled out a small basket which was full of spices and ingredients for Soledad's cooking. "I was supposed to bring this to Soledad earlier this morning, but since I'm stuck here taking care of all these Pokemons. So can you be a dear and give this to her?"

"Sure, no problem Nurse Joy"

"That's terrific (boom!) Oh my… it looks like I'm needed again" and after she'd given the package to the boy, Nurse Joy quickly went off towards the battlefield to help the wounded Pokemon out of the area.

But just when she went off, another voice perked up, "Well well well… I knew I would see you sooner or later" when Ash turned around, he was greeted by the face of the proprietor of the training regime. "Nice to see you again Ash"

"Harrison!?" the boy replied completely surprised to see one of his old friend and rival in front of him, "What are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing" he replied with a smirk, "I saw your second round match yesterday and I got to say that you've really improved since we last met at the Johto Silver conference"

"You bet……" Ash smirked back flexing his muscles a little bit, "Hey… wait a minute. If you were there at the Arena District… does that mean you're…" his question was soon answered when Harrison held up his letter of invitation to the Valmarian league. "You got that right" he replied casually, "I just had my match this morning and now I'm hosting this battle"

"Wow… I can't believe it. You're actually an ace in the Valmarian league"

The boy simply smiled back in reply, "Yeah… I earned it when I defeated a trainer back in the Arena District. He was my first round battler"

"Wow… congratulations!"

"Hey, why don't you stay for awhile?" Harrison recommended, "We could have a battle if you want. I can put you ahead of the line too"

But the boy had to forcefully decline, "Sorry Harrison. I'd love to battle but I've got my hands full today. I'm helping Soledad clean up the store this afternoon. And I've also got to bring these back to the restaurant"

"So I guess the rumors about you being there must be true" the boy replied, "I've heard that someone who looked like you was working in the Half Way Home Inn. And your pink Lucario proves everything. (sigh) Well… I guess some other time then?" he then extended his hand to the boy in which he gladly returned the shake.

"Some other time…" the boy replied as he dashed off towards the inn.

**(Half Way Home Inn) (11:00 AM)**

Once Ash returned to the inn, he immediately let out a small sigh of relief. It was good to be home but even better to know if there was food waiting for you. But to his amazement, it seemed like no one was home right now. "Hello, I'm back!" he shouted to see if there would be any reply. He waited for a few seconds but it looked like only his Pokemons were present and accounted for. "Hello? Anyone home? (pause) Soledad, I'm back from the Pokemart…" but as usual, there was no reply. "Hmm… I wonder where she went"

"_Perhaps, she had another task waiting for her"_ Rosa thought which Ash heard clearly, _"She looked pretty busy when we last saw her"_

Quickly agreeing to the Guardian's thoughts, Ash decided to make use for the rest of the day. After leaving all of the deliveries and package in the kitchen and cleaning up a bit, Ash hasted his way towards the dojo to continue on with his training. From there, he called upon all of his Pokemons and pitched them together for one big training session.

"Alright everybody!" the boy cheered, "We're going to have an all out training today so that means all of you are gonna have to participate. We don't know what's gonna happen in the next two rounds so I want all of you guys to be in tip top shape! We gotta be prepared for the unexpected!" the boy's Pokemons quickly let out a small cheer altogether with high spirits. As everyone began sorting a duel with each other and practicing their moves on objects that could be found in the area, Ash also got to work by running laps around the field with Pikachu.

Rosa on the other hand simply decided to watch on the sidelines. She did not require all this training anymore since he had more experience than all of them put together. However… as she looked back at the Pokemons on the field, she could tell that every one of them were giving it their all. Heck even the mighty Entei was practicing its speed on one of the fields in hopes of one day Ash might need of its service. The more the ancient Lucario looked at them the more she believed that this rag tagged group of Pokemons would serve better as her Chosens, but for some reason they continued to dwell on this existence that she termed as 'Gladiators'.

"Alright Pikachu, let's go for a few more rounds! (Pika!)" Ash shouted to Pikapals as they sprint down the border lines. "Good Pikachu, now let's try giving out a few thunderbolts while on the move! Gligar, can you give us a hand here?" the pink flying-winking Pokemon quickly approached its master licking the top of its mouth in response. "Alright Gligar, I want you to fly as fast as you can to dodge Pikachu's thunder attack. This way, we'll be able to put speed with power (Gli… gligar!)" the little bat like Pokemon nodded and quickly got into position right above them. "Ok Pikachu. Remember: conserve your energy but still try to make it powerful. We don't want to get you tired too early! (Pikachu!)"

And with that, the training continued. Staravia soon began using its brave bird technique to good use and Turtwig fired off its energy ball, making a small dust cloud along the way.

In just two hours, Ash and his Pokecompanions turned the dojo into a boot camp training ground worthy of a military company. The immense battle sounds and intense sweating made it look like they were actually preparing for war rather than a simply battle.

But it would still be awhile, before the boy puts those skills into good use on the battlefield.

**(Valmarian city local gym)**

Gary and his Pokemons were practicing in a local gym somewhere in the Downtown District along with Jaques, his self proclaimed bodyguard. The other patrons of the gym had already left for lunch break, but the boy was beyond determined to get himself onto a new level as quickly as possible. He was pushing his Pokemons beyond their limit letting out their truest potentials and becoming nearly that of an immortal legion. But they did not do it alone. What his Pokemons did, Gary did along with them. If they carried weights, then he would carry weights. If they should drag a hundred pounds worth of bricks then he would too. It was his way of training both himself and his Pokemons.

"Let's take a break…" Jaques said suddenly which caught the boss's attention. "We've been training since this morning"

But Gary declined, "Nah… you go on ahead. I'll go on a few more rounds"

"You've been carrying those bricks since last night Gary!" the blonde champ stated in a higher tone, "If you keep pushing yourself, you won't be able to move at all"

"What are you talking about (heh)" the boy replied sarcastically, but any man could see that he was already over his limit. Gary's arms and legs looked so weak that it looked like he didn't have any meals in between. Muscles were definitely growing on his torso and shoulders, and his sweat glands were put on overdrive making him look like one wet dog in a summer cottage. "I can do this… ehh… all… day…" but just when he pushed more force onto his hands, the muscles on his body began to fight against itself causing a major disorientated cramp. "ARGGHH!!" he fell onto the floor growling in pain.

Once Jaques saw this he quickly rushed to his boss's side to aid him, "Gary! Gary stay strong! Give me your hand!" with one swift move, the blonde haired trainer cracked the boy's fingers making the pain on his elbow go numb. Once he was sure that the technique worked, he turned back to Gary only to notice that the boy was biting off the pain. He was gritting his teeth into sawdust and force-shutting his eyes to squeeze off the pressure. After a few seconds, the boy finally calmed down and fell to small state of conscious.

"I told you not to take it too hard…" Jaques lectured him as he pulled Gary onto his feet, "Come on… I'm taking you back to the hotel…" but then he noticed that his Pokemons were still out, "Alright all of you… you all earned a break"

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn)**

It was already way pass noon when Soledad finally returned to the inn. Apparently her grandfather wanted her to help her with some chores after she brought the lures to him so it took her longer to get home. "Man… what a day…" she sighed while she entered through the door. "That's the last time I'm doing anything for grandpa. If he wants his lure, he's gonna have to get'em himself" she mentally wrote that down on her head on the 'what to do' list.

But just as she was heading off to the master's housing, which was located at the center of the compound, she noticed that there were some noises coming from the dojo. Her first and most obvious guess was Ash training with his Pokemons again and she was probably right too. Even though she didn't want to disturb his training, some sort of unknown force seemed to pull her towards the gym entryway. It felt like her body was in no control over her actions.

When she opened the door, a strong gust of wind blew right on her face making her close her mouth. "Ahh! What the?!" she shrieked. When the gust storm ended, she noticed that it was only Ash's Staravia using its wings to create a sandstorm.

"Oh, hey there Soledad" Ash noted her presence, "What took you so long? I thought you'd be here in a few hours"

The girl chuckled back apologetically in reply, "Oh sorry about that. Grandpa wanted me to deliver some things for him. I'll go prepare lunch. You want anything?"

"Oh, want me to help?"

But she just waved off his offer, "No that's ok. You stay here and train. You'll need all the practice you can get" but just before she move off to the kitchen, she couldn't help but dart her eyes at Ash's figure. The boy definitely had muscles hiding under that sweaty shirt of his and one could only imagine how 'hot' it would be for him to go on shirtless. The mere thought of it made the girl blush madly like a ripe tomato. The muscles, the slim figure, the abs…… the lumps on his chess… perhaps even…

"AHH!!" the girl immediately began shaking her head like a grass field in the middle of a tornado. "Stop thinking about him like that!" she wiggled and chuckled continuously until she could take the thought of it no longer.

"Soledad?" Ash's voice plucked her thoughts away making her turn towards the boy she was just thinking about, "Are you ok? You look kinda red…" he extended his hand to reach her forehead to get her temperature.

But this only made Soledad to heat up even more. She could feel his touch and feel the beat of his pulse. His deep black eyes gazed onto hers paralyzing her bones making her unable to think nor move and right on that very moment, she could've swore she must've held her breath for at least five minutes. Her blood levels increased almost at a dangerous level, but she couldn't stop it. This sensation, this feeling… it was all just too good to end in just one moment.

On that very moment in her whole life, Soledad never felt more excited and relaxed at the same time. She even began to believe she somehow died and went to heaven. Her feet felt like they were walking on clouds and her legs felt like they were made of gelatin.

With the boy's face inching closer to her, she probably did what she would regret for her whole life.

She turned around and ran……… ran as fast as her legs would allow.

"Uhh… what was that about?"

In about four second records, Soledad entered into the master's housing and locked the door behind her faster than Pikachu could use thunderbolt. She was huffing and puffing like her internal organs were ready to burst into million pieces. As her face slowly regained its natural colors, she decided to check herself on the makeup mirror in her room. There was no denying it now that she saw her own reflection. Her face was a little red from the sudden blood rush, her body was slowly heating up even though the weather was a bit chilly and her constant gibbering was more than enough proof for her to admit. She was definitely in love… who couldn't see it? It was sticking right out of her like a sore thumb and only a complete idiot could miss it. But hen I guess she would be calling herself an idiot now, wouldn't she?

**(Pokemon HQ meeting room)**

Scott, the owner of the Battle Frontier and his Frontier Brain members (except for Anabel) were sitting around a somewhat large round table in the highest reaches of the Pokemon headquarters along with some of the highest members of the city. On the opposite side of the table were Adam and Sabrina Vile, the commentators of the Valmarian league and right dabbed in the center was none other than Winston Valmarian, the governor of the city.

"Well Scot…" the governor began, "How are things in the match up operations?"

The chubby man nodded before pulling out a small notepad from his pocket, "The preliminary rounds are going smoothly, but it will take some time before we can arrange for the next one" he explained professionally, "However… we have encountered a slight problem"

"A problem?" Winston cocked up a curious brow.

It was then, Noland, the Factory head stood up from his seat to explain the details, "Yes…… well… you see: The number of trainers that joined the Valmarian league this year seemed to have quadrupled from the last competition. We were only expecting about a few hundred thousand trainers to join in, but from my charts here, it looks like there are about two or three millions trainers who are still in the match"

"I've noticed that too" Adam gestured, "The number of draw battles also seemed to add to the stress. If this keeps up, we might need to hold another two or three extra preliminary rounds, and I doubt anyone would want that"

"And the crowd are expecting 38 trainers to be presented by next week" Sabrina added.

"But what can we do?" Brandon entered the conversation, "Should we delay the Valmarian league even longer just so that we can find 38 trainers for the match?"

"We don't exactly have the time" the governor stated, "And I doubt the mass funding would be enough sustain a week longer either" the group quickly got into a brainstorming mode which wasn't exactly working for either of them. "Well… I'm open to suggestions…"

"How about…" Greta opened her mouth but quickly closed it back as the idea left a tiny flaw in her plans, "Oh… no never mind… I don't think it would work"

"What is it?" Scott motioned but the Arena Tycoon mistress simply waved it off, "Oh it was nothing, it's probably a terrible idea"

"Well we are kind of desperate" Adam gestured again folding his arms.

Clearly seeing that the table was open for all suggestions, Greta decided to come out clean, "Well… I know this might sound silly, but what if we held a tag team battle as for the third and fourth round?"

"A tag team battle?" Noland mimicked in confusion.

"Yeah… I was thinking if we had two trainers fight at the same time, we could speed up the battle. If we do that, we might just be able to add a few more days to the match ups"

The explanation of her plan was brief, simply, but very effective at some way. With two trainers fighting in one field, the matches could end up faster thus making double time for the match ups and thus giving more time for Scott to arrange more preliminary rounds. It was a rough based plan but was one that would make a significant impact.

"Hmm……… that could work" Scott agreed to it, "If this can speed up the matches by a few days, we might just have enough time to hold another preliminary rounds"

But then the governor had something else in mind, "Yes, but just to be on the safe side, perhaps we should put both the coordinators and trainers in it"

"In it?" Brandon questioned, "You mean… mixing them up together?"

"Yes, why not?" Winston chuckled, "Who knows, it might just make things a little more interesting around here"

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn)**

After that little fiasco back at the dojo, Soledad decided to come out of her hiding spot like a scared pup sneaking pass through its predator. When she suddenly left like that, Ash returned to his training routine like nothing had happened. He simply assumed that she was in a hurry to get to the rest room or something like that and went back to his compadres.

With the boy busying himself with his strict training, the girl slowly made her way towards the kitchen like a stealthy ninja using the shadow as cover. She avoided unnecessary sounds and made sure that no one, not even the Pokemons would be able to get a glimpse of her through the windows. By the time she got to the kitchen, it would've already been half an hour.

"Wait a second…" she popped up a conversation to herself, "I'm in my grandpa's house, I shouldn't be sneaking…" she was right thought. This was her turf in the neighborhood, her sanctuary from all those riffraff, but now it looked like she was in a predator's den, and she didn't like it… too much.

"Grrr… come on Soledad, focus!" she pounded her head again on the wall to get her mind at attention, "We got to get your mind back in the game! Maybe a little cooking should ease me up" but just as she opened up the refrigerator, she noticed that everything in the kitchen had been neatly organized. The spices were in their proper shelves, the plates washed up and put in their sockets, the coals and gas tanks stored at the basement, and the fruits and meat stored in the cooler to keep them fresh.

Somebody, preferably Ash, must've spent a great deal of time to do this. Even though it was just a small matter of organizing, she had to admit that she was impressed. The boy was a modest worker and never says 'no' no matter how tough the situation maybe. He didn't want this burden of a low paid work to be on his shoulder, it just comes to him like a bee to a honey nest. It was like the boy was a magnet for responsibility and his shoulders probably carried heavier burdens that this. And that alone, makes him a one of a kind.

"_I shouldn't have run away like that"_ she thought out followed by a very disappointing sigh, _"Now he's probably thinking that I'm strange… (sigh) Grr…… what am supposed to do now!!!!?"_ she mentally screamed at the top of her head for about ten seconds but quickly stopped when an idea popped in, "(pop) I know…" she gently tapped her hands together as a gesture to that idea that she got, "I'll make him lunch. Then I'll just say that I needed to use the bathroom! Yeah that's it! We'll go with that" and soon the girl quickly got into cooking mode to make a lunch to remember.

In just about a few seconds, she prepared all the necessary ingredients and readied her cooking utensils as if she was preparing for war. "Alright…… it's cooking time!" but then her intense mood died down when she opened up her recipe book. "Uh… ok…… but what am I going to cook? I already made this (flip) no… (flip) no, I made that yesterday… (flip) Wait a minute…… what does Ash like anyway?" for a moment there, she began to think back of the time she had spent with the boy. Even though they've been living together for weeks now she barely knows anything about him but he seemed to know a great deal about her. However, that was no surprised, seeing that her grandfather was a loud mouth and all. But after thinking about it how, she just realize how little she knows about him.

I mean, she knows that he a worldwide champion and all that, but that was probably just the tip of the iceberg. What was his favorite color? What did he like to do in his free time other than training? Those minor details alone could probably prove very useful in her relationship.

But just when she was running through her train of thoughts, another voice suddenly perked in catching her off guard. "Hey there pumpkin!"

"AHH!" Soledad yelped, "Grandpa!? What are you doing here!?"

"Oh nothing…" the man said innocently, "I just remembered that I forgot my extra fishing lines in here" he went to one of the cupboards and quickly pulled out two rolls of fishing line. "Ah, here they are. Well, see you later Soledad, I'll probably be home later this evening" with the old man gone, the girl quickly let out a small sigh of relief to herself.

After she knew that Lewis was out of the restaurant once again, Soledad pumped her fist in the air and readied herself for battle. "Alright then!" she began, "I'll just have to make everything on this recipe book! Let's do it!"

**(H.W.H. Inn Dojo) (02:48 PM)**

"Alright everyone, break time!" Ash called out to his Pokemons to which they quickly complied. After that vigorous training, a little time out is something they could actually get used to. "Great job everyone, you really trained hard out there" he petted several of them as they came in to get their snacks. When Ash went to get the groceries for Soledad, he took the liberty of buying some Pokechow for his little friends down here at the dojo.

He immediately got a bowl for the Pokemons without hands and filled them all with a Grade A (plus) Pokemon food. They were expensive, but he had the money and he always believed that his Pokemons deserved only the best the world had to offer.

"Alright everyone, dig in. There's plenty for everyone" with everyone happily chowing on their own food, Ash decided that it was time he had his own break as well. After four hours of nonstop running around the gym, his legs could use the rest.

With his gludious-maximus sitting comfortably on the chair, Ash puffed in some nice cool air and drank a whole bottle of lemon juice down his throat to quench his thirst. "Ahhh… that feels so much better. If we keep this up, we'll definitely win in the second round for sure! Right Pikachu? (Pkapika!)" the little mouse gave out a small thumbs up to his master while at the same time eating on his bowl.

But then unexpectedly, Rosa came right up Ash's side and brought him a white dry towel to wipe off the sweat. "Here Ash" she gestured, "It's not healthy to sit around sweating in this cold weather" the boy nodded and gladly accepted the small dry sheet from her paw.

But just when they were getting used to the atmosphere around them, Ash's Pokedex-phone began to ring again making him wonder who could be calling him at this time. "Hmm… who could be calling at this time?" see, I told you so.

"Hey there Ash!" at first, the boy expected it to be either professor Oak or his mom since they were the only two people on earth who knows his Pokedex number, but to his surprise, it was actually Tracey who was on the other line. "Tracey?"

"I finally got the numbers right!" the sketcher cheered to himself, "I've been trying to contact you since this morning but the connection in the Old Town District is pretty low, so I tried calling your Pokedex instead. The professor wanted me to check up on you. How are you doing in the Half Way Home Inn? Is everything fine there?"

The boy nodded back in reply, "Yeah, I was just training with my Pokemons a few minutes ago. Hey, why don't you and the others come over and practice? I'm sure they'd love to have a few practice rounds"

"Actually…" Tracey trailed off, "Professor Ivy is treating us out to a restaurant in a few minutes and we were wondering if you'd like to join us. It's a five star restaurant near the bridge connecting to the Pokemon Headquarters. It's called the Rose Delu'e"

"Well…" if Tracey had asked him that a couple of days earlier, Ash would've instantly taken that offer in a heartbeat. But by the sound of the sizzling stove coming from the kitchen, he could already tell that Soledad was on the verge of cooking something extra delicious today and it would be impolite to let someone cook and not eat what was offered to him. "I'd love to go Tracey, but I'm just about to eat myself. Maybe next time. I'll catch ya later"

"Ok, but if you need anything just call this number" and with that, their conversation ended with a blank screen.

The boy chuckled out loudly as he was happy to know that his friends still cared for him even though they couldn't meet each other. To know that he had such good and loyal companions somewhere in the city, he felt safe and secure.

However… that small glimpse of pleasure soon departed when he suddenly felt a small object tingling in his pocket. "Hmm? What's this?" the moment he poured his eyes onto the small thing, the boy's heart sank deeper than a black hole could ever take him. In his pocket, was an amulet the size of a small necklace that was in the shape of a small Togepi (Kanto) and inside the amulet was a crystal gem that was similar to the Cascade badge (Johto). And attached to the amulet was a small circlet (Hoenn) which made it dangle freely like an antique.

These three superb items gathered from all across the world were synthesized together to make one of the most beautiful gifts in the entire realm. With one look of it any man, woman or child could tell that he had put his whole heart to make this object a reality. Who would've thought that such cheap objects could actually make something sooo… beautiful?

But just as Ash continued to gaze on the amulet, a stream of tears unconsciously made its way through his eyes making a flow of waterfalls coming down his cheeks. Pikachu noticed this and soon became worried of his master's condition, "Pikapi…" the little guy said worryingly. But then those words soon brought Ash out of his road of thoughts. "Huh? Oh hey there Pikachu" the boy greeted as wiped away those tears from his eyes. "It's ok buddy. I'm sure everything will turn out fine in the end" he lied. He didn't even know if things will turn out alright or if he will ever regain his friendship with Misty again.

As the memories of that terrible event continued to replay itself over his mind, he still couldn't understand on how such a small argument could've turned into such a nasty fight. Even if he thought of it now, he still wouldn't be able to understand it. All he could remember that Misty wanted him to quit the Valmarian league and then he refused…… and after that… slap! All hell broke loose.

Rosa also noticed the sudden change in Ash's tone of voice. It was now more forced and all of his smiles seemed to have a hint of sadness lingering at the edges. The boy tried to remove the sadness with a small joyful laugh, but even that failed to fool her senses. The moment Ash's eyes gazed onto hers, a wave of memory soon resurfaced deep within her conscious.

**(Flashback two million years ago)**

Hsa, the king of Pokemons was taking a break in the palace courtyard where the gardeners tend to the area's beauty. The Scythers, with their long, sharp claws, trimmed the bushes and tree branches, making them perfect beyond belief. The Ludicolos, with their unique abilities to control water, tended to the flowers and soil enrichment. The king had just finished with his duties today and now had the entire afternoon all on his own.

But no matter where he goes, he will always know that he had someone watching over him.

Rosa, one of Hsa's most trusted friend and ally, stood right next to his majesty, keeping a keen eye over the field, making sure that no harm comes to the boy. But right, the girl seemed more tact to keep an eye on the king himself. After experiencing such an emotional downpour she was worried that the boy might try something so stupid that she might regret it.

As the hours passed by in silence, the two of them continued to sit there, gazing onto the endless sky. But the longer they stayed there, the more disturbing it became for Rosa. The king had never been this quiet before and never had he stayed in one place for such a long time. Usually during his free time, the boy would be out playing with Chu in the Pokemon gardens tending to the younglings, but now all he wanted to do was to just sit here quietly and wait till time finally roles by.

Unable to take the silence much longer than it already has, the young Guardian decided to start up a small conversation in hopes of getting the boy back to his old self. Don't get her wrong though, she liked the fact that Hsa was now more calm and collected like a king should be, but this wasn't exactly the way she wanted it to happen.

"It's beautiful, isn't it…" she gestured to the courtyard. "The flowers are in full bloom and the weather couldn't be more perfect" she looked back at him, hoping to see some sort of reaction, but sadly, the boy was still in shambles. His eyes were swollen, meaning that he must've been crying in his own private times. His body also looked very weak since he didn't have much to eat this morning.

Seeing that the boy wasn't even responding to her words, Rosa decided to try something else. Even though it was completely out of her character, she grab three small rocks from the ground and began to juggle them around like some sort of clown. She knew that this would at least earn her a chuckle or a strange reaction from the king and if it doesn't then she'd probably run out of options. After juggling for a few seconds, she suddenly tripped on a loose brick thus making her fall on the ground. But in the process, the rocks that she juggled were thrown right at the king.

If she were a commoner like the ones living in towns, Sha-hear would've imprisoned her in a heartbeat, but lucky for her, the captain was off to some other duty in the empire. But she did get what she wished though.

As she looked up, she noticed that the boy was coming at her. At first she thought that the boy would punish her for that strange act. It was a logical reason since she did harm him in a small way. In fact, harming the royal family could actually mean banishment to prison for life.

But then her eyes quickly widened when she felt his hand on her face. She looked back at the king, taking every detail of his face into her mind. But then her eyes widened even more when he suddenly pluck a flower from the garden and placed it on her ear.

"Thank you… Rosa…" Hsa said finally after long hours of silence. He then flash out a small yet sad smile at her before standing up and walking back towards the palace.

**(End of flashback)**

"I think I'll go and see if Soledad needs my help" Ash stated out before finally moving out through the door. He didn't want his Pokemons to see him in such a shameful condition, but they knew that he was hurt inside.

Once the boy was out of the dojo, Pikachu's lowered his ears sadly as he felt powerless to help his master against this plight. If there was someway he could make Ash feel better about that event he would've done it long ago. But he was no expert in the relationships of humans and he was no expert in human genders either.

But then suddenly, the little mouse noticed that Rosa didn't go with him. Usually, the girl would stick to the boy like a magnet, but it looks like she knows that it was best for Ash to be alone for a moment. However… just when the other Pokemons were about to resume their training, the Guardian did the unthinkable. With one swift move, she grab the amulet on the table and starred at it like it was some sort of unholy relic. For a moment, Pikachu thought that she just wanted to look at it, but then his eyes suddenly widened in horror in what happened next.

With a single push of power onto her paw, the pink Lucario burned the amulet and gradually allowed it to melt like butter. "Pikapika pikachu!? Pikapi pika!" (Hey! What are you doing? Ash needs that!) the little Pikachu shouted in shock.

But then to his surprise, Rosa only turned to him with an expressionless face, "If are willing to judge me, then so be it" she began, "But know this…… I will not allow him to suffer the same as 'he' did. I could care less of what you think" her voice was so strict and harsh that it would probably make even Giovanni's skin crawl.

Once the gold amulet was deformed into a melted state, Rosa simply tossed it to the garbage bin where it will never be seen ever again.

It would be weeks… before Ash's life returns to normal…

**(Arena District)**

Frank, the hip hop trainer from Brendan's secret group and his sister Griselda were taking a short stroll around the Arena District fast food joints to meet up with Rika. Apparently the genius girl was able to get an informant into Gary's gang thus allowing her to find out all their latest movement and strength numbers. Of all the groups and gangs that are scattered throughout the city, Gary's gang seemed to be the only one still standing today. The Loners are also still organized but only because they were small in numbers and were easy to keep track with every members.

When the police heard about the situation happening with the Bail Outs, they were completely ecstatic. Kevin had completely abandoned his men to fend for themselves on the streets. And with Binor out of the picture, the whole gang dissolved into rivaling factions in hopes to take over what the Elite Fives left them. They were like rats trying to pick the crumbs left by cat.

As the two siblings waited patiently under one of the large outdoor umbrellas, they decided to order a little snack to pass up the time. After a few minutes of waiting, their informant came in.

"Hey there you two" Rika innocently sat on one of the chairs opposite to the two trainers and smiled, "Still having a good time with the matches?"

"Barely…" Griselda spoke ahead of her brother, "Our battle partners were boring and most of the professional trainers have had their fights already. (pause) However… I doubt any of those matches were mere coincidence"

"Hmmm… you're right…" the glassed girl replied, "As Brendan expected, the Randomizer has been rigged, but the authorities aren't gonna release it to the public"

"A smart move…" the hip hop girl nodded, "Telling the people that the machinery has been compromised will only stir out trouble. And with the chaos of the gang war combined with it…… it's a recipe for disaster. (sigh) So what's our next move?"

Rika quickly pulled out her portable laptop and began doing some sort of calculation on the screen, "From what my informant told me: It's safe to say that none of Gary's crew are part of Red's group. In fact, they tend to stay away from each other. However…"

"However?"

"There is one member of Havic's lowly gang who's been in constant contact with Red" Rika explained, "Since this is the only lead we have on him, I'll need you to do this alone Griselda. (fwup) Here's his address. It's a cheap hotel right in the middle of the 2nd Residential area, you can't miss it"

"Understood…"

"Your task is two folds: First, confirm that the suspect is contact with Red and if he is, then find out what he's up too. Got that"

"Got it" Griselda nodded, "I'll leave immediately" and with big gulp, she finished up her snack and walked off towards the district gate. But before she left, she quickly plop another one of her favorite chewing gum onto her mouth. It was probably a habit for her to have something to keep her mouth busy.

A few seconds later, Frank opened up his mouth but was quickly silenced when Rika spoke ahead of him, "Well, I'm off back to headquarter. I'll see you around Frank, and thanks for the milkshake" the guy then noticed that the girl had ordered two large milkshake when she came in, and when both the girls were gone he knew that the last guy on the table had to pay for the order.

"Ahh man…"

**(Back at the Half Way Home Inn central garden pavilion)**

Ash was sitting under the small pavilion at the center of the garden starring blindly at the sky above. He was still feeling a little down on the dumps ever since he began to think about that horrible event a few weeks back. He thought that he had locked away that memory a long time ago deep within the bowls of his brain. But now he realized that he could not hide from the past forever. He can hide from it, bury it somewhere in that brain of his, but he will never get rid of it.

It was like some sort of decease that will continue to plague him for all eternity.

As he sat there glaring at the city's weather dome that was built around the great walls, Ash couldn't help but wonder. Was what Misty said really true? Was he still that overconfident boy that she fished from the rivers of Pallet town? Was he still inexperienced and unfamiliar with battles?

NO!!!!

How could he even think about that?

He was the champion of every region for crying out loud and if he was good enough to beat the ex-champ of the Valmarian league, Cynthia, then he should be good enough here!

The boy tried to persuade himself with his own thoughts but no matter how hard he tried, it just didn't seem to work. It was times like this that he wished that he was still trapped under Chu's spell. At least then he would forget about everything about this mess. Or… if he had a choice, he would use a time machine to go back in time and fix things before this problem even happened. But he's probably just wishing too much now wouldn't he.

As the boy looked back up into the sky… he could only wonder one question in his mind…

What is Misty doing now?


	62. And That is How The Cookie Crumbles

**Chapter 62: And That is How The Cookie Crumbles!**

**(Half Way Home Inn) (Morning) (06:03 AM)**

It was another good day here at the Half Way Home Inn. With the sun shining brightly across the horizon, and not a cloud in the air, everyone knew that today was going to be a hot day. 'Why' you ask? Well because today, was the Half Way Home inn's opening day!

Today, Ash woke up earlier than he had expected of himself. For some reason, he found out that his body seemed to have gained some extra stamina from the food that Soledad had been feeding him. As the boy took a stroll around the compound, he noticed that his Pokemons were still sleeping inside the dojo. They were probably tired from all that training they did yesterday, so after seeing them being so exhausted, Ash took a mental note to reward his hard working pals with some extra treat today.

As he walked passed the master's housing, he could hear Lewis snoring like a Snorlax from inside the main room. He really pitied Soledad for sharing the room next to the old man, but thanks to the earmuffs that she found in the warehouse, she was able to sleep peacefully without any worries about Lewis's snores.

After Ash walked through the hallways connecting to each of the building, he decided to take the rest of morning at the garden where he could watch the sun rise. The calm and cool morning in the big city was probably the best time for any person to cool off his head. But just when he got there, he noticed that Rosa was there too.

This was strange for him since he had gotten used to seeing her first thing in the morning. Usually, she would be by his side, and only wake up when he is. She was very dedicated to her duties and was not one to disobey any request given from him. Though she tends not to speak with other humans, she was always a welcome sight for Ash.

At first, Ash thought for her to be alone in the garden, but after closer analysis, he noticed that there was an Articuno and a Flygon near her. A wild guess would say that they were the Chosens that Rosa had been accompanied with back in fort Gregro. When Ash first encountered these elite soldiers of hers, it was probably three months ago back in the tower of the evil wizard. His first impression about them was that they were strong and virtually unchallengeable by the regular trainers, and even till now he still believes that.

A few moments later, the Guardian soon noticed the boy's presence. "Your majesty?" she said questioningly.

"Oh hey there Rosa" Ash greeted, "Sorry, I didn't mean to sneak up on you like that"

But the female Pokemons simply smiled it off, "It's alright. I was just giving my Chosens some time outside of their Pokeballs" the two flying Pokemons quickly bowed back at his majesty's presence like the king he was. "I left most of them back at Fort Gregro, but these two are more than capable to handle any situation"

"That means you must've spent a lot of time together" Ash soon began grooming the exposed back of the legendary ice bird which made it croo affectionately at its king. "Hey there fella, how are ya? You look pretty strong" Articuno and Flygon were more than happy to have a king pet them, heck it might even be considered an honor to even be touched by the king.

"You seem to have a way with us Pokemons, your grace" the Guardian noted, "Where did you learn how to calm a Pokemon?"

Ash quickly got into thinking mode and remembered the time when he was first a little boy, "Well…" he began, "Back when I was a kid, I used to hang around professor Oak's place a lot. He taught me a lot of things about Pokemons and how each of them reacted to things. I never really paid much attention to his lectures because I just like to play with the Pokemons at the back of his house. Even though I can't understand what they're saying, I can feel what they need and what they want"

"Just like Hsa…" Rosa whispered quietly to herself.

"Ahehe… sometimes my mom tends to get worried when I hang around Pokemons" the boy chuckled at his own memories, "She's always afraid that they'll hurt me. But I know them well…"

An awkward silence soon echoed in the garden, leaving only the wind to blow through the air. "Your majesty……… Ash…" Rosa forcefully spoke out his name, "Do you mind if I ask you a question?" the boy turned back confusingly at her words. "Sure Rosa, what is it?"

"Would you answer honestly?" the boy nodded back in reply, "If you were given the choice……… would you…… I mean… would you rather stay with us Pokemons, or the humans?" another awkward pause irrupted creating a small tension in the air. Ash's mind had the answer but he did not know which of those two to pick. "What do you mean Rosa?"

"I mean exactly what I said" she replied a little more seriously, "Which would you prefer to live with? All the Pokemons in the world…… or the humans?" Articuno and Flygon quickly turn their eyes to Ash as he starred back at the ancient Guardian of old. It was a simple question with two answers, but somehow, Ash realized that his answer might actually prove to be more costly than he would believe.

'The biggest problems are caused by the smallest choices'

-Sir Jay Thomas, my math teacher-

"I don't really know…" the boy answered truthfully, "If I had a choice, I probably wouldn't be able to decide" the question almost felt like if he had to choose between Pikachu and his mother, Delia. He loved them both, and he couldn't possibly pick between them.

But before Rosa could press the question any further, her ears suddenly picked up the yawns of the old man Lewis coming from the restaurant. With one quick move, she returned her Chosens back into their respective Pokeballs and hid them in her ear so that they wouldn't be able to find. Not only were they concealed, but they were also easy to pick out if she should encounter a dangerous threat. A few moments later, Lewis appeared.

"Oh, good morning Ash" the old man greeted cracking his back, "You're up pretty early today"

"Good morning Lewis" the boy greeted back, "I was just taking a walk in the garden, that's all"

"Well don't stay out too much" he warned, "You wouldn't want to catch a cold in this cold morning"

After a few minutes passed by, Soledad soon woke up from her slumber as well and made breakfast for everyone. However, when the three humans dined together, the girl insisted that she would eat later. Ash couldn't tell why because her face was so red that he thought that she might've been suffering a fever of some sort. Breakfast went on without many interruptions and soon, Lewis knew right away that he had to open shop.

"Hey Ash, you mind turning the closed sign on?" Lewis requested to which the boy gladly complied. But just when he turned the 'closed' sign into 'open' he noticed that there was already someone outside the door, "Huh?" several shadowy figures were standing on the other side of the door and from their sizes, he could tell that they were a mixture of teens and kids.

Not wanting to ignore such loyal customers, Ash decided to greet them as the first guests of the day, but when he slid the door open, he was greeted with an even bigger surprise. "Hey there Ash!" on the other side of the room was his gang.

"Hey!" Ash greeted back happily "What are you guys doing here so early in the morning?" the others chuckled to his surprise. "Come on in!"

"Sorry to bother you this early" May apologized, "Brock told us that you were working here so we decided to stop by"

But then the gang noticed that he was in his apron attire, "Oh my, that looks so cute on you Ash" Duplica squealed as she continued to hold the Teddiursa bear that the boy bought for her back in Mauvile city. "I never imagined I'd get to see the great Ash Ketchum actually wearing an apron before" she then began to check the boy out only to notice that he wasn't wearing his traditional hat anymore. "Oh hey, where's your hat?"

The boy chuckled back in reply, "Ahehe… well Lewis told me that I couldn't wear my hat during work, so I left it back in my room. Hey come on in, there's tables for everyone" he quickly invited his friends into the house, "Hey Lewis, do you mind if my friends hang out for awhile?"

"Oh definitely" the old man replied, "That is if they're going to order something" somehow, some members of the gang seemed to find that last sentence to be quite unnecessary.

"Hey no need to worry" Dawn stated, "We didn't have anything to eat since last night anyway" but this only perked Ash's curiosity up. How could they be starving when they're staying at a luxurious five star hotel with probably the best service in the city? "But didn't you guys eat at the hotel?" he asked.

But Richie only rubbed his stomach in response, "Yeah… the food there was good, but way to rich for my taste" Johanna nodded in agreement, "I agree…the food quality there is excellent, but it really gets onto your taste buds. I wonder how people can actually get full with all of those calories"

"True…" Cynthia added, "Even though I eat those food all the time, I still prefer food at the Pokemon center any day"

"Well, why don't you guys order up?" Ash recommended, "Soledad makes the best food I've known yet. I'll go and set up the order, so you guys just sit back and relax" and a second later, the boy dashed off towards the kitchen to tell the girl the good news.

Deciding to take the boys's offer up, the gang quickly took up their own seats and have a look at the menu. After having such a rich high quality food at the hotel, a little basic food group was probably a nice change once in awhile.

Doctor's Note: Never eat the same kind of food for every meal! Always eat something different or your body will develop a constant need for that type of food. Mix them up like fruits and veggies or meat. If you're a vegetarian then fruits and vegetables and tofu would do!

**(Pokemon Center) (Gary's room) (Downtown District)**

Gary, the boss the of the most powerful gang in the entire city was slumbering peacefully in his room with a warm blanket wrapped around him. After he fainted at the gym yesterday, Jaques personally brought him here to get some rest. He was pushing himself over and over again and when his body couldn't take any more stress his brain decided to shut itself down. After a few hours of sleep, he began to wake up.

The boy's eyes fluttered and squinted as the light pierced through the window. He knew right then that it was probably morning or some time between that and noon. After feeling the ache on his body he let out a small groan before shifting his sleeping position.

"Hey there, wakey wakey sleeping beauty" but then Gary's peaceful slumber was disturbed when an oh so familiar voice perked up from the side of his bed. As he shifted his head towards the sides he saw Havic and Steve looking at him with their annoying grins. "What do you guys want now?" the boss replied annoyed by their presence.

"Hey, is that how you show your appreciation to those who had to baby sit you all night?" Havic smug, "You should be more considerate at your gang mates. We had to keep an eye on you without a wink of sleep"

"Whatever…" Gary then shifted his head back to its original position, "Where are my Pokemons?"

"Jaques took them to Nurse Joy this morning" Havic answered, "You got to thank him. If it weren't for him, you'd probably still be sleeping in the gym last night. He's probably…" but before the guy could finish, Emma, the Dark Queen entered the room with a tray of food on her hand. "Oh hey there Emma"

"Hey, I see that sleeping beauty is awake" the girl teased before closing the door behind her, "From the way you were snoring last night, I'd say you had a good sleep" she then place the tray on the sleeping boy's lap before turning to him with a sly grin.

"What's this?" he asked which was replied with a bonk on his head, "Ow!"

"It's called breakfast, idiot" Emma implied sarcastically, "For a guy who knows how to run faster than an Arcanine, you sure are slow" she then leaned against the wall next to Havic. "Now eat up before it gets cold" unlike her other two companions, Emma wasn't afraid of Gary one bit. She can talk however she wants to him like a pal and still get away with it.

Seeing that he wasn't going anywhere until his bodily energy regenerates, Gary dug in his food quietly without even looking at what he was eating. He didn't have to worry. Back when he was still a Pokemon researcher, he had to resort to finding berries that were planted by the Pokemons and live off the land with whatever it could provide. Usually he would have to travel deep inland to get the results he wanted and had nothing but chips and crackers. A regular meal like this was hard to come by once in awhile, but whenever he reaches a settlement, he would go look for the nearest restaurant and dine till his hearts content.

"Well, I gotta jet" Havic stated after the boss ate half his meal already. "The guys will probably want me back at my post anyway. See ya later…… boss"

"Yeah me too" Steve added, "Watching him eat is making me hungry" and with that, the two boys left, leaving Emma and Gary alone. "Hey Emma, wanna join us for some brunch?"

"Didn't you already have two breakfasts?"

"Yeah? So what's your point?" the chubby nerd replied innocently.

Emma sweat dropped, "Just how many meals do you eat a day anyway?"

The guy then began counting with his fingers, "Well there's breakfast, second breakfast, brunch, then lunch, then second lunch… oh and there's tea time, snack time, appetizer…" and the list went on and on and on till Emma couldn't take it anymore. "Alright! I get it! Now go!"

"Alright, you don't have to be so grumpy about it" with the two of them gone, the girl decided to take Jaques job and stand guard while Gary sits around eating. Even though the girl only took her eyes off the boy for just a few seconds, the tray that she gave him had already been emptied. "Well, you're a fast eater" but the man simply ignored her, "Ok fine! Be that way! Like I got anything good to say to you!" she huffed away and shifted her back on the chair overlooking the window, the door and the bed.

After a short moment of silence passed by, Gary decided to open up his mouth to start a conversation. "Where's Ja…?"

"He's in the cafeteria…" the girl replied instantly cutting him off. "With the way he eats, it'll probably take him awhile to get here"

"Oh……" another short pause came through, making the moment uneasy for the boy, "So how long was I asl…"

"Twelve hours tops…" again the girl replied annoyingly.

After a few minutes passed by, the door suddenly clicked, telling the occupants that someone was coming in. The knob of the door shifted a few times then stop and then some more again before stopping. It was like it was doing some sort of code or something.

"Come in…" Emma stated before going back to her original position. To her surprise, it was Jaques who entered, "Well it's about time Jaques" she said irritatingly, "Sleeping beauty here just got up and got his breakfast. He's in your care now" but just when she was about to leave, Jaques held her back, "Hold on" he began, "I'm just here to return Gary's Pokeballs. I still have some things that needs to be taken care of"

**(A few hours later back at the Half Way Home Inn) (12:25 PM)**

A few hours after the gang arrived to have their breakfast, a horde of customers just seemed to have poured into the restaurant like a pack of bugs going into a honey licked tree. But the employees of t the Half Way Home Inn were doing their best to keep the orders in check. Soledad was almost literally strapped in the kitchen cooking and at the same time cleaning the area. Ash had called out his Pokemons to help as well, but even they had their limits. The only person who wasn't participating much was Lewis. He just sits around at the cash register and collects the money Ash brings him.

Rosa was also helping but the only reason why she couldn't go any faster was because Soledad couldn't cook fast enough to fill in the needs.

"Hey, can we have more soy sauce here?" asked one of the customers to Ash.

"Coming, please wait a moment" the boy replied while taking his next batch of orders. "Hey Ambipom, can you take this to Soledad?" he quickly ripped out a few pieces of paper from his notepad and handed it to the monkey Pokemon. Thanks to Ambipom's three hand shaped tails, it was able to multitask unlike some of the other Pokemons.

"Wow… look at Ash go" Dawn was on the other side of the restaurant overlooking Ash work his sweat off going from one table to another and delivering trays while at the same time writing orders on his notepad.

Max nodded in agreement, "Yeah… and just looking at him work already makes me tired" he whined, "I wonder how he can go on with all those wounds on him" he gestured to the many bandages wrapped around the boy's body. And to his truth, some of the gang wondered as well. If the boy keeps working like that, there was a good chance that his bones might break again.

"That got me concerned too" Tracey notified, "He hasn't changed those bandages in awhile now"

Ding!

But then Dawn's attention was soon grabbed away when Soledad plop the 'attention' bell. "Ash, order for table three is ready!" the chef shouted from the other side of the kitchen window. But seeing that the boy was still busy cleaning the other table, Dawn decided to help out. With one move, she removed her white beanie cap and red scarf and tied an apron around her neck.

"Dawn?" Johanna looked at her daughter curiously. Without even replying, the girl quickly grabbed the tray of dishes and ran back towards the restaurant with a bright sunny side up smile on her face. "Thank you for waiting!" she said cheerfully to the customers.

When Ash noticed her performance he raised a brow of oddness to her presence, "Dawn? What are you…?"

"I thought you might need the extra help" the girl cut him off, "Besides, you look pretty beat" she flicked his nose which made him blush a little bit. "Hey Lewis!" the girl then turn to the owner of the restaurant, "Would you mind if I help Ash with the work?"

"Huh? Yeah! Sure, whatever…" the old was so busy counting the money he was receiving that he was oblivious to the question given to him.

"Well… if Lewis says ok, then I'm ok with it" Ash agreed, "Here, take this" he then handed her a notepad and a pencil to keep tabs on the order. "You handle that side and I'll handle this side"

"Got it!" she saluted sarcastically, "No need to worry, right? (picks four Pokeballs) Piplup, Pachirisu, Buneary, Bayleef, come on out!" her four most trusted Pokemons quickly appeared out of their Pokeballs giving out a cheer in the end. But Bayleef simply went on and trample Ash where he stood and rubbed his face with her nose. "Hey it's great to see you too Bayleef, but I'm really busy right now" the boy wiggled his way out and head on off towards the next table.

"Alright you guys!" Dawn called to her Pokemon's attention, "We're gonna help Ash with restaurant work today so I want you all to be on your best behavior. Piplup, I want you to help serve the drinks. Pachirisu, you're with me. Bayleef and Buneary, you two help Ash" with the four of them nodding at her command, they immediately split up and head towards their designated positions.

After seeing both Ash and Dawn put effort onto their work, everyone just seemed to have fallen into the loop hole. Even without Lewis's permission, each member of the gang quickly got themselves an apron and ditched whatever headwear they had. With the six-teen of them working in one area, they were able to make the compound work almost in full productivity.

**(The Half Way Home Inn kitchen)**

However… since Soledad was so busy making dish after dish after dish, she didn't notice all the extra hands coming and going through the window. She thought that the rest of the gang were in the dojo training for their upcoming battle and only Ash and Rosa were the ones coming in and taking the trays. And once the last order had been filled out, she decided to take a short break to cool off her hands. Ash's Pokemons were a great aid to her cooking. Houndoom's flame thrower can crisp anything to well done in a matter of seconds, and Sceptile's leaf blade can cut through everything the girl was able to toss at it. Whether it was bread, vegetables or meat, the fully evolved Pokemon can cut through it like a butcher's machete through butter.

"Phew… that's the last of them…" Soledad sighed as she massaged her arms after cooking for nearly four hours straight. "Ash sure was working hard today" she thought slightly out loud, "Maybe I should make him another lunch box" she thought for a moment to think what to cook for the boy. But the girl really didn't need to think that long since her mind was already made up since this morning. This was probably just an act to get her mind off things. "I know!" she suddenly plop an old light bulb at the back of her head. "After all that work he'll need some energy! I should make something that gives him energy!"

Without even thinking of her words the girl quickly dash off and grab her recipe book and scroll through its pages. "Hmm… let's see… stamina… stamina… hmm…… AHA!" she smiled widely before moving up to the cupboards. "Meat! Meat is the best source of stamina! Now if I can… huh?" as she reach for the meat section she suddenly felt that the area seemed a bit more hollow than usual. "Eh? What happened to all the meat?! Don't tell me I used them all in that last dish! Oh come on! There's got to be one pack left!" she tore through the shelves and stocks to find at least one pack of meat, but sadly there were none left.

"Ahh man… of all times… (sigh)" she sighed sadly before moving back to her cook book, "Oh well… I guess I'll just have to find something with… huh? Hello… what's this?" with a lucky stroke of her hand, the girl shifted the pages of her cook book to the cookie section, and from the looks of it, she might've just found her ace in the hole dish. "Hmm… Victoria Crown cookies? I've never heard of that before" she then began to read the underline in hopes to get a better view on this new side dish. "Hmm… it says here that these cookies are only made to special friends. Those who share a single batch are destined to be together forever……… hmmm…" Soledad wasn't really one for superstitions, but after reading that article, her mind suddenly began to go in a strange mode of imagination.

**(Soledad's imagination)**

Soledad had just finished baking the Victoria Crown cookies for herself and Ash, but she didn't want it to look too suspicious so she decided to mix it up with the other dishes. Everything ranging from Kanto's great delicacies and Hoenn traditional meals was prepared on that single table making it look like a feast worthy of a king.

"Hey there Soledad" the girl's attention was soon turned away when Ash came in through the door. "Wow! Everything looks so tasty! I don't even know where to start!"

"I'm glad you like it Ash" she replied before taking a seat, "Come on and have a seat" the boy quickly joined her and with one phrase, he began to dig in faster than a Snorlax, "Easy Ash…" the girl chuckled, "The food isn't going anywhere" she joked which made the boy stop for a moment.

"Sorry about that" he apologized, "It's just that whenever I see a lot of food I get hungry easily" but then he soon noticed the Victoria Crown cookies left at the center of the table. "Hey, what are these?" Soledad noticed him and quickly answered, "That's Victoria Crown cookies. I thought that she should try something new for a change and I kind found this by accident"

"Well it looks mighty tasty" Ash said with a small trickle of droll going down her lips. "Don't mind if I have one" the two of them quickly pick out one piece from the tray and swallowed them in the process. After the taste subsided, Ash and Soledad suddenly locked eyes together like they were inseparable. Their deep gaze mixed upon one another like two black holes consuming one another to become absolute nothingness.

And then suddenly… without any warning whatsoever, Ash dropped whatever he was holding and grabbed onto Soledad's hands. "Ash?"

"Soledad…"

**(Pop…) (End of imagination)**

But then Soledad's imagination was cut short when Lewis entered the room, "Hey there pumpkin, just getting some potatoes…" usually, if the girl wasn't in such a position, she would've pounded the old man to a pulp for ruining her dream run. "Say Soledad, where are the cups again?" he asked while looking through the cupboard. The girl simply sighed back at his laziness and grabbed a few cups from the rack and hand it to him.

With the old man gone, the girl resumed her dream, "Now where was I?"

**(Soledad's imagination continuation)**

The scene was now changed from the restaurant to the beach with a sunset just over the horizon. Ash and Soledad were still in the same position sitting down with their hands holding each other, "Soledad…" the boy continued, "Let's go… together. Let's leave Valmarian city tonight and catch the next flight to Hoenn!"

"But Ash…" the girl spoke out worryingly, "What about the Valmarian league? Didn't you want to be a  
Pokemon master?"

"I don't need that anymore" he replied instantly, "With you around, I can be anything I want to be. You make… complete…"

**(End of imagination)**

"Oh no Ash wouldn't say that!" Soledad quickly began to blush and wiggled her body in a very disturbing way. It was so frightening that even Sceptile seemed scarred of what she might do next. "Oh come on now Soledad let's be real" the girl quickly snap herself out of her imagination and began blushed madly at her behavior. "Cookies can't possibly do that now… can it? Nah… of course not! (pause) But… I think I'll still bake them anyway!" and before she knew it, she had already gathered all the ingredients needed to make the cookies.

**(Che'val-yere hotel lounge)**

Delia, Ash's mother was just about to head off to the nearest department store to do another window shopping for souvenirs. She was all dressed up in her coat and long skirt and was ready to hit the stores. But before she could go out and call a taxi, another woman's voice caught her attention.

"Oh Delia, there you are!" she swung her head around to see the smiley face of Caroline Maple, May's mother. "Oh hello there Caroline" she greeted, "Can I help you in anything?"

But the other mother simply shook her head in reply, "I was just wondering if you were busy tonight" Delia pouted a minute and thought hard if she anything to do at that specific time.

"Well… not really" she replied finally.

Then Caroline's eyes quickly perked up, "Terrific!" she said out loud, "You see: Norman and I made a reservation at the diner here at the hotel. We were supposed to have dinner together at the hotel dining area tonight, but the Pokemon Headquarters called him off on something very urgent. So I thought that I should invite you instead"

"Me?" she pointed at herself.

"Yes, pleassseeeeeeee…" she held the magic word longer than it should have and outstretched it for a whole five seconds. "I wouldn't want to have dinner alone (sob) Norman and I used to have dinner together all the time. But his career makes it almost impossible for us to see each other (yeah right! He's a gym leader and you live together for crying out loud!)" with her unique acting skills, Caroline quickly produced fake tears from her eyes and wiped them off to make them look more realistic. Perhaps all that time being with the famous Norman, built those skills into her soul.

But it looks like the strategy worked. Not wanting to make Caroline cry anymore than she should, Delia agreed, "Oh ok ok… please don't cry Caroline" she begged, "Of course I'll join you for dinner. I don't really have anything better to do anyway ahehehehe"

Hook. Line and sinker!

"Are you sure?" Caroline asked with fake sobs coming from her nose. "I don't mind at if you don't come. I can eat alone… in the dark restaurant… alone… without anyone to talk to… alone… eating expensive meals without sharing them with anyone else… alone"

"I'm fine with it Caroline… really" the mother replied cheerfully, "I promise to meet you later tonight… ok?"

"(sniff) Ok… you promise?"

"Promise!"

After a short pause, Caroline smiled back slightly at her making her look like she was slightly happy again, "Thank you Delia, you're really a true friend in times of need" she stated as she twirled around happily, "I'll go back and make the reservation! You go and have a nice shopping trip, ok!" and with that, Delia boarded the nearest taxis and headed off to the department store.

As Caroline waved back with her fake smile, an evil grin soon appeared on her lips making her look like a crazy witch. "Ahehehehehe…" as the taxi went out of sight, the mother pulled out a walkie talkie from her pocket and whispered softly on the speaker, "Phase one… complete… get the dining tables ready… ahehehehehehe" this was definitely going to be a long day.

**(Back in the Half Way Home Inn restaurant) (03:27 PM)**

After the last customer left the inn with a full stomach, the gang decided to have themselves a little break time. While Lewis was still busy counting the money on the cash register, Dawn and the other girls quickly took up their seats for a little R&R. Ash wanted to join them too, but he was pulled away when Tracey notified him of his old and worn out bandages. So without a good excuse, Ash decided to accept the sketcher's help in changing his bandages.

"Man… I'm beat…" Richie stated, "My arm feels like they're gonna come off" he massaged his shoulders and cracked his neck a few times before moving towards his other friends.

"Yeah… I think that was the last customer already" Ash noted before turning to his employer, "Hey Lewis, do you mind if we close early today?"

"Huh? Yeah sure whatever" again the man simply responded to his question without even knowing what he answered too. This only made the gang sweatdrop under his so called 'leadership' and wonder how this place still stood when Ash wasn't around to help out.

When Brock finally changed the 'open' sign into 'closed' the others quickly put back the apron that they borrowed back onto the rack so that it could be used again tomorrow. Though some of the gang wouldn't admit it, they find that low pay labor like this was actually a lot more fun than anything they could imagine. It was satisfying and at the same time fulfilling too.

"Well my fingers are so numb, I can't even write anymore" Todd stated as he wiggled his fingers on the table. "I think I'll take a little break here"

"Sorry about that, guys" Ash said apologetically as Tracey slowly remove the bandages on his leg. "Usually when we open up, a lot of people just come rushing in" he then notice Tracey's ear perk up, "Hey, do you mean that you've done this for awhile Ash?"

"Yeah…" the boy nodded back, "Lewis said that if I work for him for awhile, he'll let me use the hot spring and the dojo for free. (crack…) Yeow!"

"Oh sorry!" in the midst of removing the old bandages, Tracey accidentally scratched the boy on his knee making him jolt a little bit. Richie then turned to the injured boy with raised eye.

"But that sounds like a fair deal to me" he said while putting his head on the back of the chair. "Hey I know! Why don't we all have a little training in the gym?" the others quickly agreed and followed the boy out. Their exhaustion quickly forgotten and their spirit rejuvenated completely. "Hey Ash, are you coming?"

"You guys go on ahead" the boy replied, "Tracey's still putting my bandages on" and to his truth, the young sketcher was indeed still putting his new set of bandages. The old one that the boy had been wearing for awhile were already wrinkled and old that it almost smelled as bad as a week old pizza left in the open with flies going around it.

After the other members of the gang left Tracey immediately finished wrapping both of Ash's legs with fresh batches of cotton soft bandages. "Ok that should do it" the young Sketchit said a small sigh. "You really shouldn't push yourself too much Ash, or your wounds might open up again. I know you like to train with your Pokemons and all, but your health must always come first. That's what professor Oak said to me before I go onto every adventure"

"But weren't you starving back at the ruins in Hoenn?" Ash replied mockingly which made Tracey blush with embarrassment. "Well uhh… that was uh… research!" he replied trying to excuse his way out of the topic. "But anyway Ash" he coughed out to immediately change the subject, "Let me fix your arm. It looks like the bandages there could use some replacement too" but Ash quickly jolted his arm away from him.

Rosa noticed this and quickly became worried. If another human should discover his markings it would make her a prime suspect to everything. Since she was the only thing linking back to the others she wouldn't be surprised if she was pointed the finger first.

"What!? Uh… no no no no. I just changed this a few days ago!" he spoke hastily trying to hide his tattooed arm from him, "Its ok… I'll change it myself tomorrow! Ahehehehehe"

At first Tracey didn't buy his excuse, but since the boy insisted, he decided to let him be for now, "Well… ok, but if there's anything wrong, just tell me. I'll have you patch up in no time" when the sketcher left the building to join the others in the gym to have their practice Ash and Rosa both released a small sigh to relieve them of the tension. It was a close call, for now.

"_That was a close one your majesty"_ Rosa approached the boy and let out a small smirk, _"I would hate to imagine what would happen if they discovered those markings"_

Ash smiled back in agreement, "Yeah… but Tracey's right though. This bandage is really getting old. Maybe I should change it after I finished training today"

"_That would be a logical course of action"_ the female Pokemon simply returned a small smirk again before turning around to notice Lewis finished off counting the money that his restaurant had made.

"Woohoo! Well shave my beard and call me fertilizer!!" the old man stated in a very countryside way, "This is even more than we've made last week! Keep up the good work Ashy boy and we'll be rolling this place in no time! Hahahahaha!" the boy that he was supposedly talking too simply sweat drop without replying to that statement.

But this only made Rosa sighed in disbelief, _"Is he always like that?"_ she questioned, _"That man is so ignorant, I could just talk in front of him and he won't even notice that I was a Pokemon"_ Ash again sweat drop but laughed about it a few moments later. "Well… I guess it's time to close the house huh?" Ash noted that his friends forgot to reaarange the chairs and tables back to their original order. So without even waiting for a sigh from himself, he quickly got back to work so at least then Soledad wouldn't have to worry about the restaurant.

**(Back in the kitchen)**

However Soledad could actually care less about the restaurant, she was actually more busy on the cookies she was baking. However… the girl hadn't baked a lot during her time as a chef so everything was still kinda new to her. She was practically covered with flour and her face looked like that of a clown. The only thing missing was a red nose and some makeup to finish the touch.

"Ok… let's see" she slowly scanned the recipe once more just to make sure she didn't miss any of the key ingredients. "Flour… check. Cashew nuts… check. Raisins… check. Ok now just set the stove to the right temperature for about fifteen minutes and… (ting) Huh? Oh it's ready!" she quickly put on her mittens and grabbed the hot tray out of the stove. With one whiff the girl instantly knew that this was truly going to make Ash's day. With all the work that he's been doing, it was only normal that she rewarded him with something from kitchen. (Yeah right!)

"Emm hmm… Ash will be thrilled when he sees this" the girl blushed slightly, knowing that the boy will definitely enjoy something she made. "Now I'm just gonna put you out here on the window so that you can cool off for awhile" she gently placed the tray on the window bench so that the heat will die down a little bit. "Tee hee… I can already imagine what he's gonna say" before the gods knew it, the girl began to go to his little fantasy world just to pass on the time.

"Wow Soledad, did you make all by yourself?" she tried to mimic Ash's voice by toning a lower tune. She then changed her position and stance to fit her own.

"Why of course Ash. I made this especially for you" she then pretended to take a bite off the cookie and smiled gorgeously at no one in particular.

"Emm hmm… these cookies are awesome! Can I have some more?" she said in Ash's tone again.

"Of course Ash! Have as much as you like! I made all of these cookies from the bottom of my heart just for you!"

Again she formed the Ash pose, "Why… no one has ever done that for me before. Soledad… I think I'm… I'm…"

"Shhh… Ash…" the girl shhhhed herself putting a finger on her lips, "Don't finish that sentence" she then moved closer and closer and quickly grab a clean plate and looked at her own reflection. Once she was able to get a feint picture of the scene she began to wiggle herself in a very disturbing way again. "Ayahahahahahahaha! Don't be silly Soledad tee hee hee! Ash would never do that ahehehehehehe!" Sceptile and Houndoom (Burno) could only watch as the head chef made a complete fool out of herself. They were practically having a blast just sitting there watching a home made entertainment acted with no script and no actor casting. All they needed was one deranged person and a full set of kitchen wears to make a good show.

However… unknown to them was that there were actually three other individuals hiding just outside the kitchen disguised as bushes. It was obvious that these three were actually James, Jessie and Meowth, and they're because of one reason alone… to get that Pikchu. But just when they were about to move out to find their life time target, Pikachu, James's nose suddenly whiffed up something tasty coming from the inside.

"Hey… do you guys smell that?" he said to his group.

Meowth came first, "Yeah! Smells like cookies to me!"

Then Jessie followed who smacked the both of them. "Hey! Keep your focus here! We're trying to get that Pikachu remember!? How can you two be thinking about food at a time like this?"

"That's easy for you to say!" James countered, "You were the one who ate the last hamburger we had"

"And you said that you were gonna share it with the rest of us!" Meowth added along with a frown.

"But I did share it" Jessie replied innocently.

"The only thing you left were crumbs!!!!" James and Meowth shouted all together along with Wobbuffet.

"Alright alright" Jessie submitted, "I guess we can stay for a few minute break" they slowly then began to pick out from the tray one piece of the cookie and ate them with relative ease. "Hmmm… you know what… these cookies an't half bad"

James nodded in agreement, "You're right, it kind of reminds of my grandmothers cookies back home" Meowth then followed, "Yeah… and the nuts and raisins make the perfect touch at the end of your mouth… ahhh" but then their moment of piece was cut short when they heard a small rustling sound coming from not far off. When they took a peek on what it was, their eyes nearly widened larger as a UFO saucer. What stood in front of them was Ash's Entei and it looked like it didn't mean the team any harm… for now.

"Hey… isn't that…" Jessie began.

"If my memory serves… I believe that's an Entei…" James said plainly.

"But aren't they supposed to be like super rare Pokemons?" Meowth questioned which was only replied with a positive sound. After a few moments of silence, they opened up their eyes and screamed as they never expected a prize this large to come walking up their doorstep.

"LET'S GET IT!!!!!" Jessie quickly lodged herself with a net but to her mistake, the net seemed to be a little too small for Entei's size.

Quickly realizing that this trio were intruders, the legendary Pokemon quickly unleashed an attack that looked like a hyper beam which blasted them off into the sky. "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting oooooffff!" They were stop mid sentence when they slammed against the city's weather dome again.

After they were blasted off, Entei simply shrugged and laid down on the meadow beneath the trees. Luckily for it, Soledad was too busy imagining herself in a situation to notice the Pokemon thief being blasted away.

"Aho… Ash, I'm not that good ahehehehehe" she continued with her small one person acting which seemed to be drawing a small group of Pokemons onto the door. With the pack growing steadily, it wasn't long for her to notice the stares she was getting from Ash's Pokemons. "Ahe… hehe… sorry about that. I guess I must've lost myself for a moment there ahehehehe" but then Ambipom only let out a small giggle as it made its way to the cookie tray. "Hey! Easy Ambipom, this batch is still hot (pause) Oh ok… I guess you can have one" but that was probably her biggest mistake. When Ash's Ambipom took one piece, she (yes… Ambipom is a girl) found it to be so tasty that she wanted it all to herself.

With her three hand like tails, the monkey like Pokemon grabbed the tray and quickly made its way out of the window.

"H… hey! Ambipom, come back here this instance!" Soledad threatened, "Ambipom, you give those cookies back right now or you'll regret it!" but then the three tailed monkey began to share the loot with all of Ash's Pokemons on the field, "Ah! No you guys! Come back here!" Soledad hastily made her way to them but the Pokemons had a knack for getting out of the way. "Give me back my cookies right now!" she demanded but only her words fell into deaf ears. "Alright that's it! Slowbro, come out and use psychic on them now!" the large chubby Pokemon quickly appeared and began to use the attack against the Pokemons. But the guy was no match to the powers that Ash had given them.

After a moment, Ash's Pokemons quickly disburse out of the area leaving behind the cookie tray behind. Luckily, each of them were only able to get one piece each which meant that there was still plenty for the girl to share with Ash. "Phew… they didn't take all of them" she sighed in relief. "Hmm… let's see how it tastes" having curiosity take over, the girl gladly took a single piece off the tray and chomped it down her throat.

The soft seasonings that she put were more than enough to make the cookie crunchy and tasty, but the raisins and nuts were a great add up making it more enduring than your regular cookie.

A/N: Victoria Crown is a name of a pigeon. As you all know, pigeons have usually been the symbol of togetherness and friendship. Victoria Crown is one such legend.

"Emm hmm! This is even tastier than I thought!" she said even amazed by her own baking skills. "Soledad, you've done it again!" without wasting any time at all, the girl rushed in towards the restaurant where Ash and Lewis were. She still didn't know that the gang were in the gym or if they helped Ash with all the handwork.

"Oh hey there Soledad" the boy greeted as he finished up with the last of the tables.

"Hey there Ash" she replied with her unusually charming smile, "Great work today. I you really must've had your hands full this afternoon"

"Well actually I had…"

But before the boy could finish, Lewis cut him off, "Hey Ash" he called to him, "I just got a call from Nurse Joy just a few minutes ago. Do you mind delivering this package to her? She should be at the Pokemon center right next door"

"Sure thing" the boy agreed and quickly grabbed the small bag from the old man's hands. "Come on Pikachu, Rosa, let's go!" the two said Pokemon quickly rushed to his side to join him on this little side trip.

"Ah! Wait a minute Ash!" the girl tried to stop the boy but Ash didn't really had the time to wait. He just wanted to get this task done with and go back to his training. "Ahh geeze… I was hoping that he'd try these cookies first" seeing that the boy won't be back for awhile, the girl decided to leave the tray on the table and wait for his return.

"That Ash sure is a hard working kid" Lewis stated with a smile.

Soledad nodded in agreement, "Yeah… unlike some old man I know…" she darted a guilt eye on her grandfather with a small 'yeah right' frown.

**(Pokemon center)**

The trip to the Pokemon center was relatively short due to it being literally next door. It only took Ash about five minutes to get there, but when he got to the entrance he noticed that the place had more Nurse Joys than before. When he first got here, there were only about a dozen of them, but now there were practically fifty of them roaming the area.

"Whoa… look at all the Joys…" he stated. Even Rosa was having a hard time looking at them too. She knew that most of the humans looked the same through her eyes, but this was just simply ridiculous. "Umm… excuse me Nurse Joy?" Ash called out.

"Yes?" they all replied instantly making the boy nervous.

"Uh… umm… did anyone here order a package from Lewis?" he then noticed that one of the nurses was waving at him. "Oh over here!" said the Nurse Joy from Varidian city. "Thanks a lot Ash, these are exactly what I needed" she thanked the boy next to her, "With some many injured Pokemons coming in and out everyday, we've been running out of medical supplies. These ointments would do wonders for the Pokemons here"

"That's ok Nurse Joy, I'm just glad to help" but just when he was about to head back, another voice seemed to pop up on the sides.

"Hey Ash!" it was Harrison, the boy's old rival.

"Oh hi there Harrison" the boy greeted back, "Are you still holding practice matches here?" the tall trainer nodded back in reply, "You bet! With all the trainers that's been popping back and forth, they'll need all the training they can get! So are you ready for a match yet? I've been itching for a rematch with you since the Silver Conference!"

"Ha! You're on Harrison!" Ash replied, but then he noticed that he left his Pokeball belt back in his room. "Oh… I must've forgotten my Pokeballs backs at the inn" but Harrison just waved it off, "That's ok. We'll just have a one on one battle then. Your Pikachu looks like its ready" the little mouse quickly let out a small 'Pika' sound as a gesture to its master. "And I'd really like to see that Lucario fight too" Rosa's attention was soon perked up slightly with interest. It would be a nice change to battle someone once in awhile. All that servicing and cleaning was really rusting up her skill.

"Well…" Ash rubbed the back of his head still considering his choices, "I guess I could stay for awhile. Having a battle is way different than training"

"That's the spirit! Follow me; I'll get you the first round"

When the two of them entered the practice field at the back of the Pokemon center, Ash was completely astounded by the sight laid before him. Though the place wasn't as big as the Arena District, there were still a lot of trainers to go around battling.

"Whoa… how many trainers are there?"

Harrison knew that the boy would be surprised, "Well…… the last time checked there were about a hundred of us. Now this place has even gotten more popular than ever. Come on, I'll show you to our field" as they walked pass the many battlegrounds, Ash began to feel more at home everyday. Wherever he turned their would be a trainer or coordinator hanging out together in a small group talking absolutely nothing else but battles and other things related to strategy. It didn't matter who won or lost in this area, because all that matter was everyone here gave it their best shot.

The mere thought of it, made the boy so happy that he could barely even contain it. He wanted to battle so badly that he'd take anyone on.

"Alright, here we are" Harrison said suddenly, catching Ash's attention, "This will be the field we'll fight on" the field was just a regular plain field with no advantages or disadvantages. But that alone was more than what Ash would ever need. "Alright Ash, so…" but just before Harrison could continue, one of his friends popped in, "Hey Harrison, another trainer made it through the trials" the man stated, "He's asking for a battle with you pronto!"

"Already?" Harrison questioned, "Well I guess it can't be helped. (to Ash) Sorry Ash, but it looks like we'll have to postpone our match another time. At least until I finished with this one. Why don't you go around for awhile? I'm sure there are some trainers around here that would like to battle you"

"No problem" the boy replied, "Come on Pikachu, let's go find ourselves a field (Pikapika)" the little mouse cheered back.

**(Pokemon center) (Downtown District) (Gary's Room)**

It had been hours since Emma was left here by the others to take Jaques place as Gary's bodyguard. Though the girl didn't mind in simply chilling out in one spot, the long pause of silence seemed to be getting on her nerves. She was a party girl and usually she'd be humming a beat or two from time to time. There were some music coming from the outside, but most of the songs that were being played were already outdated or classic. She needed a rhythm, or something that could build up a beat.

"I'm going to get lunch" the girl said suddenly, making Gary turn his head towards her, "You stay here and rest up. And don't even think of sneaking off to train!" she warned, "Havic, got his guys to watch out for anyone suspicious coming in. I'll be back in a few minutes" and with that, the girl left off towards the cafeteria.

As the door closed behind her, Gary began to wonder how he became a prisoner of his own gang. He knew that the others were worried about his condition, but to forcibly put him under house arrest was going a little way too far. He had done nothing but rest and rest and rest for the pass few hours and that long sleep since last night must've already recharged him somehow. Unable to take the pressure of being cooped up in this cell, he decided to have his training right here in his room.

After a few minutes had passed by, Emma returned to the room with a tray of delicious treats, "Alright, wake up sleeping beauty, I go you some………… lunch…" if Emma's eyes could get any wider than it was now, her pupils would probably roll down the floor and head off towards the great beyond. Not only was Gary exercising in his own bedroom, but he was also doing it shirtless. With just one glance at him, Emma knew that the boy she once considered a wimp was gone. The boy had six abs on his stomach, his muscles were showing through his arms and even his long pants were practically on their last leg trying to fit the amounts of iron he was pumping.

After a short pause pass by, Gary soon found the silence to be quite bizarre for some reason. "Are you gonna stand there all day?" he said finally.

Once Emma's attention was torn away from his muscles, her face completely flushed out like it was burning, "Just what do you think you're doing!?" she said out of embarrassment.

"Well… since you said I couldn't go out, I figured I should just train here" the boy replied while going back to his usual pushups.

Seeing that there was no way to stop the boy from doing his training, Emma simply sighed in defeat before leaving the room again, "Do whatever you want, but the next time: please wear a tracksuit or something"

**(Pokemon Center training field) (Old Town District)**

Once Harrison was off to battle his new challenger, Ash was left with a small choice to go around seeing if there was any field available. But to his luck, it seemed like none of the fields were open. "Man… it looks like this place is swamped (Pikachu…)" his Pikapal agreed. Seeing that there were no fields open for business, he decided to just come back another time. "Let's just come back another time Pikachu. I'm sure they'll be a free space then" but before he could take a step back into the Pokemon center, a sudden tap came upon his shoulder. "Hmm?"

"Hey there, yeah you" it was a boy probably still in his early teens speaking in a European accent. "I saw you talking with Harrison a minute ago. Is he a friend of yours?" Ash simply nodded back dumbly in reply, "You must be a strong trainer then" the young trainer-trainee boy concluded, "The only people who are ever friends with Harrison are usually strong. My spot's up next on this field, so I challenge you to a battle!"

"Ha! You're on!" Ash replied immediately relieving the stress off his shoulder. "Me and my Pikachu aren't gonna lose"

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear!" the boy then turned to the ref, "Hey referee! I got myself a battle partner!"

A few minutes later, Ash quickly got himself a spot on the other side of battlefield. Even though Ash was now the champion of every region in the world, he would still get nervous and excited in a battle. But perhaps he should consider that as a good trait. It keeps your eyes and ears on high alert at all times and your mind will always go on overdrive, allowing him to plan new strategies even on the most critical moments.

Once both trainers were in position, the referee waved up her flag, "The battle is now about to begin!" the female referee began, "This will be a two on two battle with no time limit! The trainer with a Pokemon standing at the end of the battle will be the victor! Trainers, choose your Pokemons!"

Ash went first, "Pikachu, I choose you!" the little mouse quickly jump off the boy's shoulder and readied itself for battle.

Then came his opponent, "Well then, I guess I'll have to go with my little'ol mate Gravler!" a stone Pokemon with four arms appeared looking like it had been bred for battle.

Once the ref realized that both trainers were ready, she waved her flags again, "The trainers have chosen their Pokemons! Let the battle begin!"

"Alright Gravler, let's show that Pikachu a thing or two!" the opposing trainer taunted, "Use roll out attack go!" but Ash learned how to think on his own two feet, "Pikachu, use iron tail let's go!" the two attacks collided at the center field and none of the Pokemons looked a bit hurt at all.

"That's a pretty impressive little Pikachu you got there!" Ash's opponent smirked, "But you haven't seen the last of me just yet! Gravler, use rock smash!" the rock Pokemon leaped high into the sky and decent just right next to Pikachu, causing the little mouse to flinch backwards.

"Whoa! That was some power!" Ash said in excitement, "But it's gonna take a lot more than that to take down Pikachu. Alright Pikachu, use agility!"

"Speed isn't gonna be an issue here! Gravler, use earthquake!" the rock Pokemon quickly began to shake the earth below it causing Pikachu to lose balance with its footing. "Alright, now's our chance Gravler! Use roll out attack!" Gravler immediately rolled itself into a ball and smashed Pikachu right on the face, sending it back to its master.

"Oh no Pikachu, are you alright? (Pika!)" the little mouse replied with a small smirk, "Alright then, I guess we're gonna have to take this a little more seriously. Pikachu, jump up high and use agility!" with speed as fast as lightning, Pikachu suddenly vanished in mid air creating a lot of confusion among the crowd.

"What the!?" the other trainer said amazed, "Where'd it go!?" even Rosa herself was surprised on how fast the little guy was.

"Alright Pikachu, now use volt tackle!" Pikachu then appeared behind Gravler, catching it off on its blind spot. With no time to create some sort of defense against this fast paced move, the Pokemon was knocked down, but it was still a lot far from finished. "Awesome work Pikachu! (Pika! Chu!)

"Looks like that little Pikachu packs quite a punch there" the other trainer noticed. "Alright Gravler, use roll out attack one more time!"

But Ash had already thought of a counter move for that, "The same trick won't work twice on me! Pikachu, use iron tail on the ground now!" Pikachu followed his command to the letter and quickly realize what Ash had in store. When Gravler was about four inches away from him, the rock Pokemon fell under the small ditch that the little electrical mouse made with its own tail.

"No way!" the opposing trainer said again in even greater amazement, "He actually dug a hole on the ground and trap Gravler just when it was using roll out!" with the rock Pokemon trapped in the ditch, Ash knew that he now had the advantage in this battle, "Alright Pikachu, let's finish this off with an iron tail assault!" with a flurry of hits given to Gravler, the rock Pokemon soon found itself under a barrage with no way to defend itself. After a whole minute passed by, Gravler soon fell to a deep state of unconscious.

"Gravler is no longer able to battle!" the referee declared with her flag raised, "The victory goes to Pikachu!"

"Alright Pikachu!" Ash cheered, "Get ready for the next one buddy, this one might be tough (Pikapikachu!)"

The other trainer quickly returned Gravler into its Pokeball, "Good work my golly old friend, you fought really well today (picks out another Pokeball) Alright then, I guess I'll have to get serious with…… Floatzel!" a large sea weasel like Pokemon appeared, showing its fangs frighteningly on the field.

"A Floatzel huh?" Ash commented, "Looks like this one might be tougher than I thought. But I love a challenge! (Pika!)"s but just when Pikachu could walk onto the field again, Rosa suddenly came and block his path. "Pika?" (Huh?)

"Rosa?" Ash said a little puzzled on what the old Guardian was doing.

"_Let me battle this one your majesty" _the girl said professionally in telepathic communication, _"I could use the stretch"_ she then cracked her neck a few times to get the stiffness off her head. At first Ash wasn't really sure if he should command her like this, but then again… you don't exactly get to control two million old Pokemons everyday now do you?

"Alright Rosa, if you wanna give it a go then I'm all for it!" Ash agreed, "We're ready!"

As both trainers prepared themselves for the next battle, the crowd began to take an interest with the fight they were having. The mere intensity of the match was more than enough to get their attention and the pink Lucario added to some of their curiosity.

A few minutes later, Harrison came out of his field and noted the gathering audience happening where Ash was battling. "Hey, what's going over there?" he asked to anyone who could answer his question.

Luckily one of his friends was there to answer, "It looks like that kid you were with is gathering quite a crowd Harrison. They say he's gonna use that pink Lucario for battle" this perked up the 'ace's' interest as well.

Back on the battlefield, the referee waved her flags once again to begin the second round, "BEGIN!"

"Floatzel, use watergun!" the sea weasel quickly unleash a powerful gush of water out of its mouth against Rosa, but the Guardian was far too agile for that kind of attack. With just a push of her leg, the female Pokemon leaped high into the air and almost impervious to ground type attacks, "Alright Rosa, now use shadow ball!" Ash ordered to which the girl followed right to the letter. But then something went wrong! When Rosa was about to unleash her energy, the shadow ball attack disburse the moment it left her paws.

"_What!?"_ the Guardian was now confused. Never had her attacks failed like before. _"What happened?"_ with Lucario confused, the opposing trainer decided to take advantage of the situation and take her out while she's still out of focus, "Floatzel, use aquajet and take her down!" the attack was unavoidable and Rosa was soon pushed back to her side of the field with relative ease.

"Rosa, are you ok?" Ash said worryingly.

"_I'm fine"_ she spoke back telepathically, _"I must've just lost focus, that's all"_ Ash was really getting the urge to get her out of the battle as soon as possible since he really didn't want to see her hurt. "Alright Rosa, use hyper beam instead!" the Guardian quickly began charging power through her throat. But just when she was about half way finished, the energy suddenly evaporated, causing her to flinch back, puzzled on what had just happened.

"Floatzel, use water pulse!" the sea weasel Pokemon again took advantage of the situation and sent Rosa flying back to the ground with a powerful water type attack, "Good work Floatzel, now use aquajet!"

Ash knew that the attack was unavoidable so he decided to go on head first, "Rosa, use shadow ball or something! Hurry!" the Guardian quickly obeyed by charging up a shadow ball attack, but again the energy concentrated on her paws seemed to have evaporated just like before. "Oh no! Rosa!"

The battle was really not looking good for Ash. After Rosa had taken so many hits, he was beginning to think that he must've made a bad decision in sending her in. He was certain that she would be able to take out any opponent that came along her way, but now it seemed like all of her fighting capability seemed to have been stripped off of her. "Rosa, don't just lie there, we'll just go with the basics! Use pound!" the pink Lucario immediately got the order and finally stopped Floatzel by its inflatable collar.

"Oh no!" the opposing trainer soon realized that his opponent was now ready to fight back.

"Now Rosa, use tackle!" knowing that it's powers are useless, Rosa decided to go back to her barbaric ways using her paws and feet as her weapons. With her agile speed, strength and stamina, Floatzel fell onto the ground completely pooped.

"Floatzel is no longer able to battle!" the referee declared, "The victory goes to Lucario of the blue team!" the crowd immediately let out a small cheer of victory for Ash even though they didn't know his real identity.

However… it looked like Ash wasn't exactly in his happy go lucky mood today. Usually he would be cheering on his victory like any other battle. But when the referee declared him the victor, he quickly jumped down from his battle position and rushed towards his Guardian's side. "Rosa! Rosa, are you ok?!" the tone of his voice was full of despair and worries of the pink Lucario. The only time the boy had seen her this wounded was back at Fort Gregro when the councilors fought against him when he was still under the control of Pallet's/Chu's spell.

"_I… I'll be fine your majesty"_ she replied wearily, _"I'll just use my healing abilities to…"_ but just when she was using her recover ability, the energy that gathered around her soon evaporated away like dust on the ground.

"Oh no… hold on Rosa, I'll get you to Nurse Joy!" but then the pink Lucario simply pushed that thought away. _"No!"_ she screamed in his head, _"I would rather die than to let some human take care of me"_ and with that final word, she fell unconscious right on the boy's arms. The girl's pride was really something to be admired, but at the same time it seemed stupid. Not wanting to insult her honor, Ash decided to head back to the Half Way Home Inn immediately leaving the crowd behind to wonder what just happened. Rosa wasn't seriously injured or anything, the boy just didn't want Nurse Joy to see her.

**(Half Way Home Inn) (05:45 PM)**

Soledad was waiting patiently by the main entrance of the restaurant for Ash's eventual return. The cookies that she baked were still fresh from the oven and were now placed inside a bowl rather than a tray. At first, she expected him to come home right away after delivering the package Lewis asked him. He didn't have anything better to do there didn't he? Usually he would be back unless of course if he was given another task along the way. She still didn't know that Ash's friends were in the dojo training.

"Hmm… where is he?" the girl said questioningly. "He should've been back an hour ago already"

When Lewis entered the room he was quite surprised to see the girl still waiting by the door, "Oh hey there pumpkin, are you still waiting for Ash? (nod) Why don't you wait inside for now? I'm sure he's probably talking with some trainers in the Pokemon center" it was probably a logical thing for Ash to do. He was a Pokemon trainer and he would definitely want to hang out with his own kinds. "But then again, he could be flirting with one of the Nurse Joys" this caught Soledad's attention quite nicely, "The boy does have his natural charms so I shouldn't be surprised if he brought one of them over by too"

"Grandpa!" Soledad shouted back with a slight blush on her face, "Stop talking like that! Ash isn't that kind of a person!"

But the old man simply waved it off, "Oh well, who knows? If his charms got to you, I wouldn't be surprised if four or five more should fall for him" and with that he walked out of the room back to the master's residence leaving behind a flushed out Soledad.

"Silly grandpa…" she muttered out while crossing her arms together, "Please… Ash? Flirting? Give me a break. I bet he doesn't even know the first thing about that word" she said sarcastically. But then her imagination run began to act up causing her mind to distort a little bit.

She imagined Ash in the Pokemon center surrounded by Nurse Joys everywhere using his natural innocent-boyish act to lure them into his hands. He was like a living magnet for the opposite gender and was quickly becoming popular with the Joys all over the world.

"Oh Ash, you're so cute…" said one in Soledad's imagination.

"You're so strong and handsome…" said another.

But when one of the Joys decided to plant a kiss on the boy's he girl's mind went berserk!

"AHHH!!" Soledad screamed as she forcefully opened the door with her own bare hands even though she knew that it was already unlocked. "Hold on Ash! Don't let those pink headed clones get to you! I'm coming to save ya!!!!!" but in the midst of her rambling and shouting, the girl unintentionally went the wrong way, making her trip a whole lot longer than it was supposed to.

When Soledad vanished off to who knows where, Ash soon returned from the Pokemon center carrying a slightly wounded and tired Rosa and Pikachu. Luckily for his quickness, he was able to avoid his other companion's detection and arrive safely in his room. When he went in, she placed Rosa on the futon bed and took a moment of peace inside his head. "Pikachu…" he called out to his buddy, "Can you find Turtwig for me? He might be able to help Rosa with this" the little guy quickly saluted and went off to find his leafy friend.

"Pika! Pika pikachu!" (Hey! Turtwig, over here!) the tiny leaf Pokemon quickly turned away from its task and noticed that Pikachu was talking to him. From the tone of the little mouse's voice, it sounded pretty urgent.

"Ahh… Turtwig, you made it" Ash said slightly relieved to see his trusty pal arrive on scene. "Sorry to call you (Turt turtwig)" but the little turtle simply waved it off, "Rosa got hit pretty bad in that battle earlier this afternoon so… can you help her out? (Turtwig!)" the little guy quickly made a determined face and rushed towards the Guardian's side. With a single touch of its twig, Turtwig began channeling its synthesis power onto the female Lucario, healing some of its wounds almost instantly. Surprisingly for the little guy, Rosa didn't seem to have suffered any serious injuries anywhere. There were only several minor bruises on her body and some scratches on her arms that should go away in a matter of days.

After Turtwig finished healing the last of her wounds, Rosa's eyes began to flutter open making Ash smile with relief, "Rosa, you're ok! (Pika!)" the boy said slightly loud.

The Lucario first scanned her surroundings trying to get a feel where she was, _"W… what happened?"_ she wondered out telepathically.

"You fell unconscious back at the practice field earlier" Ash explained, "You didn't want to go to the Pokemon center so I brought you back at the inn instead. Turtwig here fixed you up with 'synthesis' so you should be fine. (to Turtwig) Thanks a lot there buddy" but Turtwig was more than happy to be of service to Ash. With the boy showering it with praise, the little guy quickly bit the top of his head to show off its affection. "Hey Turtwig, no need to bite hahahahaha" but while the boy was off laughing to himself, Rosa didn't seem to be sharing in with the fun.

Instead, she took out her two paws and starred at them blindly. She couldn't explain why her powers fell apart like that. It never happened before when she fought the trainers back in Shinou, so why is failing her now?

But then her shout train of thoughts were interrupted when Ash spoke up, "Hey Rosa…" he began, "I'm gonna get you some food and check up with Lewis. So I want you to wait here and rest. Turtwig, you're in charge here. (Turtwig) come on Pikachu (Pikachu!)"

When Ash left through the sideway slide door, the tiny leaf Pokemon looked back and smiled at the ancient Guardian. But when Rosa looked back with her cold moody eyes, the grass Pokemon let out a lot of sweat drops in return. To watch over her, is kind of like watching a Goliath at close range.

**(At the kitchen)**

When Ash arrived at the kitchen house, he was expecting to see Soledad there preparing dinner already. But now it looked like the place had been abandoned and no one has been here for the past few hours at least. "Ah… hey… that's strange……where's Soledad? I thought she'd be here cooking dinner already" with no one around to help him with the food, the boy decided to make his own for tonight. "Well, I guess we'll have to make it ourselves Pikachu" the little electrical mouse immediately jumped off Ash's shoulder to give him that extra room.

After looking around the kitchen for awhile, the boy noticed that most of the ingredients were now gone. He quickly took down a mental note to restock all the supplies later tomorrow. After a few moments later, he noticed that Soledad didn't seem to be doing her task properly. There were still a lot of dishes that were dirty on the sink and the place looked like it could really use a nice clean up. But that was probably Lewis's job anyway.

A few minutes later, the boy was able to find a half empty can of mushrooms and a clean bowl to put it on. He quickly remembered of the first meal he ever cooked. Without a moment to waste, Ash got right to work. After boiling the water in a hot temperature and adding a little seasoning from the leftovers, he remade his little masterpiece dish without any problems at all. It was amazing what the boy could do with a little mushroom.

But soon the scent quickly got the attention of Lewis who was just passing by to see the garden. "Soledad, are you back already?" but when he entered, he was surprised to see Ash there, "Oh hey there Ash, I didn't hear you come in"

"Hi Lewis" the boy replied, "Sorry about that, I met an old friend of mine back at the Pokemon center so it took longer than I thought" he explained with a small smile.

"Well that's ok, but did you happen to see Soledad by the way?"

"Soledad?" the boy mimicked, "Actually, I was expecting to see her here in the kitchen, but it looks like she hasn't been in here for awhile"

The old man immediately let out a gruff sound, "Hmph! What an irresponsible grandchild! And to think I allowed her to tell me that I'm irresponsible! The nerve of that girl to leave the kitchen like this all day!" and the list went on for about two minutes or so.

"Umm… maybe she had a good reason to… do that ahehehe" the boy defended her while he sweat dropped to the old man's rambling.

But soon Lewis's shouting came to a quick end when his nose caught whiff of what Ash was cooking. "Hmm? Oh hello, what's this? (sniff sniff) Oh my, it smells wonderful. Did you make this Ash?" the boy nodded back in reply, "Mind if I have a taste? It looks really tempting"

"Sure!" the boy quickly grabbed a small tea cup and poured some of his home made soup into it. When Lewis took a sip, a sense of ease began to pour down his soul. It almost felt like he was floating above the clouds going back and forth with no worries to hinder him. But the feeling short lived when Ash pulled him out of his daze, "So, how is it?"

The old man let out a small cough before speaking, "The taste is absolutely excellent Ash! Did your mother teach you this recipe?"

"No…" the boy shook his head in reply, "I kinda discovered this by accident when I was traveling with my friends"

"Well then… keep up the good work!" Lewis said cheerfully, "I wouldn't mind having a bowl of this for dinner hmmhmmhmm…"

**(Time skip) (30 minutes later) (Che'val-yere hotel dining area)**

Delia and Caroline were having a nice little mother to mother talk in the hotel diner tonight. With Johanna off goofing around trying to get Ash directly, she decided to take advantage of the situation by getting the boy's mother into the battle. If she scores some points with her, then she would have a bigger chance in getting May with Ash together. She spared no expense of her husband's credit card to make this moment perfect. If she was going to persuade Delia about this 'relationship' she was going to need the best weapons this hotel had to offer.

To assure that this operation was a success, Caroline rented the whole restaurant for tonight and even bribed the manager to keep the interlopers out. Not only that, but she also hired a special valet team just in case if any sudden moments should come at them. With every employee under her command, she immediately put Norman in charge of the unit.

The table they were going to sit had the best seats right next to the stage where music will be played and had the best view in the whole area. Not only that, but she also installed a high-tech listening device right beneath the table so that every employee would know immediately what they want and when they want it.

She made sure that the whole dining area was empty and the waiters were ready to take their every order. The best dishes were prepared and the songs were rigged to set the mood between them.

"Delia, thank you for coming" Caroline stated when they both sat down on their chairs, "I wouldn't want to sit alone here"

"I should be the one thanking you" Delia replied modestly, "You were the one who invited me here anyway. However, I'm surprised that the restaurant is empty today. Usually the place would be packed with customers, twenty-four-seven"

"Oh umm… uhh…" Caroline had to think of an excuse fast or risk being exposed. With a simply press of the button, the special valet squad got to work immediately. After a few stuttering seconds, the SVS (Special Valet Squad) pulled out a flyer from the cabinets and showed it in big letters to Caroline. "Oh umm… there's a festival happening in the Downtown District today, so I think that's where they went" this managed to satisfy Delia's curiosity.

"So Delia…" Caroline began again, "What would you like to eat? You can order anything you want from the menu"

"Are you sure?" the woman asked, "This place is quite expensive" but Caroline simply waved it off, "Oh don't worry, nothing is too good for my sister in la… I mean… a good friend of mine"

"Hmm… ok… maybe I'll have the Cheese Grande…"

Her order was quickly transmitted through the hidden listening device and eaves dropped through the kitchen. When Norman heard the order he quickly shouted to the chefs, "She wants Cheese Grande! Get to it!" the men and women quickly got to work and began operating every kitchen where they needed.

"Oh wait… hold that… maybe I'll have Caesar's Salad instead"

Norman quickly shouted the order, "Hold that order! She wants Caesar's Salad!" the chefs again began to buzz around like a bunch of bees and got straight to work.

"Oh wait, I just remembered, I should probably just have something energetic" Delia then began thinking hard, "Aha! I'll have special meal number three please"

"Special meal number three!" Norman shouted out.

"Oh… but wait…" Delia again paused on her choice which made the chefs face fault on the floor, "This order seems to be too much on calories. Professor Oak keeps telling me that I should have a stable diet. Maybe I'll just have the roast turkey in stead…… but then again, the western steak looks mighty tempting… hmm…"

As Caroline looked at her dinner partner's situation, she let out a big mother of a sweat drop and giggled nervously at her, "Umm… waiter…" she called out to one of the waiter's attention, "What do you recommend we should have for tonight?"

"Well madam…" the young teen whose working part time here in the hotel began professionally, "I would recommend the lobster"

"Hmm… I'm not much into sea food" Delia replied still looking at the menu.

"Then perhaps, the east steak then?"

"No… too fattening"

"How about the soy sauced tofu?"

"Aren't they made out of fish too?"

"Then maybe, some spicy beef?"

"No… too oily…"

As the list went on and on and on, Norman sweat dropped heavily along with the other chefs who seemed to find this conversation very disturbing. Who woulda thought that this girl would be very picky with her food? Even Caroline herself was having an annoying time of her life just listening to this food conversation. It was like seeing the valet teaching an Aipom how to speak in the human language.

"Oh I know now!" Delia said suddenly, "I'll just have mashed potatoes and syrup!" the waiter gladly took the menu off of her and ripped it silently to pieces so that she wouldn't be able to change her order ever again. "How about you Caroline?" Delia motioned to the other mother who was still starring back and could not believe what had happened ten minutes ago.

"Oh umm… I think I'll just have the western steak" she replied hastily.

Back inside the kitchen, you can here the chefs saying the word, 'FINALLY!' all together.

While waiting for their meal to get done, Caroline decided to start up a conversation to kill the time. "So Delia…" she began once more, "Do you like music?"

"Hmm?" Delia said confused of the question.

"I mean: are there any types of music you're interested in?"

"Well…" she paused for a moment and thought back of what she listened back in her hometown, "Well, I have listened to a lot of music back in Pallet town. But I think, I remembered watching pop music the most"

In an instant, Norman called out the pop singers from the arsenal of the hotel and marched them right onto the stage. But just before they could begin singing, Delia soon changed her mind.

"But then I also liked some classic music too"

With a press of a button, a trap door opened right beneath the singers and sent them right out of the hotel in an instant. After cleaning the stage for a moment, Norman sent out a Beethoven orchestrate crew right up front to replace them. But just as they played some nice classical songs, Delia again, changed her mind.

"But then again, I remembered listening to some hip-hop songs. It was pretty catchy"

A giant cane stick soon appeared out of nowhere and pulled the crew off the stage. And replacing them was a rapping band.

"But then again, I also seemed to find a good taste in jazz music too"

Annoyed with the woman's indecisive decision, Norman pulled out a bulldozer out of nowhere and plowed the rappers out of the hotel with a loud 'brrrrmmm' sound. After that he went back to the kitchen and sent out a jazz band up on stage.

"Oh and I just remembered that there was a famous rock band that came to Pallet town the other day. They were absolutely stunning!"

Tired of doing all the work himself, Norman sent out his Slaking and carried the jazz band out of the hotel and replaced them instantly with a rock band with 'Kiss' like face painting. (Kiss is a band) But just before they could knock the house down, Delia again…… changed her mind.

After a few hours, she finally settled with the old pop music which was her very first choice.

Once their food arrived, Caroline simply decided to relax for awhile before tackling the strange mind of her partner. Who knows… maybe she might even get a hint on how to get into Ash's mind from her.

"So Delia…" she opened up, "What do you think about the competition lately? The Valmarian league is very interesting isn't it?"

"Absolutely" she nodded back, "But I'm sure Ash will do just great in the tournament, so I'm not worried one bit"

"But aren't you worried letting him journey alone like that?" she asked out of curiosity, "I mean, to let him travel alone around the world. Doesn't that make you nervous or anything?"

"Not at all" she replied almost cheerfully, "Ash is old enough to take care of himself, and with Brock around, I'm certain that he's in good hands. Besides, worrying about him would only make him worry about you" she quickly remembered what professor Oak said to her when she broke down at his lab garden. "And if we both worry about each other… than I would only be hindering his dreams of becoming a Pokemon master…"

"Oh…" Caroline really wasn't expecting Delia to be so emotional in that topic but I guess some people just like to have their moments.

"But… anyway!" the EMO woman suddenly turned from a serious happiness, to a jolly-oleee-happy-go-lucky girl. "How are things with you and May? I haven't seen her for awhile now!" Caroline surely wasn't expecting her to shift from one mood to the next with a flick of a finger, but decided to play along anyway.

"Oh umm… she's fine" she replied finally, "She said she was going with her friends to visit Ash at the Half Way Home Inn"

"Well I guess they must be preparing for the third round that's coming up soon" Delia chuckled.

They continued to talk and talk and talk about different topics and getting a few laughs along the way. It seemed like a normal friendly dinner, but the secrets hidden behind the table really didn't count.

Caroline really wanted to get the REAL topic on hand, but whenever she tried to being something about May and Ash, Delia would suddenly shift the talk into something non-related and simply go on with it. After they finished their meal, Mrs. Maple took a quick glance at her watch and noticed that it had already been an hour since they arrived. The night was getting old and it wouldn't be long before Delia decides to go back to her room and go to bed.

"_This isn't going as planned"_ she thought roughly, _"At this rate, Johanna will probably have her hands all over Ash by now! I must speed up the process or this meeting will be nothing more but a very expensive dinner! Come on Caroline, THINK!!! What do I do now!?"_ and then it hit her……… literally…

As her mind went into overdrive, Norman threw out a folder at her head slamming her face on the table when Delia was busy listening to the band. "Grrrr!" she crumbled out angrily like a minotaur ready to strike at the first thing it can lay its eyes on. But then all of her anger quickly vanished when she picked out the folder on the ground. She opened it and read the letter that was shoved inside silently to herself.

'Everything's ready for plan C! I've already got the essentials!'

'Norman…'

"That's right… plan C… I still have that ace in the hole for this mess" she thought to herself, "Alright Norman… let's tango!" with a flick of her finger, the lights suddenly dimmed, which made Delia stopped her clapping.

"Oh Delia" Caroline waved, "Look outside…" like a girl under a hypnotic spell, Delia gladly turned her head towards the window that overlooked the entire inner ocean of the city. At first glance there was nothing… but after a minute, some lights began to spark out. "Oooo… pretty…" Mrs. Ketchum replied stupendously.

Clearing noticing that something was wrong, Caroline decided to do a little hand signal to her husband who was also wondering what was going on. Supposedly, the lights outside should've turned on all at once illuminating a life size picture of Ash and May together. But unfortunately, the electricity in the power plants can't take the heat. With the Valmarian league happening and the tourists using every electronic device they could find, the city is probably already on its last leg.

"What's wrong with the lights!?" Caroline signaled the group with her hands with a frightening face.

Norman quickly took a quick glimpse of the 'hand signs' guide book and began signaling his wife back. "The power for this building is 200 over the limits! The power company isn't allowing anymore!"

"Then cut something out! I don't care what! Just cut it!"

**(Half Way Home Inn kitchen)**

Just as Ash finished up with his special mushroom stew, he quickly poured a bowl for himself and Rosa and took them to the inn to dine with his other Pokemons. But just when he was passing through the hallway, the lights around him suddenly dimmed, blinding him of every object around his vicinity, "Hey, is that a power surge?" unable to see where he was going, the boy accidentally slammed onto the restaurant wall thus spilling the stew all over him. "YAHHHH!!!!"

He twists and he turned and after doing a triple summersault trick, he fell down face first on the floor. "Ow…" he groaned bluntly.

**(Back at the Che'val-yere hotel diner)**

Once Norman agreed to cut the power of the building, half the city went dead, thus creating a perfect pitch black out moment. But this was exactly what Caroline needed. With no other lights to distract Delia, she can pay full attention to the picture that had been lying in wait.

Slowly… one by one the lights that were planted outside began to light up, illuminating the picture that she had taken days to perfect. But the image only lasted for a few minutes before the power plant went into immediate shutdown. But that was more than enough time for both of them to see the picture. "So Delia, what do you think?" Mrs. Maple asked innocently.

"Hmm?" but then Delia's head suddenly poked up from under the chair, "Oh I'm sorry, I dropped my spoon for a minute there. Clumsy me ahahahahaha…" Caroline's face paled like balloon that had been pricked by a needle.

Norman was banging his head on the wall…

And the chefs were practically pooped…

This was certainly an interesting night for these adults…

But just when Delia was about to say something else, she noticed a familiar figure standing by the doorway just beyond her clear sights. She'd recognize that strange hair style anywhere and the Togepi on the figure's chest made a defining impression. However… she was only able to get a slight glimpse of her.

"Oh… that's odd" she said slightly out loud which caught Caroline's attention, "Was… that Misty I just saw? Or was it someone else?"

**(Half Way Home Inn)**

A few minutes after the whole city went out in darkness, Soledad finally returned back to the inn with an exhausted look on her face. "I'm back…" she said exhaustingly. Of course, she didn't expect anyone to reply. By the time she realized that she had gone the wrong way, she had practically searched half of the Old Town District already. When the power went out she knew that time for her to head home. A dark city was no place for a charming and beautiful girl like her to be walking around freely.

"Welcome back Soledad" but then the girl's eyes widened slightly when she saw Ash cleaning himself up after the stew problem.

"Ash!" she shouted out in surprise, "Where have you been!? I was out looking for you!"

Ash jerked back a little, slightly taken back by the girl's sudden outburst, "Umm… I was here a few hours ago. Probably by six… why?"

Soledad quickly knew that she had made a grave error in her yell. So without thinking, she pulled back from the boy's face and calmed her nerves down. "Oh… nothing…" she casually spoke, "It's just that… young children like you shouldn't be walking on the streets late in the evening. It's dangerous and uhh…"

But then the boy let out a small smile across his lips, "Well, it's ok. I had Pikachu with me, so I'll be fine. But thanks for worrying about me" Soledad's face again turned bright crimson red causing her to look away from him. But to her luck, her sights set upon the bowl of her freshly made cookies, "Oh yeah that reminds me!" she yelled out, "I baked these cookies this afternoon, I think they're still good enough to eat. Try some"

"Don't mind if I do!" but just when Ash grabbed a few of them, Lewis suddenly appeared with a lit candle on his hand. "Hey there you two!" he shouted really loud just to 'intentionally' freak them out. As expected, both Ash and Soledad leaped out two feet away from the floor and shrieked like scarred little mice.

"Grandpa!" Soledad yelled angrily, "Don't do that! Are you trying to give me and Ash a heart attack!?"

"Oh I'm sorry… was I interrupting something?" the old man replied innocently before noticing the cookies, "Oh! Are those cookies? Don't mind if I have one" without even waiting for his granddaughter's reply, Lewis quickly took a dozen of them and stuffed in his mouth. "Hmm this is tasty!" with hands stickier than a thief on gold, he grabbed the bowl off her hands and gradually chow down each piece one by one.

"Wait! Grandpa, that wasn't for…" but before she could finish her sentence, the door connecting to the hallway towards the gym opened up.

"Hey Ash!" came May and Max's voice along with the rest of the group. Though both Lewis and Ash took their presence casually, Soledad didn't even know that they were here all this time. "Oh… when did you guys get here?" she asked slightly wondering how they were able to be here without her knowing.

"Oh they were in the dojo training" Ash explained, "They helped me around the restaurant this morning"

"Are those cookies?" Max noted the tasty treat on Lewis's hand.

"Oh why yes, they are" the old man chuckled, "Why don't you have some? It's the least I could give for helping Ash out" with his word, the gang quickly huddled on the bowl, taking every piece and biting all in one go.

This of course… made Soledad panic, "AHHHH!! Noooo! Grandpa, that wasn't meant for you guys! Those are for me and Ash!" but the gang were simply too loud to let her voice go in the winds.

With all of his friends busy at the moment, Ash decided to take this opportunity to sneak away with the food he was able to bring. After shutting the slide door behind him, he made a dash towards the inn where Rosa and Turtwig were waiting for his return. However, the hallway connecting to the inn was pitch black so the boy had to make sure his every step was made his care and caution.

"Hey Rosa" the boy greeted as he entered through the door, "Are you feeling better?"

"I am fine, your majesty" she answered calmly, "My wounds were not that serious. Only my pride is unhealed…" she was sitting in the same position as Ash had left her. Her lower body was folded underneath her blanket leaving only her torso and her arms to be exposed up top. Turtwig was on the sides, watching intently like a vigilant guard prepared to fight anything and anyone.

"That's good" Ash replied as he sat next to her, "I cooked this when I was in the kitchen. I spilled most of it when the power went out so that's all that's left"

"Aren't you going to eat too?" P. Lucario asked a little worried that the boy might not be having his regular proteins. "I can live without food for weeks, but… a human need food constantly"

But Ash simply waved it off, "That's ok, I've already had my share back at the restaurant. I also have these cookies Soledad made" but as usual, the boy was terrible liar and even Max could tell. But seeing that she won't be getting him to eat with her, Rosa decided to take up his offer and eat up the mushroom stew that he made.

But just as she licked the soup, her eyes widened in amazement like she had just gotten a heart attack. She took note of every flavor, every taste, and every aspect of the dish. She did a short defining scan on the bowl and made sure her senses were not failing her too. "D… did you made this yourself?!" she asked Ash to which he nodded back in return, "Who taught you how to make this?"

The boy quickly thought back for a moment and tried to recall where he had learned this dish. After awhile, he came out of thought. "Dunno…" was his answer, "I was traveling in the Johto regions for a few days. It must've sorta… got to me…"

"I knew it" Rosa's face turned from amazement to down right sad. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised since your mind was connected with 'him'…"

"Him?" Ash mimicked confused. "You mean Hsa?" she nodded back.

"Yes… when both of your minds were linked by Pallet's spell, you must've exchanged memories together. No one else knows the recipe for this dish" she starred at the plate for a moment before continuing, "He would only make this meal on special occasions. (pause) I could remember how Chaucer would try to beg him for the recipe" she forcibly held back the pain that hid beneath her heart and gritted her teeth silently to bight off the anger.

After a short pause, Ash decided to speak up "You must've really been close with him…" Rosa's eyes widened slightly to him. "I mean… if you knew him so well, then I'm sure you must've been great friends with each other" Even though she tried to hide her feelings for the late king, Ash could see her as clear as day. Perhaps the boy had a keen eye for the feelings of Pokemons rather than humans.

Unable to hold her emotions and longer, she decided to confess, "Yes…" she admitted, "Though I would not say this to the others……… the king and I…… were very close" memories of her time began to fly back onto her head, giving her that slight feeling inside.

**(Flashback) (Two million and five years ago) (Scene adapted by movie making)**

A young pink Riolu was hastily running through the forest with great agility, while at the same time picking out berries from nearby trees. After gathering a small bunch, it quickly huddled to a small meadow and gradually consumed the picked fruit. But the young Pokemon was not careless with its food. When it senses a rotten or dangerous berry, the Riolu would toss it aside for some unlucky wandering creature to pick up and eat.

"_When I was new to the world, I did not know who my parents were" Rosa explained, "I was alone in the wilderness fending for myself while at the same time looking for food. The first few months were hard but I got through them eventually"_

But just when the Riolu was just about halfway through its meal, three Sneasels appeared out of the bushes, showing their claws and fangs to the little one. The pink Riolu put up a decent fight but it was clearly outmatched in numbers and strength. By the time the three black cats were done with it, they turned to the berries that Riolu collected and began eating them without any proper manner whatsoever.

While they were busy, the wounded Riolu stood up and walked away with a grumbling stomach and a disappointing heart. It knew that it clearly stood no chance against those greedy Sneasels, but if it decided to fight for the food, then the little guy would probably get smacked right down again.

"_During that time, the empire was still in shambles, and Hsa, was not yet recognized as the king" Rosa continued, "Times were rough and sometimes, food in the wild were scarce. And because of this, I had to resort into stealing"_

After a few days of rest, the pink Riolu decided to look for some food again to feed its now empty stomach. But just when it got back to its usual harvesting spot, it noticed that the other Pokemons had already taken the good berries from the trees and left the rotten ones behind. Unable to feed itself the usual way, the Riolu turned its eyes on a small village just a few meters away from the forest. When the moon hung on top of the sky, the young Pokemon decided to sneak into one of the houses through a window.

As it made it inside, Riolu used its sharp senses to find the nearest edible object. Most of the items in the house were pretty much alien to Riolu and it even considered in taking some of them as souvenirs. But then its nose suddenly picked up something tasty. With a drool on its lips, Riolu's eyes gazed upon the basket filled with all the things that it knew was edible. Cheese, fruits and vegetables, all lined up like a well placed trap.

Having hunger take over, the Pokemon gladly rushed it and gouged through the pile like starving Aipom. But as it enjoyed the meal, it did not know that the amount of noise that it was making. Just before Riolu could take another bite off the cheese it was eating, the owner of the house quickly rushed in with a candleholder to illuminate the room. When both their eyes made contact, Riolu knew that it had to get out fast before the human makes dinner out of its flesh.

With speed of lightning, Riolu bolted away from the house and returned to the forest before the human could even react. Luckily it was able to grab a couple of bread loaves and the cheese it was biting on.

"_After awhile, I had grown to get used to that lifestyle" Rosa lowered her head slightly in shame, "I had been constantly chased away by the humans, and never once did find a friend among my kind"_

"_That must've been really hard…" Ash replied._

"_Yes… it was… but as I grew older by the months, so did the danger in the wilds as well" Rosa sneered, "One day, when I was out to forage for food, I was attacked by the same group of Pokemons"_

As the months had passed and winter season arriving, the pink Riolu decided to come out of its lair to gather food and prepare for the cold that was to come very soon. Usually by this time, most of the Pokemons would still be sleeping and that was the perfect opportunity for the little one to gather up supplies.

But just as it finished collecting the provisions, Riolu heard a small hustle coming from the bush behind its lair. As it turned back, three Weaviles appeared, scaring Riolu away. A lucky guess would say that these three were the same three Sneasels that attacked it constantly. But this time, Riolu wasn't gonna back down. The little Pokemon has worked too hard to gather these provisions for itself and the little guy wasn't gonna let them take them without a fight. With its limited strength, Riolu bravely charged at them, even knowing that it could not win.

After a valiant fight, Riolu was pushed away with a bruised face and a wounded body. But it looked like the three Weaviles weren't done with it yet. Just as Riolu tried to escape, one of the three bullies pin the little pink Pokemon on the tree trunk and starred at its tortured face for awhile. As the other two began to eat the food that it had collected, the Weavile that had Riolu by the neck decided to finish this little guy once and for all. With its claw shown, the dark cat readied to deliver the final blow.

The little Pokemon closed its eyes and gritted its teeth to prepare for the end. But just as it lost hope, a sudden jolt of electricity fired out of nowhere and slammed the three Weaviles away. Shocked by this unexpected attack, the bullies quickly dashed away, hoping that the new predator wouldn't follow them. Riolu quickly fell to the soft grass below, but since it experienced a near death situation, it began to sob then burst to a full cry.

"There there…" came a feint voice, "Are you alright? Don't cry… the big meanies are gone now. There's no need to be afraid anymore…" Riolu gently removed its paws from its face and starred at the new figure that appeared. It was a human with white hair and black tattoos embedded on his body. But Riolu did not listen, it was simply too frightened to know what was right anymore. Seeing that the little Pokemon wasn't gonna stop crying, the boy did only the logical thing to do. He carried the little Riolu in his arms and cradled it like a baby. The youngling did not know what it felt then, but when it realized that the human meant no harm, it slowly… stopped crying.

"There we go" the human said cheerfully, "Come on… don't worry, I'll protect you" and with a small encouraging smile given away, the boy gladly turned around and headed back into a small camp that he had nestled up.

"_Hsa was the one who took care of me" Rosa finished off, "He nursed me back to my health and pampered me like a new born child. I was never treated like that before, so you could say I was bit hard headed"_

"_So he saved your life?" Ash clarified._

"_Yes…" was her slow answer, "And for that reason alone I had dedicated my life in protecting him. For the kindness that he showed me on that very day, I swore that I would grow stronger and become a full fledge warrior!"_

**(End of flashback)**

"And that is how… I became a Guardian and he was also the one who named me" the girl finished with a long sigh, "But in the end, I could not fulfill that oath" she said in a mood so depressing that it bring the whole country down. "Back when the humans revolted, he protected me and sacrificed himself to end the war" she put up her left paw and gripped it tightly like she was squeezing water from a stone, "If only I had the power… if I had the power to destroy my opponents then I would've been able to protect him. But I was too weak… too weak to protect him. To protect anyone…"

"Don't say that!" Ash snapped her out of her daze, "Even if you couldn't save him from that war, doesn't mean that it's your fault" they both starred at each others eyes, not blinking even with the cold win passing through the window. "From what I know… Hsa made up his choice back at the castle" the boy conjured, "He knew what he was doing and knew what the price was going to be. I think that he… he… he just wanted you to be safe!" Rosa's eyes widened so much that her usual appearance seemed to have faded with her face. "He didn't want you to be sad. When he… he… said goodbye… I think that he also must've been worried about you. He knew that you would follow him so that's why he did what he had to do…" a silent tear slipped from the boy's face as he sat there along with his bodyguard, "So… so don't blame yourself for everything! He just wanted you to be happy!" the memories of the king slowly seeped into the boy's mind, allowing him tell how Hsa truly felt about that moment.

A long and eerie pause loomed over the room as Ash yell finally died down. Pikachu and Turtwig really wanted to say something to add to that, but the words seemed to have escaped their thoughts. Right now they could only sit and watch while the story unfolds in front of them.

"I'm sorry…" Rosa spoke out after a long while, "My emotions must've gotten the better of me. I should not have spoken about my past like that" she then returned the bowl, "I'm finished for today. You can have the rest" but then suddenly, the feelings inside Ash's heart overwhelmed him, and without even thinking, he rose on his knees and hugged Rosa with a warm embrace.

"There's no need to be afraid anymore Rosa" he whispered silently with tears running down his face, "No matter what happens… I'll be the one to protect you……… I promise" with those words running through her head, Rosa's emotions seemed to have burst out of her heart like an overflowing dam that had been weakened by the currents. The tears that she held for so long were now coming out like waterfalls flowing freely through her cheeks. As the fear of losing her power coursed through her, she returned the embrace and let her anger and sadness all out at once. The guilt and burden in her heart lifted away and in a few minutes, her tears would eventually run dry.

**(Time skip) (1 hour) (Half Way Home Inn Master's lodging)**

After Ash's gang decided to split and head back to the hotel, Soledad and her grandfather Lewis decided to turn in for the night. It has been a long and tiring day for all of them and a goodnight's rest is exactly what they need for tomorrow morning. But tonight, it seemed like Lewis wasn't going to sleep peacefully.

When the cookies were all taken away, the girl quickly plunge him into an atomic head-drive and whacked him so hard that he would have a hard time finding his brain. She had put her heart and soul into those cookies and now they were just wasted away… like they never even existed. She didn't even know that if Ash was even able to get a piece.

"Stupid grandpa, stupid Ash's friends" Soledad cursed under her futon. "I was supposed to share those cookies with Ash but then they had to go on and finish it all" she grumbled and mumbled something intelligible before continuing, "(sigh) Today's work was so busy, I didn't even get to spend any time alone with him. We could've been doing something together like having a picnic or going out in the amusement park. Why did grandpa have to draft him into this forced labor service!?" she ruffled her bed slightly fast, making an angry puff go out. "(sigh) I guess it can't be helped. Tomorrow they'll probably announce the next preliminary round and Ash will be back in his training routine. That will give me even less time with him (sigh) Man what a bum day"

She then swore a promise to herself, "That's it. Tomorrow I'm gonna spend the whole day with Ash. I'll make breakfast, cook him lunch and train with him all day if I have to! His friends are probably gonna be too tired to come all the way here so that means (hee hee) it's just gonna be me and Ash and the whole compound to ourselves. Alright! It's decided, I'll make Ash notice me tomorrow! Mwahahahahaha!"

With her sudden freakish laughter, Lewis immediately let out a worried sweat drop as he wondered if his granddaughter was still mentally sane or was having a nightmare or something.

It was going to be another long day… tomorrow…


	63. The Call To War

Chapter 63: The Call To Battle

**Chapter 63: The Call To Battle**

**(H.W.H Inn) (06:30 AM)**

Ash rose up from his sleeping position that morning as the sun rayed up on his eyes. He squinted and rolled up his futon but soon realized that he wasn't lying on any. As the sun continued to force him up he reached out for his hat which was carelessly placed on the floor and put it on his face. He didn't want to wake up any time soon because for some reason he was just dead tired. He couldn't remember how he had fallen asleep yesterday. The only thing he could recall was holding Rosa in his arms and then… blank.

'Rosa…'

The mere thought of that name made the boy opened up his eyes and looked around his room. He could see Pikachu and Turtwig sleeping side by side like pals but the pink Lucario that he was looking for was no where in sight. "Rosa?" the boy called out but no one replied. It was strange for her to disappear without him knowing. As a bodyguard it was a disgrace to leave the king unprotected.

Seeing that she wasn't there, Ash quickly went out of his room and searched the compound for her. Soledad was probably awake by now so Ash decided to go to the kitchen house first. "Hey Soledad" the boy called, "Have you seen Rosa by any chance?"

"Oh good morning Ash" the girl greeted back, "Are you looking for your Lucario? I think I saw her in the garden just a few minutes ago. I believe she's out……… training…" just before she finished her sentence, Ash was already long gone.

The boy walked a good distance away from the kitchen house to the back garden of the compound. And right to Soledad's words, the pink Lucario was right there air jabbing with her own shadow. Obviously the pink Pokemon was training, but Ash never thought that he would actually see her training like this. So instead of bothering her routine, the boy decided to sit on the sidelines and wait for her to finish. As Rosa gave out a few more punches and kicks, Ash couldn't help but chuckle out the strange irony. A few days ago, it would usually be him training and Rosa would be watching on the sidelines, but now it seems like their roles had switched.

When Rosa finished off with a round horse kick, she hastily charged up something that looked like a shadow ball and fired it up. But again… it only made a small boom from her paws. She sighed out loud and looked at the minor damage that she caused. But even if her abilities had been taken, she still had the strength and stamina to continue protecting Ash.

Clap… clap… clap…

The sound of our young hero's clapping made Rosa jerked her head around and turn into a combat stance. She couldn't believe that she had let down her guard so easily. But when she realized it was Ash, she simply let out a small bow. "Good morning Ash" she said professionally. Ash smiled back at her immediately stopping his clap. "Good morning to you too Rosa" he stated, "Are you training for something?"

The pink Lucario nodded, "I do not know why my abilities have been hampered but I'm sure it's nothing serious. Are you going to train again your majesty?"

"Yup!" he answered with a grin, "With the third round just around the corner, I have to keep myself up and healthy. I'm sure everyone's probably doing the same right now"

"Then perhaps you will allow me to join you on your training" she requested to his surprise, "I want to see what kind of special training you had in mind for us today"

"Well… I guess you could join us" the boy rubbed the back of his head confusingly, "But aren't you like… super strong already?" Rosa simply smirked back at him coolly, "I just wanted to keep myself busy. I don't really have a lot of things to do here anyway"

"Ok then" Ash balled his fist in excitement, "Then today we'll do some super special training! Let's go wake up the others and move right on it!" but just before the Guardian could reply, a sudden familiar rumble occurred on Ash's stomach making his crouch for a moment, "Ah… well… we'll do some super special training… after breakfast!" Rosa couldn't help but smile.

**(Downtown District gym)**

Gary and Jaques were once again in the Pokemon gym doing some rigorous training with their Pokemons, preparing for the upcoming 3rd round preliminaries. With nearly half of the weaklings taken out of the big picture, the veterans that were hiding among them began to surface. Gary knew that this was just another strategy of the seasoned trainers. They would hide along with the newbies and act like one of them, and when they least know it, the trainers would sprout from their lairs and pound you out of the competition if you weren't careful.

There were still probably a few million trainers and coordinators left in the battle, but didn't mean that they could just ignore that. Havic was handling the situation fairly well along with Steve and Emma, and numbers joining the gang were growing steadily with each passing day. The Bail Outs had already broke into minor factions taking what little the so called 'Elite Five' left for them. The Bicento brothers didn't really pack much of a fight but since none of them has ever seen them fight, it was hard to determine their exact fighting strength.

The only remaining and perhaps real threat to Gary's gang would probably be Soledad's gang. She held a firm grip on the Old Town District and has more connections to that place than a sewer Raticate. However right now… Soledad's group seemed to have died down significantly for some reason. There had been no news of her at all and Havic even began to believe that she must've forgotten all about the gang war.

But just when Gary was about to finish his one hundred laps around the gym, the beeping sound of his Pokedex soon caught his attention. After wiping the sweat off his face, he picked it up and answered the call in his own manner, "Hello?"

But then to his surprise, it was Professor Oak who was calling on the other line, "Gary? Is that you miboy?"

"Grandpa?"

"Gary, there you are!" Samuel said with a smile, "I haven't seen you for awhile now and I was starting to get worried"

"Sorry grandpa" Gary let out a sweat drop, "I've been training for the next preliminary round so I'm kinda busy"

"Oh yes… they did say that they were going to announce the third round tomorrow" the professor remembered, "But I'm sure you'll do fine Gary. You were always good at raising your own Pokemons"

The boy smiled at his grandfather's compliment and blushed slightly, "Oh I'm not really that great ahehehehe" as they continued to chat around random topics that happened to fly by, Jaques could not believe how different his boss acts when speaking with his old man. It was like the boy was a whole new person. He never smiled that wide to him or his crew and he never laughs publicly so wide before in his life. After a few minutes of talking, Gary suddenly popped an idea up his head.

"Oh that reminds me" he began, "Hey grandpa, are you free next week? (huh?) Well I was thinking… if you weren't doing anything next week I thought you and I could celebrate Christmas together… you know… like old times"

"Hmm… I'd love to Gary" Samuel replied as casually as he used to, "But I'm afraid I already made plans" Gary's smile died down almost instantly when he replied to him. It was like his heart had been stabbed by a rusty old knife. "You… you have?" the boy replied holding his sorrow back.

"Yes, I was planning to head over to the Half Way Home Inn together with my other friends to celebrate Christmas with Ash. He moved out of the hotel the other day to continue with his training so I thought I should give him a visit. (pause) Oh I know! Why don't you come along too? I'm sure they'll be plenty of room in the Half Way Home Inn"

But Gary's smile soon turned to frown when he, "Oh… I see… I'll check my schedule… and see if I have any conflict. I'll call you soon grandpa"

"Alright then, you take care of yourself now. Bye bye" and with one last wave of farewell, the monitor screen turned dark.

After putting his Pokedex away, Gary once again resumed his training on completing his one hundred laps around the gym. Jaques could only sit and stare at awe at his own boss. For a second there, he was acting all nice and kind, but now he was back to his cold hearted self. Did the guy have some sort of split personality change or something?

Not wanting to analyze his boss any further, Jaques decided to return to his own training regime and push on. He didn't want to get left behind in terms of strength.

**(Che'val-yere hotel lobby)**

Richie, Paul, Drew and the rest of Ash's gang were lying at their favorite spot in the entire hotel for breakfast today. When the guys woke up they didn't feel like they wanted to do anything today. Their bodies were too numb from yesterday's work and training routine and not even Max could lift a finger up.

"I feel tired today for some reason" the little boy groaned as he slouched back on his seat. May couldn't help but agree whole heartedly, "Yeah me too… working at the inn last night took a lot out of me. I can still feel my shoulder soar"

"My feet are dead tired too" Dawn added gesturing to her legs. "Even after a long night's rest and I'm still pooped"

"Hey… at least it was for a good cause" Richie added, "We helped Ash and that's what matters. Who knows? He might've been in trouble if we didn't help him"

"I agree" Duplica nodded back, "It's not everyday, Ash would ask us to help him" the girl did have a point there. As Brock thought of it now he seemed to notice that Ash barely asked anyone for help nowadays. "Yeah… you're right" he agreed wholeheartedly.

But just as they relaxed around their own areas of the sofa, professor Oak suddenly appeared before them, "Hello there everyone" he greeted.

"Good morning professor Oak" they greeted back together except for Paul who was busy groveling on his own seat.

"You all look pretty tired. Did something happen?" the old man noted their tired and exhausted expression on their faces. If one would see this, they might actually find more cheers in a graveyard.

"We're all just tired from yesterday professor" Tracey answered releasing a sigh at the end. "Even after a night's rest we still feel soar"

"Well why don't you all take a break today?" the professor recommended, "After training for so long it would be nice to relax once in awhile. Like my mentor told me…"

'Hard working is good

But working too hard will only make you a lazy worker in the end'

"Well it'll be nice to have a break now and then" Johanna agreed, "Maybe we should take the day off and chill out a little bit. Besides… if I work too hard I might just grow wrinkles around my face… (sigh)" but Drew only let out a laugh in return, "Oh come on Ms. Johanna. It's natural for old people to get wrinkles, its just the way of life" but that comment only earned him a few noggins on the head. By the time Johanna gave out her own karate chop, lumps after pumps appeared on the green haired boy's head.

"Hey, why don't we go back to the hot spring in the Half Way Home Inn?" Dawn recommended, "I'm sure that Ash would love to see us again" a bunch of murmurs agreed on that topic but just before they could move another inch, Paul came into the picture.

"Would you guys be any louder?" he said annoyingly, "Why don't we just sit here and relax? If we go there we'll just be bother to his training. He'll need complete focus if he's going to defeat his long time rival" at first they all thought that he was thinking about Gary, but later did they realize that he was actually talking about himself.

"Ah… hey! Who are you calling Ash's rival!?" Richie intervened.

"Isn't it obvious?" Paul motioned, "He's going to need all the focus he needs to fight against me when we match up. I am his rival after all"

"You wish! I'm the one who he calls rival!" Richie grunted back in annoyance. "Besides, I was the one who beat him back at the Indigo Plateau four years ago!"

"Tch… you were probably just lucky"

"What did you say!?" Richie fumed, "I'll tell you I've been with Ash longer than you have! And there's no way he would ever consider you to be his rival"

"Please…" Paul remarked sarcastically, "You obviously weren't there when we had our match at the Shinou league. He's way surpassed peons like you a long time ago. Why don't you go find someone else as a rival, like that annoying wimp over there" he gestured to Dawn who was listening to their conversation.

"HEY! Who are you calling an annoying wimp you little creep!" the blue haired coordinator shot back jokingly angrily. "Just because you can beat me in a battle, that doesn't give you the right to call me a wimp!"

"That's right!" Richie added, "Besides, only I'm worthy of becoming Ash's rival!" and right before the gang knew it, the three of them were already arguing on who was really Ash's rival. Man… talk about dignity and pride.

"Oh man" Brock grumbled, "I feel like I'm having another rerun of the Shinou regions again. Talk about your average dejavu" looking at this argument now, it only looked like one of those times that Ash, Paul and Dawn were fighting over something so trivial. "Hey guys" he tried to stop them from tearing each other apart, "Come on now, I'm sure Ash considers all of you to be his rival"

"YOU STAY OUT OF THIS!!" they yelled back together in unison. Brock was simply taken back by the sudden outburst and hid behind the couch in a grumbling mood. But before the three of them could continue their argument, another voice came in to stop the fight.

"I doubt any of you are worthy of being called Ash's rival" Drew suddenly interrupted which caught the attention of the three. "What do you mean, Drew?" Dawn questioned to which the guy gladly answer, "All of you are great trainers that much I won't lie" he began, "But in this league, it seems like Ash only has eyes for his one true rival… and that is of course… Gary. But of course he might lose interest in him if someone were to… oh how should I saw… beat him?"

"You mean, defeat Gary?" May tilted her head slightly to the sides in question.

"Yes, if someone were to beat Gary, Ash's long time rival… then I have no doubt that he would immediately turn his attention to that person instead" the green haired boy finished with a shrug, "but I doubt any of you could possibly achieve that feat"

But that did not demoralize the trio at all. In fact… May thinks that he just made it even worst. The three rival-rivals starred at each other with their powerful gaze, as if they were trying to say something out loud.

"So it's decided then?" Paul inquired to which Richie nodded back in reply, "The one who defeats Gary becomes Ash's true rival. No sorry side backs"

"You got it" Richie replied holding a hand in shake. Paul returned the gesture and smirked. "This is going to be easy. I can beat Gary with one hand tied behind my back"

"Please… you can't even tie your shoe laces with your eyes closed" Paul replied sarcastically.

But Brock simply let out a sigh, "Oh boy… talk about your average rivalry"

"But from what we've seen so far, I don't think Gary is an opponent we can beat so easily" Zoey interrupted, "He and Ash drawed in the first round of the preliminaries so that means he must've had a lot of experience too. And from what I saw back during the practice round, he knows a lot of Ash's techniques"

"Yeah" Brock agreed, "Those two have been battling it ever since they started out on their journey. It's not surprising that they know about each other's way of battling" Paul and Richie nodded in agreement. They knew how powerful Gary was, and to match up against him would be like a warm up for a battle against Ash.

"His technique mostly resembles Ash in almost everyway" Paul notified them, "Back when the two of them battled, I noticed that Gary made some attacks that I've never seen before. That Hydro beam cannon was not in one of Blastoise's attack list and I doubt he was cheating either"

"If it's not one of Blastoise's attacks, then how can he use it?" Dawn questioned him as she sat back down on her seat. "I mean, aren't Pokemons limited to only their attacks?" but this only made Paul gave out a huge sweat drop and a sigh.

"Haven't you been paying attention to anything that's been happening at all for the past few days?" he groaned out loud. "Remember Ash's Pikachu? Those attacks that he gave out weren't on the list either. He simply used the attacks but blended them in different ways making them more powerful. Ash relies on strategy and strength, just like Gary. If you put these two trainers in one field, you got yourself a battle of a life time"

"I'm not surprised that he managed to do that" Zoey added, "After seeing him perform in contest battles it's only natural that he put them in battles as well"

"Yeah, even though he's a trainer, he'd still make a great coordinator" May agreed wholeheartedly. "Even I tend to forget that he's a Pokemon trainer myself"

"But something still bothers me" Brock said suddenly which grabbed the attention of the gang. "Ever since we first met him back at the Arena District, there was something strange about Gary. When those two met, I suddenly felt this strange vibe going up my skin"

"Yeah, I felt it too" Zoey responded almost automatically, "But isn't it normal? They are rivals after all"

If Zoey had said that, weeks ago, Brock would've agreed to that theory. But right now… something else seemed to be bothering his mind, "I'd like to think that too" he stated, not slightly amused at all, "But usually when I see him, he'd have a more friendly welcome. I think he's changed somehow…… and I think Ash noticed it too"

"Maybe you're just thinking too hard Brock" professor Oak replied, "Gary may look different since he's hanging out with other friends, but inside, he's still the same boy that I knew four years ago. The two of them started their journeys at the same time and I don't think Ash had changed one bit at all. He may not be the heard headed boy that left Pallet town, but he's still the same kind hearted boy that I remember. Those two will never change in my eyes"

The others gradually nodded to the old professor's word of wisdom and accepted that the boys had not change at all. Who knows? It might just be their imagination…

"What's this Samuel? Still giving some words of wisdoms to your students?" the gang quickly turned their attention to the side where professor Rowan was smiling at them.

"Professor Rowan" they all said in unison.

"I see you're up early Rowan" Samuel added with a smirk.

"And I see you're still using our old teacher's sayings over and over again"

Samuel simply flushed in embarrassment, "Ahehehehe… well… old habits do have a tendency to die hard ahehehehe. Oh by the way, are you going to the islands again?"

"Yes I am…" Rowan nodded back, "The numbers of Pokemons have increased dramatically. It might've even doubled since yesterday"

"Doubled? That's impossible" Samuel replied in disbelief, "The last time I checked, the population only overextended to the western islands"

"Yes, but today, the Rangers reported many more Pokemons coming from the southern islands" Rowan explained trying not to shake his mood, "But something seems a little strange about these Pokemons. (huh?) A lot of trainers tried to catch one of them, but they appear stronger and more versatile than I expected. I'm about to head off to the south camp right now and do a little more research. Would you like to join me?"

"No thanks professor" professor Oak waved it off, "The third preliminary round is going to be announced soon and I wouldn't want to miss it for the world"

"Hehehehehe… that's just like you Samuel" Rowan laughed, "Always thinking about others before yourself. (pause) Oh… that reminds me. There's been a rumor going around the Pokemon Headquarters for a few weeks now"

"A rumor?"

"Yes……… they say that an old man with long white mustache and wearing a top hat has been going around the city lately. He also appear to be holding an old cane stick too. Sounds like anyone you know?"

"A top hat? A cane stick? Long mustache?" Samuel listed down the key words and slowly thought of the person Rowan was trying to tell him. After a moments thought, the old man's face quickly turned to that of a surprised kid, "Wait! Are you saying…?"

"It's only a rumor" Rowan repeated before trailing off, "Anyway, I'm heading off now. Good luck with the third round everyone"

"We will professor" they all said in unison.

**(Downtown District) (07:00 AM)**

Kevin and the remaining members of the Elite Fives were taking a stroll in the downtown area today to get some fresh air out of their system. After the 2nd round had ended, trainers and coordinators have begun to get a little restless nowadays. Everyone was expecting the 3rd round to appear a week after the battle had been settled, but it looks like things were taking a turn for the worst.

"Ah… such a nice day isn't it?" Kevin said to his weary gang members. "A morning walk always relaxes a man to the muscles. Don't you agree my friends?" but the gang members only looked back at him exhaustingly. A wild guess would say that they had been forcefully taken out of their beds and brought out here to have a morning jog for this young boy's sake. Claire was carrying a sleeping Eesal on her back with and Kyle looked like he only had an hour sleep last night. "Oh… what's the matter everyone? Aren't you happy along with me?"

"Who can be happy at a morning like this!!" the water Pokemon trainer yelled out, "You dragged us all the way out of our beds early in the morning, forced us to take a stroll with you and you expect us to be happy!! The stores and restaurants aren't even open at this time!! How can you possibly expect us to be happy!!" if the guy yelled a bit more, his hair would've already been ripped off from his head making him bald.

"For once I agree with Kyle" Claire nodded, "Seriously boss, what could we possibly do at a time this early? A girl like me needs my beauty sleep and carrying Eesal on my back makes me look like she's my daughter. It's a bad image for me you know"

"Oh come on now you two" Kevin smiled back at them chibily, "It's that negative attitude that makes you losers. Since Binor's gone, we have to keep our spirits up"

Claire simply let out a sweat drop in return, "I hate to say this… but I'm starting to miss Binor. At least with him, we'd have someone to insult to"

"Yeah…" Kyle agreed while trying to keep his eyes from falling.

But then their loud voices suddenly woke up the sleeping child on the girl's back, "Huh?" Eesal spoke out groggily, "Where are we? Hey Kevie… are we in a candy store? I'm hun…… gry… zzzzzzzzz… zzzzz" after a moment she slowly went back to her sleeping state.

"Well… just like that. Out like a light" Claire groaned as she turned towards Kevin, "That's it, I'm going home. The mall doesn't open in another hour, see ya later!" and with that she began walking away, but it looks like Kevin wasn't gonna let her go that easily.

"Wait Claire!" the boss squealed, "Come on now. Just walk with us for just another hour and I'll buy you anything you want!" the red head immediately stopped on her track like she just hit the breaks on full pressure. She seemed to be in the state of undecided, but was quickly falling on Kevin's side… fast. "I'll even let you use my V-card…" Kevin added holding a silver card on his hand. Claire seemed to be wobbling on the effect now and all that was left was to put in the final touches, "I might even buy that pair of expensive boots for you"

And instantly like magic, Claire submitted to his will. "Well, I guess I could walk with you for awhile. But we're going to the mall after this"

Kyle's jaw dropped, "How could you submit to money so easily!?"

"Excellent!" Kevin chuckled with delight. "Then off we go! A walk in the park, here we come!" and with that, the last four members of the Elite Fives headed out for a stroll around the city. I guess guys like them need time for themselves nowadays.

**(Back at the H.W.H Inn) (11:12 AM)**

Soledad was walking down the road near the inn with two heavy shopping bags in her hands. She had just recently went to the Pokemart to purchase some supplies for the inn storage and since Lewis wasn't around she could spend the whole day with Ash training and perhaps clean up the place for a bit. "Oh dear……… I guess that shopping took a lot longer than I thought" she sighed out loud as she hurried back to the inn, "I left the inn so early I didn't even got to make breakfast for Ash. He probably already ate without me. Haaaa…… oh well I guess it can't be helped. I think I'll just clean the inn until lunch. Though the inn was definitely looking a lot better than it did before, no thanks to grandpa, the second and third floors still need a little fixing. Maybe I'll ask Ash to help me" but just as she was walking to the main entrance of the inn, she noticed a tall figure standing in front of the door, "Huh? Who's that guy?"

The man was wearing complete green attire. He had a green shirt covered with a green cape, long green pants and a green hat to top it all. He had long hair that went pass his shoulders, which covered one of his eyes, and along his waist were several Pokeballs and a harp that was shaped into a Mew. From Soledad's observation, he was either a Pokemon trainer or a musician.

Just when she approach, the man quickly noticed her presence, "Umm… excuse me miss. Can this be the Half Way Home Inn?" Soledad nodded back in response.

"Yes it is" she answered, "But we're closed today"

"Oh, but I saw this ad on the streets this morning and I was wondering if it was still available" he pulled out an ad and showed it to the girl. Soledad slowly scanned the contents of the ad and quickly became confused. Somehow, her grandfather must've placed this ad to get attention back to the inn. Apparently he was trying to get a musician to the inn to increase the customer ratings.

"Haaa? Musician hiring? I didn't hear grandpa say anything about this" she groaned, "Oh well, my grandpa isn't coming back yet so why don't you wait inside for now? I'll make some tea for you"

"Oh why thank you" the man replied, "But I doubt that tea is necessary"

"Alright then. You can stay here for now. I have to prepare lunch soon" and with that, Soledad hurriedly rushed to the kitchen to prepare her meal. Knowing Ash, he'll probably be hungrier than ten Snorlaxes combined. He had quite an appetite for a 14 year old boy.

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With Soledad busy in the kitchen and the guest sitting patiently in the waiting room, Ash was having his own time training with his Pokemons. He and Pikachu were again on their little training streak, using all kinds of combination to strengthen up their attacks and the other Pokemons were doing the same. But what surprised the others was the fact that Rosa (Lucario) and Entei were also joining the fight. Even though the Guardian no longer had her powers, that didn't mean that she had to lie back on her training. She still had a duty to protect Ash and that was more than enough reason to put her back in gear.

But as she looked around the compound, she couldn't help but think that Ash had a personal army of his own. Every Pokemon that the boy had caught were strong enough to hold on their own against a small band of attackers and heck, she even thought that they would even make worthy Chosens in her arsenal. Not only were they strong, but also Ash seemed to have taught them how to think on their feet. From her POV it became a little hard to imagine that they could actually grow much stronger than this.

"Alright Pikachu, use thunderbolt on Totodile!" Ash commanded which Pikachu gladly complied to his orders. The alligator Pokemon quickly jumped out of the way and began dodging the attacks Pikachu was giving out. "Good work Totodile, keep it up. With that kind of agility, dodging attacks won't be a problem for you (Todotodotodotododile!)" the water Pokemon began jumping and dancing happily as he was proud to meet his master's expectation. "Ok, you two keep that up. Now Cyndaquil, use flame thrower up in the sky!"

The moment the little fire Pokemon complied, all of Ash's flying Pokemon gathered around where the fire was. This of course confused Rosa.

"Alright, Noctowl, Staravia, Swellow, Glalie, Heracross Gligar, circle around the fire!" the flying Pokemons gladly began circling around the fire, using its heat to create some sort of pattern. "Good, now Noctowl, use peck, Swellow, aerial ace, Glalie, headbutt, Gligar, X-scissor, Heracross, megahorn, Staravia, steel wing!" the flying Pokemons all combined their attacks in the fire and with one flip of the attack, they cut through Cyndaquil's flame and flew around continuously with fire trailing not far behind. Their attacks met head on, but surprisingly none of them were damaged.

"Incredible…" Rosa thought aloud.

After the attack was done, Ash gently wipe the sweat off his forehead and took off his hat to let the hot air out of his hair. "Phew… alright… I think that's enough for today. You all rest for today. We'll have some more training tomorrow" three hours of training wasn't bad but it was still morning and training before lunch time surely gave all of them a well built appetite.

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As Ash and Pikachu returned to the main room they thought that Soledad would've prepared something big for them to chow on, but all they got was an empty room and an empty dining table. "Eh? That's strange… I thought Soledad would've finished lunch by now (Pika?) Hmm… maybe she hasn't come back from shopping yet" not being able to wait too long for his meal, Ash decided to check up in the kitchen. "Hey Soledad, are you here? Soledad? Hello? (silence) Hmm… Soledad, is that youahhh!!" just when Ash opened up the slide door, he suddenly stumbled upon Soledad as she was carrying a tray full of the treats that they were supposed to eat.

"Yahh!" Soledad yelped and in the midst of the panic she poured everything in her tray right onto Ash.

"Owww…" the boy groaned painfully. But luckily for Pikachu, the little guy was able to dodge the food strike before it actually hit him. "That… hurt…"

"Oh Ash!" when Soledad realized who it was she quickly pulled the boy up. "I'm so sorry. I was so busy thinking that I didn't see where I was going"

"T… that's ok…" the boy chuckled back, "I've been through worst than this. But the food taste great though… ahehehehehe" but just when the two of them were able to get back up, Soledad suddenly lost balance on the soup-wet floor and tumbled, "Whoa… wahh!" Ash tried to catch her but her weight made him lose his balance as well and quickly fell to the ground. "Owww…" the two of them groaned together.

A few seconds later they began to get up, but soon Soledad noticed that the two of them were in a strangely compromising position. She was on top of him and the door sides made it impossible for her to move away so they had to remain that way for a little while. Ash's face was so close to hers that she could practically feel his breath on her face. She was thinking that this was some kind of message from the heavens giving her a chance.

Not surprising, their faces were flushed in embarrassment. None of them could conjure up the words that would explain this, heck I don't think anyone can.

But just when Soledad was about to open her mouth again, the sound of the toilet door being closed suddenly grabbed their attention. Apparently the guest was using the rest room a few minutes ago after he had entered. ""Hmm… hmm… hmmm" the guy in green was humming a strange tune, completely unaware of the two's position.

But strangely enough, Ash seemed to recognize the man in an instant, "Nando?" he said his name in a question form.

After the man used his handkerchief to wipe his hands, he suddenly noticed the two only employees down on the ground in a very compromising position. "Oh… oh my…… I'm sorry. I didn't meant to interrupt" and with that he slowly went back into the rest room to give the two of them some time. Immediately the two trainer's faces began to go as red as a tomato. You could even hear the steam coming out of their heads.

After another minute or so they immediately got out of that position and rushed off, "Wait! It's not what you think!"

**(Ten minutes later)**

After pulling the guest out of the rest room, Ash quickly realized that he was right. The man was none other than Nando, a friend and rival of the boy. Once the two employees of the Half Way Home Inn were out of that strange position, Soledad headed back to the kitchen to brew some tea for the both of them. She didn't know that Ash had such a strange and unique friend from so far away.

"Oh I see…" said the man now known as Nando as he sipped through a cup of tea, "So Ash, you're participating in the Valmarian league as well?"

The boy in question nodded back in reply, "Yeah, but I'm surprised to see you here as well"

"Well, that's make two of us" the harpist replied, "I couldn't believe it myself but when I received this letter of invitation I was ecstatic. But for you to participate wasn't a surprise. I always knew that the great champ would make his appearance here sooner or later (Pikapika) Oh and hello to you too Pikachu. I see that you're as energetic as usual"

"Ahehehehehehe… I'm not that great" Ash replied modestly blushing behind. He then noticed that Soledad was starring at them, like she was expecting something for him to say, "Oh anywy. Nando, I'd like you to meet Soledad, the winner of the Kanto Grand Festival two years straight. Soledad, this is Nando. He was my rival back in the Shinou region. He's both a trainer and a coordinator"

"It's a pleasure to meet you" Nando politely shook her hand as he chuckled, "I never imagined that I would one day see the girlfriend of the great Ash Ketchum" this made the two of them blush madly red as they waved around in denial.

"What?! Nononononononononono!! Yougot it allwrong! I'mnothisgirlffriend ahehehehehehehe!" Soledad was speaking probably five-hundred words per second in a rhythm that not even the heavens could decipher.

But Nando only tilted his head in confusion, "Oh? But I thought you two were… oh well… never mind then"

Ash laughed back nervously, "Ahehehe…… well umm… anyway, why are you here Nando?"

"Oh I saw this ad in the hotel I was staying" he showed the same ad to Ash, which the boy read immediately, "When the Valmarian league came to a stop, I couldn't afford to stay in the hotel anymore so I came here looking for that job offer. It says that I get to stay in the inn and have three meals for free as well"

"Hmm… grandpa must be trying to get someone to live here again" Soledad added. "But strangely though… it looks like you're the only one to show up" the three of them turned their attention outside the window where it was silent as a graveyard. With no battles and no shows coming up the entire city looked like it had been deserted. But it wasn't much of a surprise in this district. The Old city district never really had that much attention in the first place so seeing its streets and buildings empty as a ghost town was nothing new. Knowing full well that no one else was coming, Soledad let out a sigh. "Well, I don't think anyone else is coming so we might as well settle you in. Ash, why don't you show him around the inn, and I'll go make us some lunch (again)"

"Oh that's not necessary" Nando added, "I had a big breakfast this morning ahehehehehe"

"No problem" Soledad replied, "Besides, a friend of Ash is a friend of mine" and with one last smile she quickly head off to the kitchen to start with lunch.

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Following Soledad's instructions, Ash decided to show Nando the compound so that he could familiarize himself with the place as soon as possible. "Alright, here's one of the room that I cleaned up this morning" Ash showed him to a room on the first floor which was next door to his, "It's not much but it's good enough to stay in. The toilet for men is just over there and the hot spring is over by that hallway"

The room wasn't any different from Ash's room. It was a simple square room with a table, a lamp, a cabinet with several futons in it and a couple of other knickknacks that would be useful. To say the least, it was more than enough for any trainer.

"This is quite alright Ash" Nando replied, "I must say it's nicer than my hotel room back in the 2nd Residential Area. Are you staying here as well?"

"Actually, I'm working here" the boy clarified.

"Oh? But where are the others?" Nando was probably referring to his gang members, "I remember seeing Dawn, Zoey and Kenny back in the Arena District during the second round"

"Oh they're in another hotel" Ash explained, "I moved in here with Soledad so that I could use the gym to train my Pokemons"

"I see… so those were your Pokemons out there? I see that you've caught a lot of them" he gestured to the many Pokemons that were out playing in the garden. "Oh my my… you certainly have a lot of Pokemons from different regions don't you?"

"Yeah, they're all my friends" Ash chuckled back as he watch his pals play around the flower bushes, "I can't believe it's already been four years since I started on my journey. (pause) By the way Nando, did you sign up as a trainer or a coordinator?"

"Well… I love Pokemon battles as much as I love contests. I couldn't really decide at first… but in the end I decided to go for Pokemon battles"

"Really? Why's that? I thought you'd enter as a coordinator since you were so good at appeal battles" Ash pointed out.

"Well the reason should be obvious Ash" Nando said affectionately, "The reason why I joined Pokemon battle was because…" but before he could continue with his sentence, a sudden fire monkey approach the window where the two of them were looking at. "Huh? Oh what's this? (Chim chimchar chim!)"

"Hey there Chimchar" Ash greeted his little fire monkey as he joined Pikachu on the boy's shoulder, "Ah hey there… don't get to carried away now ahehehehehe"

"Ah… is this the same Chimchar you caught while back in the Shinou region?" Nando said in surprise, "My my… it looks like Chimchar's grown a lot since I last saw him (Chim chim) Hmmhmm… and I must say that he's as cheerful as ever. You certainly know how to raise your Pokemons Ash"

"Thanks… but what about your Pokemons Nando? I haven't seen you since the Johto Grand Festival after I left the Shinou region"

"Well truth be told Ash, I haven't been participating in a lot of Pokemon battles or contest myself since that last match in Johto" the harpist leaned down back on the wall to relax a little, "I've been taking a little break for the past few months to get out of the world of battle for awhile. I figured that I could use the rest. But you Ash… you seem to be looking for battles everywhere. Every time I look into a book or a magazine I would always see your picture there"

"Ahehehe…… I guess fame does have its back drops ahehehehehe"

"But I must say that you've grown to be quite popular to everyone in the world. I traveled around the countryside and every time I go in a Pokemon center I would hear your name being chanted in the television or spoken through the trainers nearby" Nando slowly removed his hat and settled it on the table, "But I guess you earned it Ash. After all… you did beat the Elite Four of every region and became champ. I can't wait till we fight again on the battlefield"

"Hey, don't worry. Just don't anything back on me" Ash countered, sending a challenging glance back at his friend/rival. "Cuz you know I won't hold anything back either"

"I expect nothing less from the champion" but just when they were about to go out for a little friendly battle, another voice popped in.

"Oh, hello there Ash" Lewis called to him.

Ash quickly jerked his head around and smiled, "Oh hey there Lewis. You're back"

The old man then noticed Nando who gave him a respectful bow, "And you must be Nando. I hear from my granddaughter that you're an old acquaintance of Ash and you're here for that offer I posted in the ad this morning"

"Yes I am" Nando answered to both questions. "I hear you're looking for a musician for late night openings. I learned a few songs back when I was traveling around the world and I'm quite handy around the place as well. I hope I meet your expectation"

"Well usually I would wait for others to join up… but…" Lewis scrubbed his mustache a little bit, a little unsure if he should wait a little longer.

"Hey, Nando here can play a lot of music Lewis" Ash vouched for him, "He played to me back when I first came to the Shinou region a few years back. Hear one of his songs and I'm sure you'll love it (Pikachu) (Chimchar chim)"

"Well… if Ash is vouching for you… I guess I could give it a shot. Very well Nando, I'll give you a try. Why don't we head back to the restaurant and we'll hear your songs?"

"Thank you sir. I promise you won't be disappointed" with a slight bow, the three of them hastily made their way to the restaurant building to see what Nando can play.

**(Downtown District Park) (01:20 PM)**

"Grrrrrrrrooooooaaaaaannnnn…" that was the sound of James stomach rumbling after eating six buckets of ice cream from the stands. Apparently no one was buying any of the ice cream because of three reasons. One, it was winter, two, they didn't have the right flavors, and three, the ice cream already melted and so it wasn't ice cream but melted cream cones they were selling. "Oh my stomach…" the blue haired boy grumbled as he rubbed his aching belly.

"I don't think I'll be seeing any ice cream trucks any time soon" Meowth added also in the same position as James. "My stomach feels like its gonna explode"

"Oh quit your whining, you weak stomachs!" Jessie yelled at them even though she was feeling kind of woozy herself. "You were hungry a few minutes ago and now you're grunting about being too full!"

"But Jessie, my stomach really feels like its made out of lead" James replied as she slugged himself from the ground, "There's still some ice cream around here if you want ahehehe… (groan) Oh…" the man nearly barfed out the contents of his stomach as he tried to stand up from his crouched position.

But just when the three of them were about to doze off, a voice suddenly crept in. "Excuse me, I'd like two scoops of chocolate cones and one scoop of vanilla please"

The trio quickly got back on their feet and smiled at their new customers, "Hello and welcome to Rocket Ice Cream!" they said in unison.

"Two scoops of chocolate and one vanilla cone coming right up" James added as he picked the bucket up. But then he quickly stopped when he noticed who the customers were.

"Well well well… would you look at this…" said Cassidy grinning at them mockingly, "Three losers in a barrel. I guess you guys must have more in common than I thought"

"Cassidy…" Jessie began.

"And Barf…" Meowth added which Butch only groaned in reply. "IT'S BUTCH!!" but then the trio noticed a third party in the group. A girl about the same age as Ash, but her face was strangely familiar. "And… who's this girl?" the blonde girl in question simply face faulted on the ground with a loud thud.

"It's me Domino, you nimrods!" the girl yelled out loud.

"Oh now I remember you" James notified, "You're the boss's number one agent"

"What are you doing, teaming up these Miltank fertilizers?" Jessie added to which Domino only smirked on, "Unlike you three, I realize that team work is essential in completing a mission. So I decided to go with the big dogs for a little while longer"

"We promise a share in fame and glory" Butch added as he grinned at them, "While you three are busy selling 'ice cream' we've been planning a secret operation to make Team Rocket become so infamous that the other team will be nothing but rats and mice"

"A secret operation?" the first trio Team Rocket members said in unison.

"Yup, a secret operation! Oooooofff!"

"Which isn't a secret anymore because you told them!" Cassidy whammed a mallet at the guy's head giving him lumps, which had lumps and a couple of stars rolling around it. "Anyway… we'll be busy for a few days in the future so see ya later whimps hahahahahahahahahahaha!!" and with that the three of them walked away laughing with a badly beaten Butch trailing not far behind.

When Butch, Cassidy and Domino were out of sight, Jessie clenched her fist down and slammed it on the ice cream stand, breaking it into tiny bits and pieces. "Grr…… those two girls makes me so angry I could just destroy something (you just did) Alright you two, we need a plan to snatch that Pikachu now!"

"But Jessie, we tried everything already" James reasoned, "Remember the last four times we tried to get in the compound?"

**(First try)**

Team Rocket tried to sneak in the Half Way Home Inn by digging underground to pass through all of its defenses at night. They were able to get through the wall but just when they were able to surface, the accidentally dug into the hot spring. The water poured in and caused a minor cave-in which sealed the hole for all eternity…

**(Second try)**

Seeing that going under the defenses was hopeless, the team decided to go over it by flying with kite like equipments. It was an old ninja way of getting to castles and heavily defended fortifications. The trio were again able to get pass the defenses, but just when they were about to drop in and begin their stealing operation, the wind suddenly changed directions which flung them far from their course and into a concrete building.

Their faces smashed against the hard wall, making a permanent print on the windshield. During the next day, the window cleaner came in and found the window to be a strange place for someone to put his or her face on.

**(Third try)**

After learning from their previous attempts to get into the compound, Team Rocket decided to fling themselves into the compound using a medieval catapult which they easily using old metal parts and wood. When Jessie, James and Meowth were settled on board, Wubbuffet immediately pulled the lever, which sent the three of them, flying into the air. At first they thought that it was going to work, but soon they realized that the power of the catapult was greater than they had expected and before they knew it, they were already way pass their target and later… the entire city could hear, "We blasted ourselves off again!!"

**(Fourth try)**

Ticked off and annoyed by their multiple failures, Jessie decided to go on in for a head on assault. Sure it was a suicide mission, but she was already out of options and thinking of another plan took a lot of time. With a Team Rocket banner in her hand, a couple of toy katanas in their holsters and all of them wearing samurai armors used in a school plays, they charged in like madmen and gave out a jubilant battle cry to ring the day.

But just before they could even take a step into the inn, they immediately fell into the hole that they dug during their first try. And while they were busy trying to get themselves out of the hole, Soledad came out from the inn, preparing to go shopping. "Hmm? Did I hear someone just now? (pause) Hmm… I guess it must be the wind"

**(Back to reality)**

After hearing all of their failed attempts listed down, Jessie got even more annoyed by them, "If you two keep lingering on your failures, you'll never get out of it! Come on you two, pull it together and let's get moving! We have a Pikachu to capture!"

"I don't know Jess" Meowth interrupted, "Cassidy and Biff (Butch) look pretty confident about their secret operation. Maybe we should follow them and try to find out what they're planning"

"I agree with Meowth" James nodded, "Who knows, we might learn a thing or two about their plan if we follow them"

Jessie didn't really want to change her mind, but she had to admit that she was a little curious about the 'not so secret' operation that Butch and Cassidy were planning. They were never this confident before and she doubt that it had anything to do with Ash or his Pikachu, "Oh alright. I guess we could look at their plans for a little while" she reluctantly admitted, "Alright, disguises everyone!"

**(Back at the H.W.H. Inn)**

The sweet melody of Nando's harp echoed through the corridors of the inn that afternoon. When Ash recommended him to play one of his favorite songs the lunch that they were all having turned into a paradise none of them could even possibly imagine. The soup they ate tasted sweeter and the flavor the food became stronger than usual which gave it that more unique. Even Ash's Pokemons couldn't help but allow the notes of the song put them into a minor trance.

Lewis himself was very much enjoying the whole song. He could tell that Nando had spent a great deal of time practicing and learning every string like it was just another part of his body. The sounds that came out of the harp were literally music to his ears. It made him remember some of the good old days and even made him feel a little younger.

After the last string was strung, Nando opened his eyes and smiled at his first audience, waiting for their first impression. "Well, what do you think?"

"I think that was great" Soledad was the first to comment, "Where did you learn to play like that?"

"My mother used to sing this song when I was still a child" the musician explained, "I don't really remember the lyrics, since I was young. Besides… I always went to sleep before she could even finish ahehehehehe"

"Well I think it was awesome" Ash grinned, "What do you think Lewis?" the three of them turned their heads towards the old man who could only smile back at them.

"Well… uhh… since you two find it great then I guess I don't have much of a saying in this hehehehehe" he laughed slightly, "Very well Nando, you got the job. You can start tomorrow. Since you're participating in the Valmarian league, I'll even let you use the gym and the hot spring for free. How's that sound?"

"Splendid…"

And with the final decision made, Ash quickly let out a yell of victory along with his Pikapal. "Alright! Nando's staying! I can't wait for your turn to play"

"Hmmhmm… that's makes the two of us Ash hehehehe"

While the boy was happily yipping to himself, Soledad couldn't help but note his smile. The boy really had so much charm that it would make Elvis look like a ten year old kid. There was just something about him that made him so attractive. Though she didn't exactly know what it was, she didn't mind. The boy had the charms and that was enough for her.

"Ok then" the girl said suddenly, "Since we got ourselves a new employee, let's have a welcome party for him. I'll even make everybody's favorite!"

"Alright (Pikapikachu)!!" Ash cheered some more which almost made him fall off the table.

But just before either of them could take another step forward, a strange yet oddly familiar voice suddenly occurred from outside. The entire city went silent as if someone had pressed a mute button that silenced the entire populace with a single click. Mouths, radios and even televisions were hushed and all ears turned their attention to the speakers.

"Attention… all Pokemon trainers, attention all Pokemon trainers who are still participating in the Valmarian league" the voice began, "Please come to the Arena District immediately for an announcement of the third preliminary round. I repeat… all trainers who are still participating in the Valmarian league please come to the Arena District immediately for an announcement of the third preliminary round. Attendance is mandatory. That is all…" and right with a click of a button… the whole city went into chaos!

Ash, Soledad and Nando hastily drop whatever they were doing and rushed out of the inn faster than Lewis could decipher what was really going on.

"Hurry Soledad, let's go!" Ash rushed her.

"We'll travel faster by car" she reasoned as she dangled the keys up, "Grandpa, I'm borrowing the van for a minute. Everyone, hop in!" with a single order, Ash, Pikachu, Rosa and Nando got on board like troopers readying to be deployed on a battlefield. "Alright… if we hurry, we might just beat the traffic!" when the engine started up, the girl stepped the on pedal harder than a hammer on a nail. "Hold on tight!!" and with that, they were off.

**(Che'val-yere hotel entrance)**

The entrance of the hotel was a war zone for taxis. When the announcement finished, Ash's gang immediately rushed out the lobby along with a few hundred other trainers to find a quick ride to the Arena District.

"Taxi!" Johanna called out waving her hands up, "Taxi, over here!" luckily for her, it was a van taxi which had enough room to hold everyone in. "Alright, Dawn, May, Anabel, Zoey, Duplica, you girls take the back seat. Cynthia, and I will take the front seats. Richie, Paul, Kenny, Drew, you guys take center. Norman, you can be luggage!"

"What about me?" Tracey pointed to himself like he was part of the team.

"We just need those who are trainers Tracey. Maybe next time" and with that the young lady slammed the door shut and yelled to the driver, "STEP ON IT!!"

With that van off to wherever, Brock and the other scientists waved farewell while Tracey sulked himself in a small corner. "(Sniff) Just because I'm not a trainer doesn't mean I'm not part of the team (sniff)"

**(Downtown mall)**

The mall was no different from the other districts. When the trainers heard the announcement, they all dropped whatever they were going to buy and hastily made their way out of the building. Kevin however only let out a sigh when he came out. "Oh dear… it looks like the Valmarian league has begun already" he said calmly unlike the other trainers that were rushing out. With all the panic happening around the city, the blonde boy slowly pulled out his cell phone and dialed a familiar number. "Alfred, we are in need of a ride"

"Of course sir. Give me a minute" and then suddenly out of the darkness, a black limo appeared out of the blues like magic.

"Hmm… fast as usual Alfred" Kevin smirked as he entered the vehicle with his other three companions, and with all of them aboard they headed off towards the Arena District.

**(Downtown park)**

Even the silent parks of the city were in chaos. When the announcement occurred, trainers that did not have a wheel mode of transportation had to cut through the park to make time towards the Arena District. Along the path was of course Team Rocket.

"Hey, what's with all the ruckus?" Meowth questioned as he noticed the many trainers dashing like they in an emergency situation or something.

"Is it the end of the world already?" Jessie wondered as she looked up from her destroyed ice cream stand.

"It looks like the third round is beginning" James notified them, "I guess it's not a surprise since they delayed it for quite awhile now. This means that all the Pokemons trainers will be heading towards the Arena District"

"Well why don't we follow them?" Meowth recommended, "Where there's trainers there's got to be lots of Pokemons to steal, right?" the three of them grinned slyly.

"Now you're thinking Meowth" the red head girl beamed with delight, "Come on now. We wouldn't want to miss a gathering of a life time!" and with that they hopped off towards the Arena District to do a little dirty work.

**(Valmarian city gym)**

Gary and his gang were already prepared for the third round match ups. They expected it to be soon and I guess they were right all along. While the rest of the crew were waiting patiently at the entrance waiting for their leader, Emma let out a scoff, "Hey Gary, are you done yet? Come on, even women don't take this long to apply makeup!" Steve and Havic let out small chuckles together like they were a bunch of teenage college students. "Jaques, can you drag him out of there for me?"

The blonde flying-Pokemon trainer simply looked at her and said, "If Gary says wait… then we wait…"

And just before they could continue their conversation, the door to the gym opened up, revealing a slightly more muscular Gary. All the workout with his Pokemons made him into a living malice that was capable of striking an opponent a mile away. Just one look of his muscles already spelled doom and disaster to whoever tried to mess with him. "It's about time!" the Dark Queen remarked, "Come on, we're gonna be late"

The boss nodded back and instantly took lead, "Let's go…" and with that, they walked together in a five man formation, like a bunch of school thugs coming to battle with another group.

The pieces are coming together now……

All the players are in motion and the dices had been cast. The only question now is… who will the dice favor?


	64. OJT

Chapter 64: OJT

**Chapter 64: OJT! (On the Job Training!)**

**(Che'val-yere hotel lobby) (04:20 PM)**

It was all quiet today at the hotel lobby of Che'val-yere. The rooms were empty, the restaurant was cut down and not even the tiniest squeak could be heard from the rest room of the hotels. However… on one of the tables of the hotel, one particular group of trainers and coordinators were present to discuss the next move of their plan.

It was none other… than Ash's gang.

Usually this particular group of trainers would be bustling with news of excitement and joy. They would be talking, yelling arguing and even strategizing with one another, but right now… nothing was being passed through the mouths of the trainers.

Johanna, Cynthia, Norman, Anabel and Zoey were sitting on one side and Soledad, May, Dawn, Paul, Kenny, Richie and Duplica were sitting on the other side and the one who was dabbed right in the middle of the whole discussion was Ash who sat alone on the central sofa with professor Oak, Burch, Ivy, Elm and Rowan and of course the boy's personal advisor and friend, Brock. The rest of the gang were not participating in the league simply watched them from the next door table.

Everyone had their hands on their chins and normally this would mean that they were planning on something big, but right now all they could think about was the third preliminary match which came to a big surprise to all of them.

"So, does anyone have any idea on what to do?" asked Ash who seemed rather uncomfortable with all the silence. The gang noticed his discomfort and decided to stress out a bit.

"Well, not really" Richie admitted, "I've battled with a partner before, but it never really worked out for me"

"A tag team battle huh…" Drew muttered as he focused his heart and mind to the task, "Never had one of those before, but if it's the rules then I guess we don't have much of a choice"

"But this could turn out to be a problem" Brock stated out suddenly, "Choosing a partner for battle isn't something that you can just pull out of hat. When you pick a partner, you have to be in total synch with that other person or else your form will be a total disaster. It's like trying to find your perfect match"

The others agreed to the young man's theory but Paul simply let out a sarcastic huff. Back when he first double battled with Ash during the Shinou double battle tournament they were probably the least of best partners. They both had different motives and totally different styles of battling that they became an individual pair rather than a team. Paul was merely focused on power, strength and brute force while Ash was constantly going for tactic, strategy and balance. If the two of them had concentrated on being partners then the tournament would've been an easy win for both of them.

"Well then…" Cynthia stated suddenly, "So how are we going to pick out our partners? We can't wait forever. Remember what the rules said?"

Surprisingly for all of them, it was Max who had the info of the match. Usually Brock would be the one to bring them the information, since he was the guy who always had the guidebook, but sadly, Valmarian city did not have an official guidebook.

"Well according to the rules, a trainer must have a partner before Thursday this week" Max explained thoroughly, "Any trainer or coordinator without a partner by then will be paired with another person from there"

"Hmm… interesting" Drew muttered, "So we have two days to find our own partners huh"

"I guess we'll just have to pair up with one another then" Ash admitted.

"Well then, I guess I'll just have to be your partner Ash" Soledad cooed to him closely.

"We do?" the boy said questioningly.

"Of course, since we live so close to each other, it'll be perfect! Right?" she sent out a silent eye message to Johanna and Caroline who were sitting together by the sofa. Little did the girl know that the two of them were carrying frying pans, kunais, and shurikens in their pouches.

"Wait" Max called out to them, "There's a special rule too!"

"A special rule?" May questioned.

"Yeah! If by some condition a partner is not found, a trainer may also be allowed to bring in a disqualified member of the Valmarian league. The two trainers may combat together but only the one who is still registered can advance to the next round"

"What does that mean?" Kenny questioned

"It means we'll be seeing a lot of old faces at the next round" Paul grumbled, "So how are we going to do this? Should we draw straws?"

But before the gang could conjure up any more bright ideas on who to pair with one another, a familiar voice came in, "Do you mind if I made a suggestion?" it was non other than Delia, Ash's mother.

"Mom?" Ash said quizzled.

"I heard about the third preliminary round and noticed that you were all arguing who to partner with, so I made this" she pulled out a top hat from back and showed it to the gang. They then noticed there were a bunch of torn colored papers inside the hat. "It's a game I learned when I was about your age Ash" Delia explained, "There are different colors in there and which ever pair picks up the same color then they'll be partners. How's that sound?"

"Hmmm that's a great idea" professor Oak agreed wholeheartedly, "It'll be fair and like they say, if your mind can't decide, then let luck be your guide"

"Yes, that's a wonderful idea!" Johanna yelled out in agreement, "You really know how to decide things evenly Delia" she then sent another eye message to Soledad who glared back at her with an equally powerful gaze.

The gang looked at each other for a moment and hesitantly agreed with the plan. It was childish, but heck, if it could get them to decide who to partner with then they're all for it.

"Ok, I guess we could try it" Ash submitted and gently put his hand into the hat. He felt the ruffling of papers and licked his lips just like his Gligar does, and when he finally pulled out a paper, he noticed that it was, "Blue…" he said flatly.

"I guess it's my turn" Richie added as he pulled a piece of paper out of the hat. He covered it, not wanting the others to see what it was.

"Ok, you're turn Drew" Delia gestured to the green haired boy who sat quietly on his chair. He ruffled through the hat and pulled out another piece of paper and like Richie, he hid it to himself for a moment.

Duplica, Anabel and Dawn came next and they didn't have any problem in picking out the pieces, although they faces did show a little hint of disappointment. That alone was enough to say that they didn't get the color blue.

"Your turn Paul" Dawn gestured to the purple haired ex-emo-boy who didn't find this game interesting.

"This is childish…" he muttered out silently before forcing his hand into the hat. He felt that most of the papers were taken already so that mean only a few of them were left. "Alright, I got mine" also like the others he hid his own color so that he could reveal it later.

After a couple of more rounds with the others, Soledad came next. From a close proximity, you could practically hear her muttering, "Please be blue please be blue please be blue please be blue" she was praying to the great power above so much that it actually worked. When she pulled out her color she didn't even have the courage to even look at it.

Once everyone got their color, Delia let out a smile, "Ok, that's everyone. Everybody, please show us your colors!" and with the count of three, everyone showed their colors to each other.

When Soledad looked at her paper, she noticed that it was… blue. "YEAH! I got blue!" but her yell of victory was cut short when Johanna stepped in.

"That's impossible!" the young mother yelled, "You probably rigged the game didn't you!"

"As if!" Soledad countered with a wide smirk, "This only means that lady luck is with me today. I didn't even need to cheat for a game this simple" and right before the gang could even tell what was happening, the two girls began chowing each other down like animals. Their behavior was so out of order that Brock was glad no one else was around to see this. This was just too humiliating for two professional contest champions to be acting.

But just when the two of them were about to tear each other's hair out, Cynthia suddenly noticed the paper Soledad was carrying and compared it to hers. "Uh oh…" she said before stopping the two of them, "Hold it you two" she literally separated the two of them before they could do anymore damage to themselves because of a little misunderstanding. "Soledad, it looks like you got your color wrong"

"Huh?" the two Pokemon contest champ said in unison.

"Your color isn't blue, it's actually light blue, like mine" the blonde champ then showed her, her own paper which was identical to hers. Soledad's face immediately paled like she just turned into a ghost or something. She really thought that she had won, but it looks like someone beat her to it.

Johanna then recouped herself before stating, "Well if she didn't get blue, then… who did?"

"No me" Dawn replied almost instantly, "I got purple"

"Hey, me too!" May squealed before showing the same colored paper to her. "Looks like we're partners again"

Johanna then turned her attention to Richie who simply waved his color out, "Sorry, but I got red. Anyone here got red?"

Paul scoffed out loud as he pulled his color out, "Great… just when I thought this day couldn't get any worse"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Nothing… just try to keep up with me, alright?" the emo-boy replied a little disappointed that he couldn't be paired up with a better trainer. If he was paired with Ash again then they just might have a bigger chance of getting through the third and fourth round than the others.

Kenny was next to show his color, "I got yellow, who here got yellow?" he then noticed Drew coolly showing his paper to his.

Anabel, the Salon Battle Maiden then noticed that Duplica had her colors as well, "Well, it looks like we'll be partners for the next match"

As the rest of the gang paired up with one another, Ash soon found himself wondering… who was his partner. He looked around but no one seemed to be approaching him. "Hey… it looks like the others got their partners, but where's mine? (Pika pikachu)" his little yellow companion was also wondering where the boy's partner was.

Noticing this, Johanna decided to find out, "Well, if all of you have their own partners, then… who's mine?" she then noticed that Norman, was waving embarrassingly at her. At first she thought that it was just a friendly wave, but when she noted the colored paper in his hands, her face paled almost the same as Soledad. "No way… no… nonononononononononononono!" she shrieked out loud before stomping on the man himself, "Of all the people, it had to be you!? I'd rather pick my partner out of a garbage dumpster!" (Ouch…)

"Wait a second" Cynthia called to their attention, "If all of you guys have the same color than who…?" they all looked around for a minute in search for the lucky one to get paired with Ash and just when they thought of redoing the whole procedure again, Zoey's hand rose up in the air to catch their attention.

"Umm… I got blue" she said quietly to them before conjuring another silence to the entire gang.

**(Time skip) (1 hour) (Arena District)**

After the gang agreed to the arrangements of the partners, they decided to head off to the Arena District to get themselves registered for the next preliminary round. Johanna and the others didn't mind Zoey being Ash's partner since they all considered her a neutral player in the war. In fact, some of the members were even glad that it was Zoey, because if one of the real players got him then the balance of the war would tilt over one side indefinitely.

Luckily for all of them, Soledad managed to bring her grandfather's van, which was able to fit the entire group, but just barely. Once they were all in, the partners began discussing their tactics and moves with one another.

"Sorry about that Ash" Zoey apologized knowing full well that she was late in announcing her own colors. "Everyone was so loud that I didn't even know what was going on"

But Ash simply waved it off with a smile and a small sweat drop, "Oh that's ok, I didn't know what was going on either. Sometimes, it's hard to even understand what they're all saying at once huh. Ahehehehehe (Pikachu…) But anyway, the third round is finally starting and that's what counts, right guys?" the others simply let out a positive sound amongst themselves.

"Yeah" May added, "Besides, battling together is way more fun than battling alone"

"And the chances of you guys fighting each other will be pretty slim too" Brock notified them, "With everyone bringing partners around the coordinator and trainer sides, I think it'll be around 1/100,000 for you guys to meet as opponents"

"But it isn't going to be easy" Cynthia stated out seriously which caught their attention, "Since it's going to be a tag team battle then that means our opponents we'll be twice as hard to defeat. It also means we're going to have to become twice as strong as well"

"If it's getting stronger that you need, then that won't be a problem for me" Paul replied with a small smirk, "I'm used to becoming stronger"

"Yeah, but in the wrong way" Dawn added with a huff sound at the end.

"Well in any case, we all can expect our opponents to become stronger than before" Soledad finished off as she parked the van inside the district. "Alright, here we are. There are three registration blocks in this area, so we'll meet back here in an hour ok?"

"Right" the gang said together before moving out to their own respective registration boards.

The registration areas were built right next to the Pokemon centers and some of them were settled in the other popular areas, like J's place and the fast food joints. Tables and computers were lined up in six rows and a file of two people stretched out farther than they could imagine. It didn't matter where you looked in this district. In every turn and in every corner, you would see a trainer occupying every available space that was free.

As Ash approached one of the registration areas, he noticed that there was another pair waiting in line, "Hmm?" he looked at them and realized that they looked somewhat familiar from behind. There was one tall guy and a short chubby guy with orange hair right next to him.

"Is something wrong Ash?" Zoey noticed the boy's strange stare at the guys in front of them. "Is it someone you know?"

"Maybe…" he replied a little unsure, but when the two of them turned their faces to him the boy instantly recognized them with a glance. "Hey, could it be? It is! Hey, Harrison, Morrison, over here!" the mere mention of their name immediately made the two trainers turned their heads to the sound of the voice.

"Hey, it's Ash!" Morrison, the chubby Pokemon trainer with a large appetite was first to notice, "How ya doing Ash? Or should I say, champ?"

"I'm great! Ahehehe, it's nice to see again Morrison, how ya been?"

"The same as ever" Harrison answered for him, "Still hungry as a Munchlax and a great trainer"

"Hey, he didn't need to know that!" the chubby guy fumed, "Anyway Ash, I saw your battle with Binor a few weeks ago. Awesome work. I guess this shouldn't be surprise for the world's greatest champion"

The boy in question simply rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, "Oh, I'm not that great, aehehehehe" he then noticed his red head partner looking at them with a slightly puzzled face, "Oh and let me introduce you to my partner. Harrison, Morrison, this is Zoey, she's a Pokemon coordinator. Zoey, this is Harrison, one of the top four in the Hoenn league and Morrison, one of the top six-teen also in the Hoenn league" the three of them exchanged handshakes with one another and smiled.

"Nice to meet you" the red head stated with her Glameow.

"The pleasure's all ours" Harrison replied, "You're pretty lucky to have Ash as your partner. He's one of the best Pokemon trainers I know"

"We should know, we battled before" Morrison added before looking at his watch, "Oh, look at the time. Sorry, but we have to go Ash, we got a lot of training to catch up on later today. We'll see you in the semi-finals and you bet I won't hold anything back like last time!"

"Hey, I don't expect anything less from a rival! Bring it on anytime, anywhere!" the two boys quickly lock hands with one another giving out a challenging glare with one another. After the two trainers from Hoenn left them, Zoey became quite curious on how many rivals Ash really have. When she heard about Paul and Richie she thought that two of them were enough, but it seemed like wherever the boy went, he had a rival somewhere in every city like he was some kind of wanted man or something. Maybe this was how the boy got famous in the first place. To be known by so many talented trainers and coordinators and having his fame spread throughout the world through them was probably an unconscious strategy of his.

"Those are some pretty tough rivals you got there Ash" she said finally when they were out of sight.

"Yeah" he replied proudly, "But it doesn't matter how many there are. I'll just get stronger and reach for the top! It's as simple as that! (Pika pika pikachu!)" again, the boy showered his undying will to become the best of the best to the rest of the world, making everyone feel his own pride, dream and glory.

But Zoey simply chuckled as his childish dreams, _"Saying it is easy, doing it, will be a little harder than you think" _she thought to herself.

"_(sigh) How foolish"_ came another voice which Zoey heard, but when she looked at where the voice came from, she saw no one. The only one there was Ash's Lucario, which was simply following them. "Huh? Was I hearing things?" she said to herself.

"Hey, it looks like we're up next" Zoey quickly jerked her head around as she realized that they were next on the registration table. "Come on Zoey!"

"Huh? Oh yeah" she said a little drowsy.

As they handed out their Pokedex to the clerk, he quickly gave the two devices a quick scan before inputting some sort of code in the computer, "Alright, please present your Valmarian badges" he requested which the two trainers gladly complied. After another minute of checking up the smaller details, he quickly handed them back their Pokedex. "Alright, congratulation Ash and Zoey. You two are now officially registered for the third preliminary round. Please report back here in two days for the match ups (ping) Ok, here are the registrations" as the giant mega screen showed their faces, Ash and Zoey quickly scanned for their companions as well.

Ash-Zoey

Paul-Richie

May-Dawn

Johanna-Norman

Kenny-Drew

Duplica-Anabel

Cynthia-Soledad

Harrison-Morrison

"Hey look, there we are" Ash pointed out their faces, "And there's Paul, Cynthia and the others"

"Looks like we're all going to make it to the third round without any problem" Zoey replied before turning her attention back to the clerk.

"Alright then, your opponents and the arena you will be battling in will be sent through a mail on your Pokedex" the clerk explained, "Once you have received the mail, you have one hour to make it to the Arena District. If you do not come on time you will be disqualified from the match, and remember that you must have your Valmarian badges as well to participate or else it will take some time before we can get you a new one. Ok then, good luck you two, I hope I get to see you on the semi finals"

"Thanks, we will" Ash replied before heading off towards the van.

But on their way back, Zoey decided to get a little discussion, "So Ash, which Pokemon are you going to use for the next round?"

This of course got the boy into thinking. His mind was always into Pokemon battles anyway, so it didn't matter who brought the topic; he'll answer it honestly and without any hesitation. "Well, I don't know yet. We barely know anything about our next opponent and it could probably be anybody for that matter"

"That's true" Zoey agreed, "But anything can happen in two days time. We're gonna have to get ready for anything"

"Hmm… maybe we should start training for tomorrow then" and then suddenly, an idea struck the boy's head almost literally. "Hey, why don't you stop by the Half Way Home Inn? We can use the training field there. I don't think Lewis would mind. We can work on our combinations there later this evening. How's that sound?"

The girl thought for a moment, and considered her options well. The sun was already setting and today they had spent all their energy on picking out their own partners. To train now would be a good idea, but saving their strength for tomorrow also sounded like a better plan.

"Hmm… alright then, it's a plan. We can have the others join us too" she said finally, "It'll be just like training back in the 2nd time in the Shinou league"

"Huh?"

Seeing that the boy didn't remember well about his past adventures, the young red head sighed, "Don't you remember back in the Pokemon center? Everyone was training and you and the Elite Four?"

"Well… not really"

Again, the girl sighed, "Never mind. Come on, I think the others are waiting for us by now" and while the gang gather together once more, they agreed to meet up at the Half Way Home Inn to get their battle up in gear. After resting and cooping up for so many days their skills may have gone rusty. Like wisemen always say, time heals all wounds, but the healing also comes with a price. It also clouds one's mind and ages one's body.

**(Somewhere nearby)**

Behind the bushes disguised as simple trash cans with strangely decorated lids, were none other than Jessie, James and Meowth of Team Rocket. Though they have been roughly forgotten by the people, their names still ring familiar to those who have experienced their dastardly deeds, first hand. Right now they have disguised themselves as simple street decorations to remain unsuspicious by the local security force, but the plan they have in mind was probably more sinister and more pathetic than their costumes.

"Wow… look at all them trainer" Meowth the team mascot stated first as he poked his head out of the gutter… literally.

"From what I can see here, there must be at least two or three thousand trainers" Jessie noted, "Right James? (silence) (grumble) James?"

James wanted to say something too but the lid on his disguised was tied too tight onto his head. "Help! The lid on this trash bin is cutting my oxygen supply!" the man was rattling his costume so much that it also attracted several trainers to them, but luckily, they all thought it was just their imagination.

After a few minutes, Jessie quickly took the lid off to let her incompetent partner breath the fresh but not so clean air. "Be quiet! Do you want the whole neighborhood to know that we're here!? (sigh) Anyway, just be on the look out for any rare Pokemons out there"

"That's gonna be easy" Meowth answered back, "With all these trainers running around with their Pokeballs, this place is a goldmine for rare Pokemons. Looks at those two, they're trading Pokemons already. And over there, that guy's got a Dratini around him, and that guy beside him has a Ninetails. They're all equally rare Pokemons and hard to breed that much I can tell"

But just when Meowth could add another to his list, James suddenly spotted a group which seemed pretty familiar to him, "Hey, speaking of rare Pokemons, there's a rare sight for you" he gestured to Ash's gang who were all assembling at the van Soledad drove. "It's the twerp… and he's not alone too"

"Looks like they're gathering strength in numbers" Jessie added with a grumbling sound, "That means it'll be a lot harder to capture Pikachu than before"

"We can always use one of our bots to try and take them on" Meowth suggested.

"We tried that already" James groaned as he counted with his fingers, "We used our robot machines fifty-two times, this year… use traps seventy times and head on attacks twelve times…"

"Who asked you to count you moron!?" Jessie roared out as she pound the guy with her own magical mallet. "Keep counting on our failures and we're sure to lose again!"

But then Meowth suddenly noticed that the gang were leaving, "Hey… it looks like they're leaving"

"Do you think they'll be heading back to the inn that the twerp with the Pikachu are staying?" James questioned

"Well, only one way to find out" the talking cat replied before putting the lid back on and moving out. Jessie followed behind and then James, but sadly he couldn't see where he was going due to the darkness.

"Ah! Oh no, the lid is cutting off my air circulation!"

**(Half Way Home Inn Dojo) (06:02 PM)**

Right after the gang got registered in the third preliminary round, the entire group decided to head off to the Half Way Home Inn for a little top down training. A practice today might actually prove useful for tomorrow.

The gang were teamed up against their own partners by Brock's recommendation. He thought that the best way to find out their partners own techniques was to have them battle each other. Even though the guy was a Pokemon breeder, he still had his talents on various Pokemon battle. I guess they would call him an expert since he was a gym leader before after all.

Since the place only had about three battlefields, the gang had to take their turn in practicing their matches. Norman and Johanna took the first set, followed by Paul and Richie and then Duplica and Anabel.

"Ok guys, you'll be battling each other from this point on" Brock briefed them, "This way, you'll be able to assess each other's battle tactics and so you'll be able to cooperate much better when fighting in a tag team match"

"An interesting theory" Nando prescribed, "Pairing them against themselves. I guess it's like they say. To know your enemies, you must first know your friends"

"Don't worry" Normal grinned heroically, "Johanna and I had plenty of battles during our time. We're so in synch that we're practically like brothers and sisters. Why… I even remember the time when she shaved her head and… (WHAM!) GOHHO!!" before the guy could even finish his sentence off, a large frying pan the size of a hammer slammed right onto his face, sending him down his corner of the field.

"Keep your stories to yourself, Norman!!" Johanna fumed.

But Dawn only let out a small sweat drop back at them as she sat on the sidelines having a cup of tea along with her Piplup and the rest of her companions, "Man… I never knew my mom had such a temper. Kind of reminds me of me… ahehe…"

On the other side of the dojo, Richie and Paul were also getting ready to battle. The two of them had sent their best Pokemons up front (Torterra and Sparky) and both looked like they were ready for anything.

"Bring it on Paul, I'm ready for ya!" Richie cheered himself on with a huge smirk on his lips.

But Paul didn't really find him a worthy opponent. He simply let out a fake yawn as he waved his hand off, "Yeah yeah, I heard ya the first time. Just try not to make this too boring ok?" but his overconfident attitude only made Richie fumed, "Hey! What's that supposed to mean?! You should take this battle seriously! I'm supposed to be your partner, remember?!"

"Please, just because you look like Ash doesn't mean you're as strong as he is" the Shinou trainers replied while letting out a sarcastic cough, "Besides, I can already read your technique just by reading your face"

"What?! Can't you show a little respect to your partner here!? Just because I'm not Ash doesn't mean you can treat me like a 'nobody' you second rate trainer!"

"What did you call me!?" and right then, the two of them began arguing about the most ridiculous things like two rivals should.

"Well what do you know" Brock held up a laugh, "They're acting just like real rivals hehehehe"

"They're certainly getting along quite well" Anabel chuckled at her side of the court, "You ready Duplica? I won't be holding anything back"

"Hey, that's just the way I want it!" the ace duplicator replied with a smirk, "Bring it on!"

With all the trainers ready for combat, Brock signaled the beginning of the first practice round, "Alright then… begin!" and with that, the three pairs began. With the entire gang assembled, they all fought together valiantly and with dignity. None of them held back even the slightest of power against their opponents. None felt the need to show the slightest remorse and not even the Pokemons would dare to think of leaving an ounce of their strength out of the fight. With the Valmarian league finally continuing after such a long period of stillness, they were all practically burning with excitement.

**(Uno Café)**

Gary and his crew were once again, assembled at their main stronghold, the Uno Café. A place so deep within their territory that only an idiot would dare come to this place, looking for a fight. Gary was surrounded by his most trusted men and from the looks of it, they were about to go to war.

The café manager didn't mind that they were holding a meeting there. He was already used to their presence and the other employees actually enjoyed their company. Whenever they met in a big group like this, it would always be exciting and it was always worthwhile to listen to what they have to say. To listen to the words of professionals trainers like them was awe inspiring.

Havic or as they call him the Spiked Armor, sat by his partner Steve who was as usual, doing the two things he liked the most. Eating and typing on his computer. They answered Gary's call almost immediately when they were given and yet they didn't know why they were even called here for.

Jaques, who was now referred to as Gary's personal bodyguard sat on the opposite side of the café, eyeing anyone suspicious who might enter this café and interrupt their meeting. He was Gary's partner for the third preliminary round and he didn't mind, he was so stubbornly loyal that he would even go rob the bank if Gary wanted to. But money wasn't really the problem right now.

Emma, who was also referred as the Dark Queen was forcibly paired up with Red, the least favorable member of the gang. Gary forcibly bribed her into going with him because the guy didn't trust him well enough to let him go on alone. He needed someone to keep an eye on him and luckily, Emma was just the girl to keep that eye on him.

Strangely enough, Brendan wasn't there to meet with them. He only told them that he had a friend who was sick in the hospital, but only idiots would actually believe that story.

With all the main members of the gang collected, Gary began, "Alright everyone, listen up" the crew stiffened as the boss rose from his seat. "The third round is starting and the matches are going to be tougher than before. We're going to need some new strategies if we want to defeat our opponents"

"Oh come on boss" Havic said in a singing voice, "You sound like you're expecting us to lose or something. We're the strongest group out in the city. The Bail Outs are no more and the Bicento Brothers are all scattered. It's only us and us alone"

"Yeah" Steve agreed, "And with you holding the final round, our victory's all in the bag"

"Idiots…" Emma muttered which everyone snapped to right away. "Haven't you guys been listening to the rumors going on around town? Other than listening to music and eating all the time, you might learn something" she then unwinds her leg to give herself some breathing room. "There's been rumors going around the city about a group of trainers who are participating in the Valmarian league. But not just any group. These trainers were once all champions of the Indigo Plateau, the best Kanto has to offer other than the usual Ash Ketchum"

"Oh yeah, I've heard about them too" Steve added, finally taking his time off his eating, "They say that those guys were supposed to be the next batch of Elite Four. They were all handpicked by the official Pokemon league about a year ago to be candidates. I hear they're also participating in the league but no one knows who they are" if Brendan was here right now, he would be laughing his heart out when he heard that.

"Oh, those guys" Havic noted shifting his sitting position. He placed his head on the chair and groaned, "Yeah, I've heard about them too. All I was able to get was that there are two boy and two girls in the group. They're gonna be a pretty tough team to beat"

"And let's not forget about Kevin and his lackeys too" Gary motioned as he returned to his seat with his arms crossed. "He might not have that much power anymore but he's still has his Elite Five gang along with him and that alone makes him a threat" the group let out a respective nod all together. They had to admit, even Kevin could give them a run for their money.

"But that's not all" Jaques spoke up as he sat there silently on his seat, "I've also been hearing another disturbing rumor as well…… (pause) Does the name White Bandits, mean anything to you?"

"White Bandits?" Steve answered, "You mean that group of trainers that have been stealing Pokemons from around the country?"

"The same one…" Jaques replied coolly, "There's been a rumor going on about a group of three white haired kids going on around the city lately. The police think that it might be the White Bandits"

"Don't you think that it could just be some wannabes?" Havic chuckled, "I mean come on. Even Brendan has white hair. Are you saying that he could be a member of that… group?" he was saying it first, but after thinking on what he said, the gang couldn't help but wonder: Who was Brendan anyway?

"Could he?" Steve questioned which was followed by a shrug from the boss.

"Nah, I don't think Brendan's part of that group" Red said finally after remaining quiet for some time now. "Trust me, I know him for a long time now and he has more than enough Pokemons NOT to be a thief"

**(Half Way Home Inn) (09:25 PM)**

Hours passed and time did not stand still for our young heroes. They all worked hard and they all trained hard. Even with the night being young, they could not help but give it their all in this fight.

The dojo was literally torn inside out. Giant holes, burnt marks, scratches and broken pieces of stones littered the place obviously from the practice battles the gang had been doing. The two fields on the left and right sides were utterly decimated by the last pair and the one in the center that used to be a rock field was flattened into a field of sand and dust. If Lewis saw the state of the dojo now, Soledad wouldn't be surprised if her old man got a heart attack. I mean, it took the old guy weeks just to get this place up and they all came in and destroyed it in mere hours.

"Prinplup is no longer able to battle! This match goes to Drew!" Brock announced as Kenny's Prinplup submitted to Drew's Absol's might.

As the two coordinators returned their Pokemons to their Pokeballs, they met up at the center of the field to give each other a good handshake. "An excellent match Drew, you really did earn that place as top six-teen in the grand festival"

"You too" the green haired boy replied, "Your Pokemons really are made for contest battles. I think we'll do just fine in the third round"

As the two of them left to discuss further about their battle strategy, Brock looked around to see if anyone else hadn't battled. It was getting pretty late and the night wasn't exactly getting any younger until tomorrow. "Alright guys, it looks like we only have enough time for one last match. Ash, Zoey, you guys are up next"

"Alright!" the young champion to be cheered out loud. "You ready Pikachu? We're gonna give it everything we've got (Pika pika!)" the little mouse let out a cheer of his own as he gave out a thumbs up to his master.

With both contestants on the battlefield, Zoey quickly summoned out her Glameow to do battle. "Alright Ash, don't hold anything back just because we're friends. I won't be holding anything back either"

"Hey you know me. I never hold anything back no matter who my opponents are! Let's go Pikachu! (Pikachu!)" and with the little mouse on the field, the others began cheering on them. Dawn's Buneary and Anabel's Espeon were all rooting for Pikachu, which made the little guy blush with embarrassment.

Zoey stood on her pedestal smirking, knowing full well who her opponent was. Ash on the other hand was standing along with some of his Pokemons and as ever, his personal bodyguard Rosa stood by his side, guarding her master with diligence and pride.

"Go Ash, go Zoey, do your best!" Dawn cheered for them.

As Brock looked at both of the trainers, he knew right away that they were ready. With a wave of his hand he yelled out, "Begin!" to signal the beginning to practice battle.

"Pikachu/Glameow, quick attack!" the two trainers ordered out to which their Pokemons obeyed. They both wanted to begin their battle with a little fast paced attack. The attacks collided but neither of them affected the other opponent greatly.

"Alright Pikachu, give it a thunder bolt attack!" the little yellow mouse quickly shot our a quick bolt of electricity at Glameow.

"Dodge it Glameow and counter with shadow claw!" even with the speed of light Glameow seemed to match up with speed against Ash's Pikachu. The cat like Pokemon managed to dodge the attack, and quickly showed a shadow claw attack.

"Pikachu, use agility and dodge it!" Pikachu quickly vanished from sight and leaped out of the way, "Good work! Now use volt tackle!" trying to make use of the momentum, Pikachu immediately charged with electyricity covering his body.

But Zoey wasn't planning on getting the first hit. "Glameow, use shock wave now!" but just when Glameow was about to do what she command, a strange feeling suddenly surged through her body. A feeling of warmth and determination. It was a weird combination, but ignoring that, she quickly changed her command. "Wait, Glameow, use shadow ball on Pikachu, now!"

"Huh?" the crowd gasped. "Hey, why did Zoey change her orders?" Dawn said slightly puzzled.

"Dunno" Brock answered equally confused as well.

But for some strange reason, Ash knew that Zoey had made the right decision in changing her attacks. If she had used shock wave then, he would've had the upper hand using the electricity it gave out. The two attacks met up and exploded in mid ground. But thanks to that attack, it looks like Pikachu had taken most of the impact.

"Alright, Glameow, use iron tail!" with Pikachu unable to react to attack, Ash had to think of another way to fight back and luckily for him, he still had one thing to fight back.

"Pikachu, jump and spin with the wind!" utilizing his spinning technique again, Pikachu leaped in and followed the iron tail attack and dodged it but just barely. "Good work Pikachu now use tackle attack!" with Glameow on its back, Pikachu had no problem in hitting the cat out of the gutter.

"Glameow, are you ok? (nyaar meow)" the cat replied with a smirk, "Alright then, let's keep going! We can still continue. Let's show em one of our combinations! Use, shadow ball on the ground!" her Pokemon immediately unleashed one of its most powerful attacks onto the floor, creating a huge fume of dust to cover the field.

"Whoa, what power!" Richie stated while covering his face from the particles. "She must be trying to create a fog to blind Pikachu!"

Ash had to agree with Richie on this one. The tactics she used maybe unusual but it was brilliant nonetheless. Usually, Ash would be able to clear a fog like this with one of his special moves, but having sand and dust collected all together makes it a lot more difficult to manage. "Darn… I can't see anything through this fog and Pikachu can't sense anything at all. But Glameow has great hearing abilities and not to mention eyesight. She could attack from anywhere" but just as Ash was thinking of a way to counter this threat, he suddenly felt a strange warmth deep inside him bulging up. He could feel another presence within him and it was a lot different from the time when Hsa, took control of him. This time it was warm and passionate… like he was in one of the inn's famous hot springs. "Wait a minute…… she's attacking… from above! Pikachu use iron tail upward now!"

The little guy heard the order and immediately used iron tail upward. And just as Ash suspected, Glameow appeared from above with its tail curled up to form a spring. But that wasn't the end for Zoey's attack. "Now Glameow, use thunder bolt!" and thanks to Pikachu's tail entangled with Glameow's tail, the attack had a point blank shot which affected the little electrical mouse greatly. "Alright, it worked!"

"Wha… what happened?" Max asked to whoever could decipher what just happened a few minutes ago.

"That combination Zoey used was a tricky one" Brock explained, "She used the dust to cover her attack, but she knew that Ash's thunder wave attack would be able to hit her no matter where she came from. That's why she attacked from above to gain advantage against Pikachu's tail. Even though thunderbolt was an electric type attack, a point blank shot like that might actually be able to hurt Pikachu"

"Zoey really isn't pulling any punches" Drew added noticing the red head's determination to defeat her opponent. "It's not surprising seeing that she's a coordinator after all"

"If she fought like that back in the Kanto Grand Festival, she might've also defeated me" Soledad admitted seeing how well she planned her strategy.

But just when Zoey thought this match was hers, her smile dropped down and was replaced with a face of confusion and surprise when the fog finally cleared out. "What the?!"

The same expression could then be found on everyone's faces too.

When the fog finally cleared up, they could see that there was a giant hole made deep on the group. Obviously this thing was made by the thunderbolt attack Glameow shot out from its tail, but by some miracle, Pikachu was able drag himself out of the area of impact and escape the explosion just barely. The two Pokemons still had their tails entwined with one another which gave Ash the advantage.

"Alright Pikachu, let's finish this match quickly! Throw it up in the air!" and with Glameow so high in the air, it was not able to mount any kind of attacks. "And now use volt tackle roulette!" as the little guy charged up its electrical batteries, Pikachu began jumping from one section of the battlefield to the other, hitting Glameow repeatedly over and over again. The attack was so fast and so furious that it even made Gary's hydro beam cannon look like a firecracker. After seven rounds of attack, Pikachu finally stopped, landing on the ground in a cool way.

"Whoa! What an attack!" Tracey said extremely amazed, "I didn't see him make that one back at professor Oak's lab!"

"He must've made that on the spot" Brock smiled, "That's Ash for ya. Making things up as he goes. He always thinks on his feet. But I don't think Zoey's Glameow is out of the fight just yet"

And to the boy's truth, Zoey still had some fighting spirit left in her. "Glameow, spin around hurry!" Glameow quickly used its tail and began spinning around, and soon dodged Pikachu's powerful volt tackle roulette attack. "Good work Glameow, keep it up!"

"Even after so much damage, Zoey's Glameow still has the strength to fight" Norman stated slightly impressed by the cat's immense strength. Even after taking so many hits by Pikachu, it still stood firm but a little shaken by the attack. When both Pokemons returned to their respective sides of the field, Zoey decided to take the next move.

"Alright Glameow, use furry swipe!"

"Pikachu, iron tail one more time!" again the two attacks collided and it only managed to cancel each other out. "Ok Pikachu, let's show her what we're made off! Charge in with volt tackle!"

"Glameow, use shadow claw!" the balance of power was equal and none seemed to laying out any punches off this round. The two trainers kept attacking each other over and over again, but neither side seemed to falter. By then the gang knew that this match had turned into a battle NOT of strength and power, but of stamina and concentration. Unless one side plans to does something unusual, this fight wasn't going to shift until one of the Pokemons lose focus or energy.

"Man, what an awesome battle" Max muttered, "Neither of them are giving a chance for an opening"

"Yeah, this battle could take awhile" May agreed.

"And using that array of attack gives Zoey the advantage too" Cynthia cooed while crossing her arms and legs, "With her Glameow attacking repeatedly after another, Ash won't be able to use Pikachu's absorb ability to recover. She's pressuring him so that she could take the upper hand"

"So it means that Zoey's got Ash by a foot lock" Norman clarified to the others, "By stopping Pikachu's true potential from coming out, she levels the playing field evenly. (sigh) That's one heck of a battle strategy she's got there"

"_What's going on?"_ Zoey thought to herself, _"I can barely see Ash's movements but I know what he's going to do next. What's this strange feeling I'm getting?"_

And while the battle raged on, Rosa suddenly began to see an omnimous glow coming from Zoey's body. "Hmm?" she raised a brow of suspicion thinking that it was nothing more but her imagination, _"Strange, could that be… an aura?"_ as she looked closer at the girl's inner spirit, the glow became more visible to the spiritual eye. "It is… it is an aura. A powerful one too…" the young Guardian muttered silently to herself.

Seeing that battle was turning anywhere, Ash decided that it was time for him to tilt the scale. He was going to do what he loved doing best on a battlefield…

Gamble…

A simple technique that only has two answers. If he succeeds than the possibility of him winning would go up and if he fails than losing was something that might just be possible. But hopefully, lady luck was still with him today, "Ok. It looks like I'm gonna have to turn the table around! Pikachu, jump into the sky now!" as Pikachu dodged another one of Glameow's shadow ball attack, it quickly leaped high into the air where it was most vulnerable to attacks.

"What the?" Zoey was caught up with the surprise move, "What is he…" and then again, the strange feeling returned to her once more, but this time it was hotter and more fearsome than before. "He's………… Galmeow, you jump up too!" immediately both the cat and mouse Pokemon were in the air and their eyes brimmed with strength and determination.

"NOW! Use iron tail!" the two trainers said in unison.

Both Pikachu and Glameow used their iron tails again and again in mid air and from the looks from below, it seemed that they were equal in power. When they finally land back on the ground, Zoey planned a step ahead to keep her level of the game in check.

After another minute or so, the two Pokemons began to show signs of fatigue with each other. Their breathing became more rhythm, and their sweat glands worked its way up to their skin.

But even with these kind of odds, Zoey still believed that she had a chance of winning. Silently she signaled Glameow to fake an opening to which to bait Ash out. It worked most of the time during her contest battles but it looks like it wasn't going to work on her new opponent. From years of experience and studious learning, Ash learned that sometimes the trickiest tricks are the ones easiest to spot.

It was right at that moment when Zoey finally realized Ash's true techniques. "I get it now" she muttered softly, barely enough for anyone to hear. _"At first I thought that Ash relied solely on tactics and combination strategies, but he's actually quite different. He switches tactics every time he makes a move on his opponents, which makes him unpredictable. I guess that must be the reason why he's the world champ. He really has change since we last met back in the Shinou region. I don't think Glameow will be able to hold much longer either"_

"This is incredible" Ash thought, "Zoey's way stronger than I could've imagined. With all that power and combination tactics she'd make a great Pokemon trainer. But it's strange………… she knows exactly I'm going to do next. Weather its guard or a simply attack she can switch her attacks almost immediately. I guess I'll have to get creative on this one"

But then suddenly, Zoey decided to make the first move, "Glameow, let's finish this battle once and for all! Use hit and piece combination! Shadow ball and thunderbolt together!" and with that Glameow obeyed and fired two shots at the same time.

"Hey, that's the same combination she used to defeat me back in the Twinleaf town Bake Off" May noted.

"Yeah and it looks like she's gonna use it against Ash" Cynthia added.

As the double attack approach Pikachu, Ash had to think of a counter quick or he can kiss this match goodbye. Even though he was facing certain defeat, the boy had to admit that this was indeed an awesome move Zoey had created. Utilizing every aspect of Glameow's body was indeed a remarkable achievement; he even entertained the thought that she'd actually be a better trainer than a coordinator.

But just before Ash was going to admit defeat, he quickly remembered one of the battles he had a long time ago. Back when he was traveling in the Hoenn regions with his friends, he fought against three gym leaders all at once with his Pikchu and they had powerful Pokemons with them. He faced more than three attacks at once but they were not exactly coordinated like Zoey's. Her attacks were planned and strategize step by step making sure that there were no rooms for mistake. If he orders Pikachu to dodge, it would only create an opening for her to take, and if he takes the attack head on it'll just inflict more damage against him.

"Darn, looks like there's no way out of this one… (ting) Wait…… maybe there is. Pikachu use thunder shock on the ground!" Pikachu gladly obeyed and unleashed a powerful electrical shock around itself, creating a small dustbowl beneath him. A few seconds before the attack was delivered, Pikachu suddenly vanished from sight.

It was almost like watching magic. With a puff of smoke, the little yellow mouse was gone in a blink of an eye.

"W… what the? Where'd Pikachu go?" Zoey said in shock as she scanned the battlefield. "Where's he coming from? The sides? (gasp) From above!?" she looked up to the roof but saw nothing but the ceiling light. "No? Then where'd he?" as she looked back at where Pikachu had vanished, Ash's smirk caught her eyes. "Wait… from… Glameow, jump out!"

"Not quick enough!" Ash barked confidently, "Pikachu, now use thunderbolt full power!!" in a move that surprised everyone in the room, a powerful thunderbolt suddenly emerged directly beneath Glameow's foot. Before the cat Pokemon had a chance to react it was already far too late. The damage had been done and explosion that happened in the aftermath sent Glameow flying halfway through the air.

"Oh no Glameow!"

As Brock looked over at Glameow's side, he could instantly tell that the battle was over. He then waved his arms up and signaled the results, "Glameow is no longer able to battle, the round goes to Ash of Pallet town"

"Alright, great work Pikachu!" Ash cheered as his buddy climbed back onto his head. "Good job ahahahaha"

But as the trainers recuperated from the battle, the other members of the gang couldn't help but wonder what had just happened. "Whoa, how did Ash attack Glameow from below?" Richie wondered.

"Idiot, isn't it obvious?" Paul huffed again with his arms crossed. "When Pikachu used its thunderbolt on the ground, he dug a hole and made his way directly under Glameow. Thanks to the fog cover made by Zoey's attack, it created the perfect diversion for him to sneak in without being noticed. It's kind of like using a dig attack but a lot faster"

"Well, I guess that's what we should all expect from a guy like Ash" Dawn praised him, "He always thinks of something new every time. I wonder where he gets all these ideas from"

"My guess would be from all that movies he's been watching" Max joked followed by a series of laughs from the others.

After the dust of battle finally disappeared, Zoey returned Glameow to its Pokeball, "Great job Glameow, you really held your ground back there" the two partners then approach each other at the center of the field. "You were awesome as always Ash" she began, "I guess Harrison was right. I guess I am lucky to have you as a partner. You switch your strategies every time you make an attack and you always think about your Pokemon's safety first"

"That's right" Ash nodded back in reply, "And your strategy is mainly focused on using combinations and attack strength. I got to say that I'm glad you're not my opponent Zoey"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

As the gang finally finished off their training session, Brock gestured them that it was time to head on back to the hotel to get some rest. They were going to have a big day tomorrow and they were gonna need every ounce of energy they can muster. By the time they got to the entrance of the inn, two taxis had already lined up for them.

"That was a great match you guys" Ash praised his comrades along with the rest of the H.W.H inn employees and their Pokemons, "I'll see you guys later at the third round"

"You bet Ash" Zoey replied with a small handshake. "I'll come by later tomorrow so we can have another training session, ok?"

"Great, I'll see you then" when the young red head coordinator strapped herself in, the convoy drove off, sending the young trainers back to their hotel.

"Bye Ash, see you tomorrow" Max waved off from the taxi. "I'll be sure to watch your battle, youcan count on me cheering for you!!"

But as the gang waved their final farewells to the young champion, they did not notice that three figures was spying on them from the rooftop of the Pokemon center next door.

"Looks like they're gone" said James as he watched through his binoculars. The entire team was now dressed up as camouflaged soldiers complete with helmets. They had been waiting patiently on that rooftop for hours now. At first they planned to jump into the compound and swipe Pikachu from under their noses, but seeing that they had the upper hand in numbers they all decided to play it smart and wait for the gang to split up.

"Now's our chance to swipe that Pikachu and all the other them Pokemons" Meowth added putting on his camo-helmet. "Let's dive in while their guard's down and take them"

But before the little villain could drop in, Jessie pulled him by his uniform collar and stayed his hands, "Hold your horses soldier" she cooled the cat Pokemon down, "Let's wait a little bit longer. Even if the twerp is all alone, those Pokemons are surely gonna pack a punch. Let's wait for them to fall asleep, then we'll go and swipe those Pokemons. A surprise attack always needs it momentum"

"Hmm… you're right Jess" James agreed a little surprised on how serious Jessie was taking this mission. She never acted this way unless there was a sale on the shoe store in the mall. "I never would've thought of that"

**(Time skip) (30 minutes after the gang left the inn)**

Dinner was served late this night at the Half Way Home Inn. With the gang being there and the training round in session, Soledad wasn't able to prepare a meal for the hungry employees of the compound. In truth she did this on purpose because she didn't want to cook for the whole gang until they were gone. She had a knack for cooking thanks to her being the chef of the restaurant, but cooking for Ash was already enough of a challenge for her. The boy had the appetite of an army and that alone proves that he was just a growing child. And not to mention that they had another employee in the troupe as well.

Nando the harpist was now part of the crew. Though he had yet to prove his talents to Lewis, he didn't mind staying at the rundown inn at all. The guy had already moved in the room next to where Ash was staying and of course he brought his own line of clothings as well. Every member of the H.W.H inn were all gathered at one table eating together happily like one big happy family.

"Sorry for the late dinner you guys" Soledad bowed her head with an apologetic smile. "Because of the training session, I forgot to prepare dinner for everyone"

But Ash didn't mind. He could actually eat any time of day and still he wouldn't feel much difference. "That's ok Soledad. We were just so busy that we didn't even look at the time ahehehehe"

"Well lucky for all of you that I didn't open the restaurant today" Lewis grunted as he ate, "Tomorrow, you guys are working double time, you hear me!?" he said in a comical fume. "Really, you children are all the same. All play and never really any work. They should really ban the word fun out of this world hmph"

"Oh quiet grandpa" Soledad scolded, "Hurry up and eat before your food gets cold"

"Don't tell me what to do young lady. Seriously, you kids need to learn how to respect your elders too! What's wrong with the world nowadays!?" the old man then began to shout out loud with fake tears coming down his eyes. "What happened to the good old days where we elders were respected by the young? What happened to the little girl that used to run around and call me baldy!? WAHHH!"

"Grandpa!!"

"My my… they're… certainly an interesting bunch" Nando said through sweat drops. "They must really be close ahehehehe"

"Yeah…" Ash said with an even bigger sweat drop, "But sometimes I can't really tell that if they love each other or hate each other completely. I guess every family has its own uniqueness ahehehehehe"

And with that another day was done…

With the third preliminary round just right around the gang prepare themselves for one match that they will never forget. For weeks they have been preparing for this and now, it was coming faster than they could imagine.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

But while Ash and his friends continue to munch down inside the restaurant, Rosa stood atop the building and looked afar through the dome that covered the skies. Ever since she realized that Zoey had an aura surrounding her, she became slightly worried about the situation around her. She no longer possessed any power therefore she could not contact Hagard and the others. She was alone and the presence of another Aura user has disturbed her conscious.

She first thought that Ash and Zoey were the only ones with auras, but as she delved her eyes deeper into the city, she could sense about six, maybe even seven-teen more auras being emanated from different locations.

"So many aura Guardians in one city" she muttered silently to herself. "I wonder what's going to happen now…"


End file.
